Geography Whizzes to Vie in Sacramento

Seven San Fernando Valley students will test their world knowledge Friday in the state-level National Geography Bee in Sacramento.

Before getting to this point, these geography whiz kids had to know that the Amazon River carries more water than the combined flow of the Mississippi, Nile and Congo rivers. And that Fulani, Hausa and Ibo are among the many languages spoken in Africa.

About 100 students who won their school bees and earned a top score on a written exam prepared by the National Geographic Society will participate in the state competition.

This region will be represented by Michael Garrels, an eighth-grader at Luther Burbank Middle School in Burbank; Andrew D. Herr, a sixth-grader at Viewpoint School in Calabasas; Kurt Star, an eighth-grader at St. John Eudes Catholic School in Chatsworth; Chris Abraham, a seventh-grader at Sacred Heart Catholic School in Lancaster; Justin Williams, a seventh-grader at New Vista Elementary School in Lancaster; Dennis William Kuo, a seventh-grader at Los Angeles Baptist High School in North Hills; and Daniel Donnelly, a sixth-grader at Nobel Middle School in Northridge.

The state winner will receive $100 and other prizes, along with a trip to Washington, D.C., with a teacher escort for the finals to be held May 28 and 29.

The National Geography Bee was developed by the National Geographic Society in 1989 in response to concerns about slipping geographic knowledge among American schoolchildren, said Ellen Siskind, a spokeswoman for the society.

Nearly 6 million fourth- through eighth-graders participated in the bee last year. The national winner will receive a $25,000 college scholarship, and take a 10-day road trip in the United States.