Name: Arsia Khanom - The Annual Essay Contest for Children and

I
ntroduction
The Annual Essay Contest for Children of African Descent was born from a desire to
encourage and support children of African descent in the African Diaspora to achieve a
high level of education, to become knowledgeable and informed and to be contributing
members of their society.
The Essay Contest for Children of African Descent supports children in the following
ways:
Boost self-esteem
Focus attention on education
Improve communication skills
Encourage a sense of accomplishment
Offer opportunities for personal growth and self-expression
Offer peer activity in a positive, supportive environment
Recognise and celebrate success within the community
Public speaking experience (winners)
Encourage critical thinking
The Annual Essay Contest for Children of African Descent 2008 could not possibly
have come about without the valued contribution of the children from the UK, Africa, the
Caribbean and the USA.
I want to thank the following Saturday/Supplementary schools, mainstream schools and
organisations as well as parents who submitted essays on behalf of their children.
Vuka Afrika
African Caribbean Saturday School
Ebony Saturday School
Aimhetep School of Knowledge
Mandela Supplementary School
Black Boys Can (Derby)
Claudia Jones Organisation
Ishango Science Club
Nia Project
Edward Betham School
Berrymede Junior School
The Camden Black Parents and Teachers Association
The Nub African Youth Education and Development Programme
St Michael’s Preparatory School (Ghana)
South Rivers Methodist School (St. Vincent and the Grenadines)
Railway Primary School (Uganda)
All essays submitted are included in the ebooks with the exception of those from a
mainstream school in Bristol from which I did not receive permission to include their
children’s essays.
Not only were each of the essays submitted a joy to read, it was also evident that the
children had worked extremely hard on their essay.
Finally, a Very Special Thank You to all those who chose to contribute financially to the
prizes for the children. In an effort to raise funds for this initiative, I spoke with and
emailed over 400 African-owned businesses in the UK and US, parents, and people of
African descent as I met them. I shared with them the ethos of the Essay Contest for
Children of African Descent and explained that this initiative is strictly financed by
people of African descent and receives no funding from any bodies.
The following individuals chose to contribute financially to the prizes:
Mr P
Mrs B
Anonymous
Mrs E Brand
Yaa Mwanakamisi
Jendayi
Mr Keon West, Jamaica
Mr M Franklin
Mr and Mrs Pain
Anonymous
Winston Klass
Mrs Carol H
Anonymous
Mr Seymour Zajota
Ms Shirley Wiggins
Mr Phillip Tullock
The following African-owned businesses chose to support the children:
Maureen Smith of
Tropical Connections http://www.tropicalconnections.co.uk/
UK-based Caribbean Property Agents
08452 221 413
Karen Cargill of
Rhona Solicitors http://www.rhonalaw.com/
020 8274 3153
Louis Arthur of
Supreme Mortgage Solutions http://www.supremems.co.uk
07790 263 978
Please make these businesses the first places you call when you need a property in the
Caribbean, legal services or assistance with a mortgage or financial advice.
An ENORMOUS Thank You for your financial support of the children. This ebook was
conceived from my desire to thank you for committing your funds to this initiative.
I want to thank the Judges from the US, the UK, and the Caribbean for their hard work
and truly excellent feedback to participating children. Also, thank you to those Judges
who offered Special Prizes to essayists. I have included below only three examples of
such feedback:
1. “Kere well done for your essay. Not only will you help people as a doctor but also inspire
them to be like you as you know what it takes to succeed. Pay close attention to your punctuation
and the layout of your work.”
2. “The maturity and depth of clarity in Zan's writing is amazing. He has a very fluid writing
style meaning he organizes his thoughts in a manner that engage the reader effortlessly. Zan
writes persuasively by supporting his position with many sound examples and he exhibits a
strong command and knowledge of his chosen topic. It will help Zan to proofread his work
carefully to catch things such as the use of possessive apostrophes as in "doctor's" not "doctors",
subject and verb agreement, as well as capitalization of names like "Mighty Sparrow". Zan is a
very talented writer.”
