June 09 2007
Can You Spell Excruciating?
posted by Ana Samways at 5:43 pmThis CNN clip of the US National Spelling Bee champion 13-year-old Evan O’Dorney, is one of the most awkward interviews we’ve ever seen on television… on a par with Mark Sainsbury’s interview with a tired and emotional Annette Presley.
June 11th, 2007 at 7:18 am
I think that speaks bucket loads for why not to home school your kids!
June 11th, 2007 at 8:52 am
Hi – the link to here from Sideswipe isn’t working. The link has a HTML “br” tag that needs taking out.
June 11th, 2007 at 9:06 am
Evan O’Dorky…sorry, couldn’t resist…
“if you want to know what my mother said ask my mother…” bitch slap!
June 11th, 2007 at 12:03 pm
Link fixed now, cheers.
June 11th, 2007 at 7:04 pm
Oh my God! That’s more cringe-worthy than certain episodes of ‘The Office’! Lucky he’s home-schooled – he wouldn’t have survived the morning at Rutherford College…
June 12th, 2007 at 8:27 am
With such a winning personality, that boy will go far.
June 13th, 2007 at 8:02 pm
Do you know what’s excruciating? That I’ve been waiting WELL OVER 40 MINUTES for this clip to reach its end. If this kid’s such a champion speller, then where’s his impressive vocab?
June 16th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
The kid was in a Spelling Bee – not auditioning for a part in Days of Our Lives (which he might’ve won!).
Unfortunately continues the myth that homeschooled kids are socially inept – the opposite is true in my experience! At least his self-esteem appears intact – he’d have been mercilessly bullied at school! His mum should/could have prepped him better for the interview.
June 23rd, 2007 at 10:39 am
[...] You must watch this Evan O’Dorney interview to appreciate where I’m coming from. [...]
December 9th, 2007 at 3:44 pm
Yeah, I thought the same. Until I realized he had Asperger’s syndrome.
December 13th, 2008 at 6:06 pm
My son has Aspergers so I recognized it right off. I have noticed that some of the homeschooled kids have some social skills issues but I find that it is a cart and horse thing. They end up being home schooled BECAUSE of these issues. The home schooling doesn’t Cause the problem.
June 17th, 2009 at 7:31 am
Ok this is just sad and I was dying laughing at this vid and felt bad for the girl, I’m homescooled and I hate being homeschooled cause all my friends are public schooled and I’m not this type of “homescooler”. But I have to say that most people that I know that are homescooled really don’t know how to operate outside what their used to and with their friends. So no not all homeschoolers are like this but I’m not standing up for any of them because I’m kinda sick of homescooled people and being around them. You can be schooled at home without being a “homeschooler”