African-American History Bee

History Bee
Thursday March 22nd, 2010

TO ALL PARTICIPATING REPRESENTATIVES

We have elected to change the date of the 26^th African American History Bee based on the inclement weather conditions that we have endued recently. Please note:

The March 3, 2010 has been cancelled – the new date is March 22, 2010

The location and time has not changed-refer to the January 19, 2010 Letter

(The January 19, 2010 Letter is attach for your convenience.)

We trust this extension will be of assistance to you based on the calls received. This information plus, January’s information will be posted on the website shortly (www.cbmdc.org). If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call the office (202-797-7444).

I ask that you forward a listing of all contestants’ names no later than March 10, 2010 as I will need this information for headcount purposes, awards and certificates (email-office@cbmdc.org) or (fax 202-797-7447.) For those of you that have submitted contestants’ names and head-counts, please confirm changes, if any.

We look forward to seeing you on March 22, 2010.

Thank you,

Edward Fisher

Chairperson

January 19, 2010

Greetings:

The Washington, D.C. Chapter of Concerned Black Men, Inc. {CBM-DC} would be honored to have your school participate in our 26^th Annual African-American History Bee. The contest is similar to a spelling bee, but students must answer questions pertaining to African-American history. The contest is open to 4^th, 5^th, and 6^th grade students in the Washington Metropolitan Area Schools. Prizes are awarded to the top three finishers. In addition to the contest, school representatives will be invited to join Concerned Black Men, Inc.® in an activity related to African-American history.

You will find important information pertaining to the contest below. Please read this letter carefully. Contact Margie Bennett at the CBM-DC Office on 202/797-7444 to notify us of your plan to participate, and/or if you have any questions.

CONTEST DATE, TIME, AND LOCATION

The contest is scheduled for Wednesday, March 3, 2010, from 9:30 AM – 2:00 PM, at:

The Charles Sumner School Museum and Archives

1201 – 17^th Street, NW.

Washington, DC 20036

Sumner is near the Farragut North Metro Station. Contestants should arrive No Later Than 9:30 AM. Contestants’ orientation is 9:30 AM – 10:30 AM. Contestants arriving after 10:00 AM will be disqualified from participating in the competition. In the event of inclement weather, the contest will begin 1 hour later – 10:30 AM, and still ending at 2:00 PM or reschedule if required.

SCHOOL PARTICIPATION

Each school should use the questions in the Study Guide to determine their representatives. The names of the student representatives and the school coordinator should be submitted to the CBM-DC Office No Later Than February 19, 2010.

STUDY GUIDE

A copy of the Study Guide is enclosed for you convenience. Also, the study Guide can be found on CBM-DC’s website - (www.cbmdc.org). Please note that the Study Guide has been updated, the General Section to include current black history questions and answers (#s 47-52).

GUESTS

An adult {teacher/coordinator, parent, or other school representative} must accompany each participating student. Due to capacity constraints, only the contestants from each school are permitted to attend the competition.

CONTEST RULES

The competition will be held in two segments: The Finalist Round, and the Championship Round. At the competition, students will randomly draw lots to determine placement order.

FINALIST ROUND RULES

1. Each contestant will be given an opportunity to answer randomly selected questions from the eight categories of the Study Guide.

2. Each finalist will have 30 seconds to answer the question. Contestants may request that the question be repeated within the 30-second timeframe. However, no additional time will be allotted to answer the question.

3. There will be a practice round of questions for the contestants. After the practice round, an incorrect answer will automatically disqualify the student.

4. This round will continue until there are three contestants remaining. The first of the three contestants to incorrectly answer at this point will be designated as the Third Place Winner. The remaining two contestants will then compete in the Championship Round.

CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND RULES

Based on the original order of the draw, each contestant will continue under the following scenarios:

IF: a} the first contestant answers the first question correctly, the other contestant will receive a new question. The contestants will continue until an incorrect answer is given. After an incorrect answer is given, the other contestant will be given an opportunity to answer the same question. If the contestant gives the correct answer, he/she will then receive one additional question. If answered correctly, that contestant will be declared the First Place Winner.

IF: b} the contestant answers the second question incorrectly, then the other contestant will get an opportunity to answer that question and a follow-on question. If the initial and follow-on questions are answered correctly, then the contestant will be declared the First Place Winner.

IF: c} both contestants answer the first question incorrectly, a new question will be selected, and the contest will continue using Rule {a}.

CONTEST AWARDS AND AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY BEE ACTIVITY

Information concerning awards will be submitted at a later date.

Please contact the CBM-DC Office to acknowledge receipt of this letter (202-797-7444).

We look forward to seeing you at the competition. Good Luck!

Sincerely,

Eddie Fisher

Eddie Fisher

Chairman

2010 African-American History Bee

History Bee Poster 2009

CBM-DC hosts an annual African-American History Bee at the Sumner Museum. Students receive cash prizes, plaques, certificates, and other awards. This event has been held for twenty plus years.