3. “This is a thoughtful essay which addresses a problematic contemporary issue. The use of
language is very good. I was especially impressed by the range of vocabulary used in the essay
and the different strategies adopted in putting ideas across e.g. asking questions and adopting
different voices. (Do check your use of prepositions with verbs/ in phrases e.g. educated on ;
gangs are of the majority)
A number of relevant points have been dealt with in some details such as the influence of
music on the behaviour of young people of African origin. Towards the end, the issue of
parental example is mentioned but not developed. This is a key point which it would
have been important to give more space to. Family is key to child development as is the
nature of the community. What is the nature of community? How do we interact
together? Do we as a community raise our children or have we completely adopted
Western individualism where each person/ nuclear family is responsible for working out
their own problems on their own?
The essay adopts a discursive format. To develop your essay writing skills I would
encourage you to define terms at the outset of your essay and to consider what are the key
problems as well as solutions. Then ensure sufficient space is given in the essay to
addressing each of these issues. Also, this essay would have gained more marks if you
had included specific African-centred responses to the problems mentioned.”
I'm sure you will agree that if the children take their feedback on board they could significantly
improve their writing.
I have simply scanned and copied and pasted essays exactly as I received them. I
considered retyping all scanned essays, but decided against this was I wanted to maintain
the children’s presence through their handwriting.
I just love the cover of the ebook. Thank you, Emelia Jack.
I hope you will enjoy reading the variety of essays presented as part of the Annual Essay
Contest for Children of African Descent 2008.
The Third Annual
Essay Contest for
Children of African Descent 2008
“It takes a Village to raise a child”
8-10 Years
(200 words minimum)
1.
What are the things about your country (Africa or the Caribbean) that you are most
proud of and why?
2.
What is the most interesting thing your mum, dad or grandparent has taught you
about Africa or the Caribbean?
3.
If you have been on holiday to the Caribbean or Africa, describe the differences
between there and where you live. Which do you prefer? Why?
4.
What I’d like to be when I grow up and what I need to do to succeed.
5.
My parents’ love and affection are more important than toys.
Winners 2008
1st Place
Kirstie Anne Gillette
2nd Place
Shovanne Brown
3rd Place
Miriam Serwaa Twumasi
4th Place
Nicole Whelan
5th Place
Billie-Jean Evans
6th Place
Jenyo Olubokun
7th Place
Evelyn Yankah
8th Place
Ernest Offe
9th Place
Abibatu Turay
10th Place
Camara Johnson-Moore
CONGRATULATONS TO ALL OF YOU
I hope you will enjoy the following essays. Please be mindful that entries
were received from children from a variety of backgrounds and socioeconomic situations from both developed and developing countries.
With over 140 entries submitted, it was impossible to put all the essays into
one document. I have, therefore, split the number of essays in this age
category into two sections. This is followed by one 'book' containing essays
from 11 to 13 year and another with essays from 14 to 16 year olds.
Some pages appear twice to allow you to read both the top and the bottom of
the page.
Please remember that the purpose of the Essay Contest for Children of
African Descent is to support and encourage children of African descent.
Enjoy!
Lorna Jones
March 2008
BY AKILAH ROBINSON
Age: 8 ½
Hobby’s: school, drawing and riding my bike.
My trip to the Caribbean
It was a freezing day in Bristol, but we new that our
Holiday in st Vincent would be blazing hot and sunny. I had a hot bowl of
cornmeal porridge to warm me up, but before long came a “beep” “beep”
“ooh there is the taxi” I said to my sister(Aisha)unable to hold in my
excitement. I helped my dad (Melbourne) take all the suit cases outside into
the taxi, when we finished we climbed in and put our seat belts on.
We had to pay extra because we had to pick my Nan (Abeje) up because she
was coming to. We banged and banged but my Nan would not answer, we
were just going to collapse when my Nan finally opened her door. We ran
back and forth just to carry my nans suitcases in the taxi. We drove all the way
to the coach station. We climbed out of the car and went into the coach
station. It wasn’t long until on the screen our coach name was printed. When
we got on the coach, straight away I fell asleep dreaming that I was travelling
through the air in the air port though the security check and “plonk” landed
in the waiting room seconds away from getting on the plane.
I suddenly woke up and found myself on my mum (Femi’s) lap. I was facing
all the aeroplane names and guess what? Ours was first we scurried of to our
plane. We got into our seats and got everything into the right places; we got
comfortable and settled to sleep “zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz “beep “beep the seat belt
alarm was going off! and me and my sister were out of our seats ! We were
scuttling through seats in and out the toilet.Bang we were face to face with the
pilot and we were told to sit down.
