A girl with natural spelling talent from the South Side of Chicago, young Akeelah Anderson is forced to expose her hidden smarts when her principal pushes her to participate in the school spelling bee. At first fearful of being mocked as a “brainiac,” Akeelah eventually agrees to be coached by reclusive and strict Dr. Larabee. Plus, her mother doesn’t see the pulchritude (a new word audiences will learn) of spelling an amazing word—so to make it to the finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee, Akeelah will need to make some hard choices and find all the help she can get.