Each year, thousands of schools in the United States participate in the National Geographic Bee using materials prepared by the National Geographic Society. The National Geographic Bee, an educational program of the National Geographic Society, is a nationwide geography competition for U.S. schools and is designed to encourage the teaching and study of geography.  Schools with students in grades four through eight are eligible to participate in this entertaining and challenging test of geographic knowledge.  More than 4 million students from schools from all 50 U.S. states, the U.S. territories, and the U.S. Department of Defense schools participate in the annual National Geographic Bee sponsored by Google.

The school-level bee, at which students answer oral questions on geography, is the first round of qualifying for the state and National Geographic Bee. 

At St. Anne, this contest is held in January.  In early March, students who qualified to represent their schools and compete at the state level are notified.  State qualifiers compete in an oral competition at the state level, which is held in April.  State winners are invited to National Geographic headquarters in late May to compete in the national finals for scholarships in the amount of U.S. $25,000, $15,000 and $10,000.

National Geographic Bee Dates:

• School Bees
• State Bees
• National Level