When we landed we hurried through everything and found our auntie Rita.
We were in a totally crazy taxi it was going to fast and skidding round corners
and then we got to our auntie Rita’s house, guess what my mum was all up in
the women’s face complaining (shame on the women) We went to the front
gate oh my god auntie Rita had dogs. I hurried in behind my dad hoping
the dogs won’t pounce on me. I scuttled in my room for a good nights sleep.
Dim dumb dim I heard Auntie Rita humming while she was frying eggs and
guess what we had to go to market!!!!!!!! It was a long day in the market in and
out of shops that’s all we were there for, and then we went to the fish market
by the harbour. We saw the ships taking off. We went in a lovely bus it was
like a disco in there so much music but then this man came in and started
cursing rude words and shouting at some ladies with his smelly breath.
Then we got to the disco we were the only ones there !! we were listening to
bob Marley tunes and singing his songs on the karaoke machine.
The next day we went to the beach. We saw cows plodding along and chasing
a nice couple!! And they were chasing us to. We went for a swim and got sand
and sea animals mixed up in my swim suit. Then me and my sister really
needed to go to the toilet so…. We went behind some bushes please do not
laugh. Then when we got back I went to play with the dogs. (Maxine) (Fluffy)
(Rex) then after that I went to bed. Today’s the last day auntie Rita and my
dad went to church while me my Nan and my sister and mum played with
the dogs.
When they got back we packed our stuff and went to bed. When we got up we
were greeted by dogs barking I got up and quickly fed them and then we
went to my to my other aunties Normans . She just had a break in . so we
were sleeping in a jumbled up house. so we only stayed there one night. Then
in the morning we went back to auntie Rita’s house . We Packed and packed
until we were all set up to go . In the morning we went to the airport and
waited for our plane. It came as quick as a flash. We got on it and soon we
were in Bristol. We got another taxi and dropped my Nan of and then we
went home to unpack.
I
BJorn Bacchus 8 years
New Grounds Primary School
What I like to be when I grow up and what I need to succeed
What I like to be when I grow up and what I need to success? This is question
that I always asked myself. At this point in my life, my goal is to be a lawyer
when I grow up. To achieve this I must get a good education by finishing primary
and secondary schools with good grades, then attend A’ Level college and then
university where I will pursue a career in law.
I will like to be a lawyer so that I can help make country safe by helping the police
officers to put bad people in jail.
I will like to help persons understand the law of
the country, know their rights so that they can become law-abiding citizens. I will
like to help persons who get in trouble with the law. Also I will like to make a lot
of money to help children who are needy so that they can get a proper education
by sending them to school; and finally I want to be respected by everybody.
I will like to be one of the best lawyers in my country and if I can make my
country safe by helping people maintain the law I know I have succeeded.
Billie-Jean Evans 11 in February
Hobbies: ballet, singing and dancing
What is the most interesting thing your mum, dad or grandparent
has taught you about Africa.
The most interesting thing my parents have taught me is young
children in slavery. Children at young ages are sent to work for
people, ages between three to ten.
Children are sent to work in miners, factories
etc the reason for this is because parent do not have money to feed
their children so they have to sell their children for a little money
and they work very hard from about five am in the morning until
five pm and they have about a five minute break and get Banku
which is maize meal Gari which is dry cassava and water.
I was watching a programme one day it was called
Oprah Winfrey and they were freeing children that work as fisher
men and they were five to seven years of age and these children
were working in Kumasi so they travelled to Kumasi and they so
that they were working at five am and they were very young.
When the children were free they gave the children proper
food to eat and if you saw those children’s faces you would have
been shocked and now those children go to school and have a good
education have a home and are now enjoying life.
Name: Camara Johnson-Moore
Age: 10
Topic chosen: (3) Describe a holiday (Barbados)
Three favourite hobbies: Art, Dancing and Singing
School: Nub African Youth Education Programme
Barbados
In 2003 I went to Barbados to see some of my relatives. I stayed in Collins
St Peters, with my Grandma’s cousin, Corsey and his family made up of 3
generations. Shortly after arriving I realized that a lot of our family
members lived in the immediate vicinity.
Barbados is an exotic country in the Caribbean. It is in an area, which is
called The Lesser Antilles which is in the Eastern Caribbean, (they are
groups which include St Vincent, St Lucia and Barbados, also there are
many more.)
