“Navneeth’s coaching method is one of the most unique I’ve seen. He analyzes his students’ strengths and weaknesses and has them reinforce their skills while turning their weak spots into fortes. Whenever he taught a vocabulary class, he would preface the class with an assignment: share two words you found in the news. Through this exercise, not only would students learn new words, but they would also learn their context and current relevance. They aren’t just expanding their vocabulary; each one of them is also becoming all-rounded in the pursuit of global literacy. As students learned words to apply in their competitions, they were simultaneously gaining awareness about conflicts, embargoes, and breakthroughs in science, business, and technology, amongst many other topics. This well-rounded and intellectually stimulating approach to learning not only allowed Navneeth’s students to remember the words themselves better through association but also to acquire knowledge about words with current global relevance, which tended to come up across competitions, giving them a strong competitive and intellectual edge. On the spelling side, Navneeth provides specific guidance and teaches his students invaluable skills, the most important being list-making and splitting mistakes. Navneeth has his students make specific lists, especially exceptions they are struggling with, and also lists of words that would be beneficial for them to learn at the national level. Splitting mistakes is the process of practically dissecting the word into components such as language of origin and using it to identify where you went wrong and how to remember or memorize the word as well. Both are important skills for any speller, and will help any national-level speller immensely. “
Harini Logan
Scripps National Spelling Bee Champion 2022
“Navneeth has been coaching me since June 2020. His focus on roots and finer nuances of the languages helped me improve my spelling and vocabulary. He spends time beyond the class time and analyzes the mistakes that I make and gives feedback on what areas to improve. The strategies he taught me helped me understand words deeply. Beyond spelling, I look up to him for his work ethics, sincerity and humility.”
-Saharsh Vuppala
Scripps National Spelling Bee 2022 – 4th Place SpellPundit Online National SpellingBee 2021 – Winner NSF SSB 2019 – Runner-Up Canada USA International Spelling Bee Championship 2021 – 3rd Place
(AP Photo/Jacquelin Martin)
“Navneeth has been my coach for the past two years in spelling and vocab. Navneeth’s coaching style helped me organize my word lists effectively and helped me assess my weaknesses and build on my strengths. He gives homework to work on your trouble spots and tracks and evaluates your progress. My progress in the Scripps National Spelling Bee grew exponentially; his teaching method changed how I approached a word and helped me cover words quickly. Navneeth’s classes on vocabulary are more thorough and detailed and tailored according to the vocabulary words asked at Scripps. Moreover, my word-meaning-round questions asked in the National Spelling Bee came from Navneeth’s book, which I wouldn’t have known if I hadn’t attended Navneeth’s classes. Overall, I would recommend Navneeth as a coach for spellers who want to progress in their spelling journeys.”
-Ananya Prassanna
Scripps National Spelling Bee 2024 – 3rd Place
(AP Photo/Jacquelin Martin)
“Navneeth gave us students a fun and engaging lesson plan every class, along with thematic lists and guidance on how to continue studying for the vocabulary portion of the bee. I can confidently say that Navneeth’s classes over-prepared me and helped me breeze through the vocab classes at the national level with confidence. Navneeth also provided helpful study tips and friendly advice to ensure our best performance. These classes are perfect for any student preparing for Scripps, or looking to better their vocabulary in general!
I would also strongly recommend the Defining Success book for spellers looking to prepare for the vocab rounds during spelling bees. The book contains a very methodical approach, containing roots, thematic lists, and other basics to make sure students master the foundations of vocabulary. Defining Success breaks down what seems intimidating into easily manageable chunks, allowing everyone to succeed in their vocabulary journey. Defining Success is a great book for anyone looking to improve their vocabulary or performance at spelling bees.“
– Aditi Muthukumar . Scripps National Spelling Bee 2024 – 5th Place
“From being a fellow competitor, Navneeth beautifully transitioned to helping Vayun prepare for spelling bees by having customized sessions to work on his trouble spots and vocabulary. We were very impressed by his analytical abilities to dissect difficult or unique words and enable Vayun to remember these by associating with other words. Navneeth was especially responsive near competition times and was able to adapt quizzing sessions focusing on the unique style of each contest.”
-Vayun Krishna’s Mother Scripps National Spelling Bee 2021 – 12th Place NSF SSB 2020 – Champion Canada USA International Spelling Bee 2020 – Champion SASB 2019 – Runner Up
“Navneeth has introduced me to a lot of new strategies to tackle and strengthen my understanding of words. He always explained why each word is spelled the way it is and made sure that I understand it well before moving on. His coaching has been instrumental to strengthen my spelling and vocabulary knowledge”
— Akshita Balaji Scripps National Spelling Bee 2021 – 21st Place Spellpundit Online Spelling Bee 2021 – 5th Place Wishwin Spelling Bee 2021- 3rd Place Canada USA International Spelling Bee 2021- 3rd Place Testing MomSpelling Bee 2020 – Champion
“Navneeth is not just a wonderful speller, but also an excellent coach. He has special talents in both spelling and vocabulary coaching. He takes personal interest in the student’s progress which is unusual to find in this day and age!”
