Hannah’s Article 2: Sweeping, Singing, Poetry, and Kindergarten in Ghana

Article #28 in the YCC Kids Club Ghana Student Life Stories Project
Sweeping, Singing, and Saying Poems in My First Day of Kindergarten
By Edor Hannah, Age 12

My father and I walked through a green field and past some bleating goats. We were on the way to my first day at Sogasco Government School Kindergarten!

First, we entered the head teacher’s office for a short interview. Then my father paid my Developmental Levy money, and my name was officially written in the register. At that moment I became a pupil of Sogasco! We walked home happy.

The next morning, my mother bathed me with buckets of water and I took my breakfast: tea with koko corn porridge. Then I walked to the school alone, because even though I was young, the building was not far.

When I reached Sogasco, I saw the other students sweeping, so I went and took a broom and started sweeping, too. “Scratch! Scratch!” went the sound of the twig broom on the earth. Because I did not know how to sweep, I did it very poorly. But I was not sad because I knew I would improve with practice.

When we finished sweeping, we gathered the rubbish and sent it to the refuse dump to be burned. After that, a bell rang calling the pupils to form a line according to their height and classes. I was told by a teacher to join the nursery. We prayed, then sang the Ghana National Anthem: “A nation strong in unity… With our gifts of mind and strength of arm…”

I didn’t know how to sing the National Anthem so I was just opening my mouth without words!

Then we marched to our classrooms. Once there, we were taught some poems and were made to sing and dance. I did well among my colleagues and so the teacher asked me to recite a poem for her. I was able to do so, and she rewarded me with biscuits!

During break, my classmates played with me and I gave them part of my food to eat: waakye, which is rice and beans. They also gave me part of their food. I felt friendships growing.

When we were about to close, our teacher called out our names from the register and taught us to respond thus: “Present, Madam!”

At one o’clock in the afternoon, my sister came to take me home. I told my sister as we walked out of the tree grove surrounding Sogasco Kindergarten: “School has made me happy!”

Lillie’s Note: Please leave a comment for Hannah on her sweet article, stating your geographic location!