Barbados has attractive beaches. In the summer, the blazing hot sun
shimmers over the Island. On some of the beaches, there are beautiful
seashells.
Almost everyday a man selling Ice Cream and Snow Cones from his van
came round. On a really hot day, Snow Cones were very refreshing because
they’re made from shaven ice.
In some parts of Barbados, some people like to grow their crops instead of
buying them. Some have animals in their back yard like chickens, turkeys,
pigs, goats and dogs. Every morning at 4 am, the cock crows ‘cock-adoodle-do’. This was the family’s alarm clock.
Barbados is a wonderful Island; the people are very friendly and funny too.
By Clarice Simone Gabriel Stewart.
Aged 10.
I have chosen question 2: what do you like best about spending time
with your mum, dad or grandparents.
My top 3 favourite hobbies are: swimming, acting and singing.
My name is Clarice and I absolutely adore my family, we all share the name
Stewart which means most popular and well known for many. My family is
loving and caring, like many other families I feel that they make time for
both friends and family. I cherish each loving moment I spend with my
parents and grandparents. We make friends with different kinds of races and
are sternly against racism. My family are Christians and do not disrespect
other religions.
My grandma Ann is funny and caring; she loves spending time with me and
her other grandchildren as much as I do. I love spending time with my
granddad as he is going to live in Grenada soon. I miss my great granddad
very much; he died in febuary, 2007 at the age of 97.
My grandma Shirley likes to have a laugh with everyone and has the habit of
tickling me and her daughter Saskia. She always takes me out to lovely
places and I will never forget that.
My great grandma Gladys is always devoting her time in church and to
others; she often tries to do her bit for our family and is very sociable. Even
if my great grandma is ill she still makes sure everyone is ok before she
deals with herself, I am not going to lie, we all have been through some
rough times but my great grandma and great granddad are unique and
special to me for dealing with their dilemmas calmly and just simply being
themselves! My great granddad Gladston likes making sure my family has
eaten enough. He is very funny and makes the whole family laugh with his
jokes; he is respected by everyone in and outside the family. I find my great
granddad is very peaceful.
My great great Grandma is really caring. We always make time for her and
share our happiness and loss together; she always loves spending time with
us.
My whole family’s hobby is spending time with each other, its just great fun!
I hope you have learnt a lot about my family from this interesting (I hope)
piece of writing. Bye, for now. xx
Name: Dajon Jeanne Michaela Hoyte Bruce
School: The Nub African Youth Education Programme
Age: 8
Topic Chosen: What is the most interesting thing your mum, dad or grandparent has
taught you about Africa or the Caribbean?
Three favorite hobbies: Swimming, Reading, Eating
Slavery
My mum teaches me lots of things like: the Egyptian story about Isis, Osiris, Seth and
Horus. Black freedom fighters and heroes like Marcus Garvey. Mostly my mum teaches
me about slavery.
Slavery has always existed, but became worse when the ‘white man’ came to Africa. He
stole millions of Africans and took them across the ‘big water’ to the Americas, West
Indies and Europe. The journey was known as the middle passage which would have
been a dreadful experience for the Africans, because they were chained to each other,
knee to knee and shoulder to shoulder. They were packed in like clothes stored away in a
chest of drawers.
The Africans were forced to travel in unhygienic and smelly conditions. They were
treated cruelly because when they were sick, hurt or pregnant they had to stay chained
together and those who were unable to survive were thrown off the ship and left to the
sharks. They were turned from beautiful African people into slaves. Their freedom and
dignity was taken away and they were treated like animals and sold in market places to
white owners who became their masters and were put to work on plantations.
There are lots of books on slavery for e.g. ‘Slave girl’ (my story) and it was written by
Patricia C. McKissack and my mum encourage me to read it and it is very interesting.
My mum teaches me about slavery so I can learn my history and teach my children about
freedom, liberty and life.
By Dajon Jeanne Michaela Hoyte Bruce.
Essay Contest for Children of African Descent 2008
Name:
Age:
Darnell Christie
9
Topic:
WHAT I LIKE BEST ABOUT SPENDING TIME WITH MY FAMILY
Hobbies: My top three favourite hobbies are
1. Riding my bike,
2. Playing on the computer
3. spending time with my family
What I like to do when I’m with family is spending quality time with them because
its not what I do every day therefore that is what makes it special and important
time to me. Some of the things I like doing with my mum are going to theme
parks and travelling round London, and I like when she takes me to church and
we go shopping together and when she takes me to new shops and when she
takes me to the Cinema.
