NATCHEZ — School work and reading might be a chore for some students, but Angelica King, who just completed sixth-grade at Robert Lewis Middle School, welcomed the challenge and took home first prize in a national competition.

King, the daughter of Myra and Steven King, placed first in Language Arts at the National Beta Convention in Oklahoma City in June — which King said was an exciting experience she never expected.

“I was excited,” she said. “In fourth-grade I made it to nationals in Orlando and didn’t place. This time, not only was I excited that I placed, but I was able to do something that I didn’t do before and that made me feel good.”

For King, reading has never been a chore, but a hobby of hers that she enjoys, she said.

“I enjoy reading,” she said, “… all different types of books. The genre doesn’t really matter to me. It all depends on the book.”

King said her favorite series she has read this year is “The Mysterious Benedict Society” by Trenton Lee Stewart, which is about a group of children who save the world from an evil crisis.

“I just enjoy school in general,” King said. “I enjoy the work and the challenge.”

Her academic excellence in school awarded King the opportunity to travel to Oklahoma City last month, she said.

“It was a very fun and exciting trip,” King said. “It was enjoyable and it was pleasant.”

King said she aspires to be like the former First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, because “she’s a very inspirational woman who has done a lot of great things in America,” she said. “She has helped a lot of children and a lot of people.”

Since she was 3 years old, King said she wanted to be a doctor of some sort when she grows up. Later, after becoming fascinated by medical shows on television, King said she decided she wanted to be a pediatric surgeon.

“I enjoy medicine, and I want to help people,” she said.

King is a member of the Girl Scouts of America, 4H, Student Council and Girls of Virtue clubs and sings in the choir at Christian Hope Baptist Church.