Three students from JM Cambridge Homeschooling managed top positions at the concluded the Nairobi National Scrabble Championships played at the Strathmore University over the weekend.
The two day championships was a good outing for Tasha Trina, Camara Mariam and Mohammed Sory managed top positions in the schools category.
School director Donald Mijude said that the championships was an eye opener for the pupils who exposed their talents at the national level that attracted top players both national and international players that included Pan African Scrabble Association (PANASA) president Adekoyejo Adegbesan, who won the premier Division.
Mijude said that their homeschooling has a small group based in a close-knit community where learners are able to enjoy learning at the comfort of their homes integrated with educational activities and field trips.
“I’ve been homeschooling for three years now, and we focus on a mix of structured learning and hands-on experiences. It started with a desire to provide a more personalized learning experience for students. I wanted to nurture their individual strengths and give them the time and space to explore subjects deeply,” said Mijude.
With scrabble, he said that he saw that fun and educational will reinforce vocabulary and spelling skills while also encouraging friendly competition and teamwork.
“Playing scrabble was also a chance for the students to connect with peers outside our regular online classes. Scrabble complements our language arts curriculum perfectly. It challenges students to think critically about word formation, spelling, and strategy—all while keeping them engaged,” he said.
He said that the learners practice vocabularies, spelling, critical thinking, and math skills like scorekeeping.
“Scrabble also fosters patience, focus, and good sportsmanship. And I have seen students become more confident in using new words, thinking more strategically, and working better with others. It’s been great to watch their growth. The sport is wonderful blend of learning and play. Activities like this help reinforce academic concepts in an enjoyable way and provide social opportunities that are sometimes harder to come by in homeschool settings,” he explained.
He continued that students have to be prepared through practice rounds ahead of time, and focus on fun over competition.
“I always encourage teamwork and remind them that it’s about learning, not just winning,” he said.