I like spending quality time with my step dad because he is cool and he always
gives me a surprise and he always trusts me like when I take my dog for a walks
and also take myself to school. Some times he gets me treats like milky bars and
he takes me to parks to ride my bike and also he takes me by the river Thames
and he takes me for new adventures and they are cool and sometimes just
sometimes we play football together against each other on the PS2 and we
watch James bond and my step dad Antony took me to see The Incredibles and
The fantastic 4.
What I like to do with my dad is go to parks and eat food and watch and listen to
the birds in the trees and we go to different book shops and buy books as well as
look at them and we also buy calendars and also my dad took me to see
Enchanted and The bee movie and Stardust.
I really love spending time with my Nanny because she is very kind and she
does not just take me around London she takes me out of London for example
we went to LAX, we even went to Wales and she took me to Hampton court and
the Tower of London and she took me to Southend -on -sea and also Nanny and
I Darnell Christie are Great travellers. Maybe are next visit is Germany or maybe
we will go to Ghana or Egypt .When we went to Hyde park me and my nanny
saw where princess Dianna lived.
My country St.Vincent and the Grenadines is one of the most beautiful places in the
world. It may not be rich in minerals but it is rich in other things such as its people,
cultural activities and interested spots.
I am proud of my country because for its friendly and warm people, who will greet
you with a lovely smile and a warm hello, and willingly help especially if you are old or a
visitor.
St. Vincent has national festivals like carnival and nine mornings. Nine mornings,
unique to my country takes place nine mornings before Christmas when Vincentians
gather early in the morning for serenading or worship. Carnival takes place over a tenday period. It includes beauty and cultural shows: Miss Carival, Clash of the Bands,
masquerading, Junior Calypso and Jouvert.
We have many tourist attractions. Among them are our highest mountain peak La
Soufriere, Montreal Gardens, Fort Charlotte, black and white sand beaches, and the oldest
Botanic Gardens in the Western Hemisphere. These Gardens hold offshoots of the
breadfruit tree brought to our country by Captain Bligh in 1781. Roasted breadfruit, fried
jackfish and golden apple drink is our national dish.
I am proud to be a Vincentian and would not give up my country for any other place.
Written by Desrica Black
Grade 4 New Grounds Primary School
Name: Ehsamel Sahad
Age: 9
What I like: I like playing football, playing with my friend and running
What I’d like to be when I grow up , what do I need to succeed ?
There are so many professions in the job market like being a Lawyer , Doctor, Teacher,
Singer , Football player and so
I am in year 5 and we so many subject in school from , English , Science , Mathematics ,
Physical Education, Geography and so on . In school I am very good at physical
activaties, computer and maths. My favourite is Physical Education.
I am physically fit and for the fact I would love be footballer. As a child growing up and
being a boy I always admire the game and art of playing football . The team a support is
Manchester Untied and favourite player is C. Ronaldo . I admire this player for so many
reason for his physical appearance , height, built, his Manchester United kit and he is well
paid.
To be a good footballer I like playing football and I have the skills. I play forward. When
I grow up I like to play for Manchester United. As a footballer I will have the opportunity
to visit many places, make new friends and eat healthy food.
I have chosen to be a footballer because they are well paid and highly respected in the
society. I will then be able to take care of my family, care for the needy and live in a big
house.
In order to succeed, I pay attention in the class whenever my PE teacher introduces any
new topic in the class. I practice with my friends outside school hours.
I pray to my God Allah.
EMELIA JACK AFRICAN AND CARIBBEAN SATURDAY SCHOOL
EALING
AGED 10
HOBBIES ART, DRAMA, COMPUTERS
What I’d like to be when I grow up and what I need to succeed
The key to success is to practise. Nobody gets anywhere without the passion and
commitment to practise to be able to fly to their goal. My passion is to be an artist when I
grow up. Art is a wonderful skill to have and a talent that can be shared all round. To me
art is a sign of beauty, goodness and relaxation. I describe art as beauty because whatever
colour or form it comes out as it still is a masterpiece whatever angle you look at it. Art is
a form of goodness as well. Whenever I’m feeling down or unoccupied I do a little
doodle or drawing and suddenly my spirits raise. Relaxation is also something that is
shown in the art world. It is a hobby that puts your mind at ease. Art enables you to free
yourself from the distractions around you and lets your hand glide across the page.
