


Trish Byers
Feb 22, 2022
Sierra Leone
Categories:
Children, Education, Culture
Sierra Leone is a small country located on the western coast of Africa. Its neighboring countries are Guinea and Liberia. In Sierra Leone, about 18 ethnic groups exhibit similar cultural features. Sierra Leone has diverse cultures, including Creoles in and around Freetown (capital of Sierra Leone) and Indian and Lebanese traders living in urban areas. Krio, a language derived from English and a variety of African languages, is the mother tongue of the Creoles and the country's lingua franca. That is, a language used to communicate between populations speaking vernaculars that are not mutually intelligible. English, the official language of Sierra Leone, is used in administration, education, and commerce.
Even though English is Sierra Leone's official language, most children with three years of schooling cannot read or understand simple English text. Most of the children's books focused only on British or American culture. Sierra Leonean television host, Vickie Remoe, wants to change that, and she began to write children's books.
Remoe created stories that reflect the age and culture of the young Sierra Leoneans who read the books. Remoe said that the books she was using to teach her son Olu, though useful for phonics, did not represent African culture. Remoe's first book, Adama Loves Akara, is about Sierra Leone's gara tie-dye textiles, food, and the special bond between fathers and daughters. The book also includes a map of Sierra Leone and a recipe for Akara, a deep-fried banana and rice flour fritter. Adama Loves Akara, focuses on short "a" vowel sounds.
Remoe's second book, A Print for Ami, published last year, focuses on short "i" vowel sounds. The book celebrates the national costume of Sierra Leone's Krios, who are descendants of freed Americans, West Indians, and the liberated African captives who settled in Freetown. Like Adama Loves Akara, A Print for Ami has the map of Sierra Leone at the beginning and a list of words and expressions for children to practice at the end. Because girls are underrepresented in Sierra Leonean books, as they are in Sierra Leonean governance and workplace, the main characters in Remoe's books are girls. Including girls as the main characters in her books, Remoe's said, helps to bolster girls' self-esteem.
Literacy is a challenge worldwide and likely in your neighborhood. How many different languages do you hear spoken in your neighborhood, town, or city? Are there programs or classes to incorporate these various languages into your town?
Yano Jalloh, a Sierra Leonean-American parent who bought A Print For Ami, said the book connects her daughter to her culture. "My daughter loves that she has people that look like her in books, and even more excited that the main character in the book shares her lineage."
How can you fulfill a similar need in your community? Reach out to your local colleges, high schools, libraries, and related clubs and societies to start. Talk with teachers in language, arts, and culture classes and librarians and gauge their interest in helping to connect the local cultures with the greater community. Written and recorded stories illustrated with art or photography and storyboarding are excellent ways to start. Use it as a teaching tool for students of all ages. Publish locally and celebrate with a community-wide event. Then consider using the materials for early childhood learning, where appropriate, and other school levels too.
There are many benefits when we connect the various cultural groups in our local community. The connection creates goodwill between people who did not have any prior relationship and shows by example to our children how people can value and celebrate their differences. The contact increases knowledge, understanding, and interest in the broader global world. If maintained, the cultural crossroads advance the community's collective thought and have potential implications to educationally and economically enrich your hometown.
Start with a good idea and then bring people together to make it happen. You can change the world from where you are.
Picture: Gara tie dye cloth. To learn more about this cloth and the technique used visit reggieceleste.com/gara (link below).
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Catalog #:
1021.110.01.022222