How The Mum Of The Big Spell Winner Eashaa Pillai Raised A Spelling Champion

When nine-year-old Raffles Girls' Primary School student Eashaa Pillai won the RHB-The Straits Times National Spelling Championship (also known as The Big Spell) on April 22, victory was extra sweet. This was because the Primary 5 pupil had had not made it to last year's finals, despite being the zonal champion.

"Eashaa was pretty disappointed last year, as she thought she had been prepared," her mother Indu Lekha, a dental surgeon in her 30s, told The Weekly. "But that motivated her to carry on working hard for this year's contest. This is truly Eashaa's win, and we're very happy for her."

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For emerging champion of The Big Spell, Eashaa took home a prize of $5,000 and her school received the challenge trophy. She also won the YMCA Plain English Speaking Awards (PESA) in 2014, in the Lower Primary Category.

We asked Indu for her tips on how to groom children for success, and how she and her husband helped prepare Eashaa for The Big Spell.

Photo: The Straits Times