Art is lively talent and one that stands out from all the ones I have. Many people admire
my drawings and paintings. Drawing is my number one skill. A few people I’ve shown
my work to have thought that I had traced some of them. However when people say this I
take it positively and see it as a compliment. These comments motivate my goal and
slowly raise the bar to my future career. I know that if I focus now on my passion and
desire for art then I will find it much easier for when I’m older and there will be many
different opportunities for me. However for me to fully succeed I will need to study about
many different things. Art isn’t just about the drawing, the painting and the patterns but
it’s also about the study of famous artists such as Picasso or some more unknown like
Klimt. I myself admire these artists each with their own unique style.
As I said at the beginning practising is the key to success and I will
practise to passion become my profession. For me to pass a
degree in art would be wonderful. However it would take all
I’ve got to pass. I know that it will be easy for me to succeed.
With all the practising I’ve done at a very young age I would
have experienced what its like to be with a pencil and a sketch
or with a paint brush, paint and a canvas. One other last thing I
think is the key to success is to feel and know that art is
something I want to actually do and that I am not doing it
because somebody thinks that I should do it, it’s because I feel
it suits me and is what I like to say a needed piece to the jigsaw
puzzle of my life that fits perfectly.
GAYNEL BARRY AFRICAN & CARIBBEAN SATURDAY SCHOOL EALING
AGED: 10
WHAT I’D LIKE TO BE WHEN I GROW UP AND WHAT I NEED TO DO TO
SUCCEED
My name is Gaynel Barry; I am 10 years old, born 28 th June 1997. I aspire to be a
defence lawyer when I grow up because I think I have the potential to defend people who
have been accused of something they might not have done. I am a believer in justice and
equality for all.
I have often read, or watched television documentaries where individuals have been
wrongly prosecuted or jailed. Sometimes I feel that they are either mis or mal
represented.
To achieve this goal I will have to achieve my full potential at primary school level, by
gaining level five in my SATS, then move on to a suitable high school, studying hard and
achieving excellent grades in my GCSCS. I will then move on to study at degree level
working closely with my mother, brother and career advisors.
The people who have given me a great boost I think are my mum and my brother,
especially my brother, because he has achieved a great deal and I either hope to achieve
the same as him or even better than him in my life.
The other reason why I want to be a defence lawyer is because you get paid a reasonable
amount of money. I believe the more qualifications on has in life the more they can
achieve financially. I want to also be an author. My first book will be my autobiography.
I want to write children’s books but not normal children’s books it will be a mixture. It
will have a bit of J.K Rowling, Jacqueline Wilson and even a bit of Enid Blyton.
The person by whom I am most truly inspired is J.K Rowling, because when I read Harry
Potter and the philosopher’s stone, I felt like one of the students at Hogwarts. I even got
shocks down my spine, I heard the voices that Harry heard and felt the same way he felt.
I will also like to be a model when I grow up. I think I can be a model because I am tall
and I feel I can Inco-operate elegance and education showing other young girls that
beauty begins with the brain. At first I thought being tall is a big disadvantage in my life,
as I have often been called “LANKY” by some of my school mates, but now I know that
it isn’t a disadvantage I can achieve a great deal with my height and most people
complement me about the smile I have, so I think that if I buckle down, study hard,
succeed and achieve my goals in life, I think I will be a great success to myself, be the
best person I can be to my mum, dad and brother.
Jada Perrott
Age: 10
Hobbies: Football, Swimming and Running
What are the things about your country that you are
Proud of ?
My Parents originally came from Trinidad and Tobago. These islands have
quite a lot of things to be proud of. Even though Trinidad and Tobago are
small islands there are still a lot of things to be proud of.
SPORT
I am proud of the Trinidad and Tobago Football team (better known as the
Soca Warriors) because they made it to the 2006 World Cup. They might not
have won the World Cup but at least they tried their best to make it and
make their country proud. And that is what life is about doing your best and
trying hard at what you do. There is another person who made his country
proud. His name is Hasley Crawford and he was the first person from the
Caribbean to win a 100m gold medal in 1976. Ato Bolden also won a 100m
bronze medal in the Olympic Games.
