This morning, participants put their broad knowledge to the test in DCD’s annual Geography Bee! Now in its fifth year, the DCD Geography Bee has grown into a tradition where students compete in mixed-grade teams in a Jeopardy-style trivia format. Organized by Camille Harrison, Nancy Barre and Jim Pinola, this year’s theme was Europe, with the following categories: rivers, capital cities, language and culture, landmarks, physical features, historical geography, famous people, and borders.
The Rand Gym was filled with excitement as parents, students, faculty and staff gathered, and the Geography Bee hummed into action! Four teams faced off, each with five students representing Grades 4 through 8, composed of top scorers from a preliminary quiz that took place prior to the event. Mr. Pinola emceed the competition, while Mrs. Harrison ran the Jeopardy board, and Ms. Barre, Ms. Alphonse-Crean and Mr. Buffum moderated and kept score.
Team 4 was the first on the board with the following question, “The name of this capital city of Old Norse originates from root words that mean smoke and bay. The name is inspired by the steam rising from hot springs in the region”, in which they answered correctly, “What is Reykjavík?” Throughout the competition, students from each team took turns choosing a category and answering the question. There were many challenging questions, such as: “This capital city is notable for its indestructibility after suffering damage due to multiple wars and occupations and rebuilding and remaining strong. It’s fitting that the city’s motto ‘Contemnit procellas’ means ‘it defires the storms’”, to, “This area has 25 members and allows travel without border checks among member nations.”
As the rounds progressed, the anticipation and suspense grew, and it was a very close competition! In the final round, Team 2 became victorious as the winning team of the 2026 Geography Bee.
Thank you to Mrs. Harrison, Ms. Barre and Mr. Pinola for organizing the Geography Bee, along with Mrs. Ouellette and our fabulous facilities crew, our Grade 4 and 5 teachers and Grade 6-8 MS Advisors, and to Ms. Alphonse-Crean and Mr. Buffum for moderating, and to the entire DCD community who came to cheer on and support our remarkable participants!
Below is a complete list of this year’s participants. Congratulations to all!
