11-year-old Luis Orlando Ruiz Medina excels in Spanish Spelling Bee, preserving his heritage and language

School's out for summer, but 11-year-old Luis Orlando Ruiz Medina is still hard at work. The recent Copperfield Elementary School graduate and soon-to-be sixth-grader is gearing up for the national Spanish Spelling Bee in El Paso on June 26. He's the sole representative from Central Texas.

"We’re human beings...You can’t do it all," Luis' mother, Deilys Medina, reminded him as he juggled spelling bee preparations with reading club, Duolingo streaks in German and Chinese, and geometry homework.

Luis, a competitive kid, began preparing for the district bee last fall at his teachers' recommendation. Twice a week, he joined a group of 12 students under the tutelage of Doris Espinoza, a parent liaison and spelling coach at Copperfield. They learned new words, played memory games, and engaged in rote learning.

For Luis, the journey hasn't always been easy. He struggled with the technicalities of the competition and had to adapt his pronunciation of certain letters. Despite the challenges, he pushed through and made the cut for the district competition, barely securing one of the four spots.

"A lot of people (in the U.S.) know how to speak Spanish, but they don’t know how to write it or read it. And that’s important,” Espinoza said in Spanish.

Luis' dedication paid off, and he won the Pflugerville district competition in December. He continued practicing through the spring and now meets daily with Espinoza to prepare for nationals. For Luis, the bee is about more than just spelling; it's about maintaining his connection to his heritage and family in Cuba, where he was born.

As Luis flips through the 117-page booklet of over 1,200 official words for the national competition, he wonders how many will stick with him. While some words are delightfully long and memorable, like "otorrinolaringólogo" (ear, nose, and throat doctor), he questions the usefulness of others.

Espinoza, however, is confident that Luis's preparation has strengthened his understanding of Spanish. As he explores words like "Gautemalteco," "inmigración," and "vaquero," Luis discovers not just spelling and language but also a deeper connection to his culture and identity.

Read more about Luis' journey and the importance of preserving heritage languages:

• Previously: Pflugerville student won the Spanish language spelling bee with this word. Up next: nationals URL
• Maintaining heritage languages: The challenges and benefits for bilingual individuals [Additional Story]