MUSIC
Calypso or Soca is a style of Afro-Caribbean music which was invented in
Trinidad and Tobago. A lot of musical artists use a type of drum called the
Steel Pan. Steel Pan wasn’t invented until the early 20th century. It started in
the arrival of slaves coming from Africa. This started because the slaves
were not allowed to talk to anybody so they used song to help communicate
with each other. Over 100 years ago Calypso later evolved into spreading
news around Trinidad. I think Steel Pan has a lovely rhythm and it makes
you want to dance to it. I am proud to think that people have made up this
sort of music for everybody to enjoy. And more importantly they have made
History. I love to see my Mum and Dad dancing to the music, because it has
such an amazing rhythm it makes you want to dance to it as well.
CARNIVAL
Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago originally had its roots in the West African
Festivals. Costumes: As with other Carnivals around the world the costumes
are made with a lot of feathers and sequins. I am proud that Carnival has
come from where my family was born. In Carnival, people dance around in
these colourful costumes because they are ‘Playing Mas’.
This is dancing to the beat of the music the steel band are playing or dancing
to the music the D.J or Disc Jockey is playing. The Trinidad and Tobago
Carnival is one of the greatest Carnivals in the world. The Nottinghill
Carnival which is in England takes its origin from the Trinidad and Tobago
Carnival, but the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival is better with lots more
beautiful costumes.These costumes are made with a lot of feathers and
sequins.
PEOPLE
I think Trinidad and Tobago has some of the most beautiful people in the
world. I am proud of these women because the managed to get the title of
Miss world: Giselle Laronde 1986,(Won) Sastee Bachan,
1991, Michelle Khan 1996, Amanda Jardine 1998, Jeanette La Caille
1998,Rhonda Rosemein 2000,Janelle Rajnauth 2002, Faye Alibocas
2003, Kenisha Thom 2005, Jenna-Marie Andre 2005, Teneke De Freitas
2006, Valene Maharaj 2007. I am also proud of these Ladies because they
managed to get the Miss Universe: Penny Commissiong 1977,(Won)
Arlene Peterkin 1995, Margaret Bourgeois 1997, Wendy Fitzwilliams
1998,(Won) Nicole Dyer 1999, Heidi Rostant 2000, Alexia Charlerie 2001,
Nasma Mohammed 2002, Faye Alibocas 2003, Danielle Jones 2004, Cheryl
Ankrah 2005, Magdalene Walcott 2005, Kenisha Thom 2006. These are all
the women that got this title.
I AM PROUD OF TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO!!!!
Name: Jenyo Olubokun
Age: 9
Topic: What do you like best about spending time with your mum, dad or your
grandparent?
Top three favourite hobbies: Football, Fine- Art and Rugby.
My Country’s name is Nigeria. It’s situated in West Africa. It’s also known as the most
populous country in Africa.
Spending time with my grandparents in the village in something I always love to do
because each time spent with them comes with its own new experience, new lesson and
lots of fun.
Traveling from Lagos to my grandparents’ village is like traveling from one country to
another. It takes about four hours because of bad road network. If the roads were good, it
would have taken just two hours to get to get to the village.
The only lorry that travels on that route does so thrice in a week, that is on Mondays,
Wednesdays and Fridays.
My grandparents always tell me that before civilization the African man had a way of
doing things with ease and had fun. Waking up in the morning is fun. Nobody sets the
alarm clock. The cock crows at 4am and 5am to wake people for their daily activities.
After day break, the position of the sun in the sky is used to determine the hours.
There are lots of children from ages three months to fifteen living with my grandparents.
Some of them are my cousins, aunts, uncles or friends and neighbours children whose
parents are either working, trading in the city or whose parents left in the care of my
grandparents to enable them travel and buy goods for the village shop.
We all live and sleep in my grandmother’s room. As soon as the first cock crows, those
who are going to the farm would wake up and set out to the farmland. When the second
cock crows, my grandmother would wake the rest of us at home up we all gather in the
sitting room for morning prayers before doing the morning task which is assigned to us
by my grandmother.
While some are sweeping and tiding up the house, some would be washing the dishes or
doing the laundry while some would be assisting my grandmother in the kitchen to
prepare breakfast or give wash to the youngest among us. This assignment is rotated on
daily basis.
We have to take water from a deep well beside the house to have a wash outside, but
some of my older cousins prefer to have their wash in the village steam. The only
bathroom made of raffia at the back of the house is used by adults only.
In the afternoon my grandmother would make delicious dinner for the family and take
some to my grandfather and his workers at the farm. I always insist on going with her
because my grandfather would teach me about the use of some plants and the different
ways they could serve as first aid prevent or treat sickness such as malaria, bee-stings,
diarrhoea, stomach ache, toothache or anti snake bite venom. He would also teach me
about crop rotation which makes his farm healthy and fertile.
Some of the workers in the farm also teach me how to set traps to hunt for animals and
how to make and use bow and arrow. I also enjoy listening to birds singing on the trees.
On our way back home my grandmother would gather some fire wood which would be
used for cooking or fire light at night.
Then comes the evening after a nice meal, we would gather in the compound around the
fire light and listen to granddad’s tales by moonlight or riddle and jokes. Each tale ends
with one or two lessons, giving us reasons why we must be well behaved, hardworking,
honest, united, be our brother’s keeper, have a strong family ties and respect our elders.
When there is moonlight the tales are told at the village square with many other families
from the village with funfare.
One tale I always remember is about a woman who was dreaded by everybody in her
village. She belongs to cult that practices voodoo. Her cult has the supernatural power to
cause havoc in families that are happy. At each meeting, the members celebrate their evil
ways and decide who else to harm and who is to carry out this assignment before the next
meeting.
It was now the turn of this woman. She decided to look for her victim. She met a family
who was rejoicing over the birth of a child and she planned to harm the baby and the
mother. Her daughter advised her against it because they would be held responsible for
the havoc since they are the only non family member around. She left and continued
searching for a victim.
The woman met another family which was divided. They were fighting, cursing,
threatening and swearing at themselves. The evil woman saw this divided family as her
best target because nobody would suspect her since the family was divided. She killed
three members of this family with her evil powers and the fighting parties were accusing
each other for the havoc.
This teaches me that united we stand, divided we fall. We all should have love for each
other and develop strong family ties.
All these I miss most about my grandparents.
Name: Jessica Tonwe
Age: 10
What I like: I like to play with my friends, go swimming, dancing and singing.
What I’d like to be when I grow up , what do I need to succeed ?
There are so many jobs out there in the jobs markets like singers, dancer, actress, actor
,doctors , nurse, lawyer, teacher and so many more.
My name is Jessica and I am 10 years old , I am in year six at school I attended Holy
Trinity primary school we learn lost of subjects in school for example : Mathematics ,
English , Science, Geography, P.E . My favourite subject are English and P.E.
I am physically fit person so I would like to be a Dancer and singer when I’m older. As a
child growing up I have intention of doing so many jobs ranging from acting, dancing or
singing. I have been inspired by professional such as Beyonce , Shakira , Vanessa
Hugdens and many more.
I have chosen to be singer because I well get paid lots of money and live in a big house . I
will then be able to help all the poor people in the world.
I enjoy writing already so I will be able to write plenty songs about my journey to
success, I will on focus on the positive side to my career.
Thank you for reading my essay
Jessica Tonwe.
Name: Jessica Tonwe
Age: 10
What I like: I like to play with my friends, go swimming, dancing and singing.
What I’d like to be when I grow up , what do I need to succeed ?
There are so many jobs out there in the jobs markets like singers, dancer, actress, actor
,doctors , nurse, lawyer, teacher and so many more.
My name is Jessica and I am 10 years old , I am in year six at school I attended Holy
Trinity primary school we learn lost of subjects in school for example : Mathematics ,
English , Science, Geography, P.E . My favourite subject are English and P.E.
I am physically fit person so I would like to be a Dancer and singer when I’m older. As a
child growing up I have intention of doing so many jobs ranging from acting, dancing or
singing. I have been inspired by professional such as Beyonce , Shakira , Vanessa
Hugdens and many more.
I have chosen to be singer because I well get paid lots of money and live in a big house . I
will then be able to help all the poor people in the world.
I enjoy writing already so I will be able to write plenty songs about my journey to
success, I will on focus on the positive side to my career.
Thank you for reading my essay
Jessica Tonwe.
Essays beginning with Jordel West to begin Part 2 of