What do Igbo (Diasporan) kids know about their identity?
A review of Kindergarten by Munachiso Obinna-Ibe and Obinna Ibe MD
In February 2024, Dr. Obinna Ibe, a Nigerian doctor/content creator based in the United States, contacted me after we had casually met at a farmers market in Memphis to say he was sending me two books. Who rejects book mails? Certainly not me. I told him I was excited and looked forward to receiving the books. About two weeks later, the books were delivered to me. It wasn’t poetry (my favorite books to read) or some interesting fiction/nonfiction. Surprisingly, it was two children’s books.
It was the first time after almost fifteen years that I would own a children’s book. Everything about the book looked interesting. From the cover to the illustrations in the book. Of the many things that piqued my interest, the top on the list was that this children’s book was authored by his daughter — very impressive! Almost every day, we see children’s books written by adults but very rarely do we see children’s books written by children.
Kindergarten follows the life of Muna, the main character who is four years old. Muna begins her story by introducing readers to who she is, where she lives, as well as what she enjoys doing with her time. Muna further introduces us to her family (parents) and their cultural identity.
Another point of interest in Kindergarten is how the narrator incorporates all she learns of her father’s culture. The blend/adaptability of the two cultures in the book (English and Igbo) speaks heavily on cultural identity/acceptance as it encourages Nigerian diaspora kids to familiarize themselves with their culture of origin and not only the acquired one.
Moving to pages seven through ten, with the section titled “Teach me Igbo”, the narrator, out of curiosity urges her father to teach her Igbo by asking him to mention parts of the body in English which she translates to Igbo, to her excitement and that of her father.
In this same section, we meet Muna and her mother, preparing African meals together, with Muna translating English words for kitchen items to Igbo. Again, to her excitement and that of her mother.
The conversations between Muna’s father and mother where they begin to expose her to Igbo words/usage are very important in championing Igbo literacy among kids of Igbo origin born in the 21st century and beyond. On many occasions, people have argued that Igbo is a dying language. In 2006, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) predicted that the Igbo language, one of Nigeria’s three major languages, might become extinct within 50 years. In 2012, UNESCO’s Advisory Committee on Language Pluralism and Multi-language Education further predicted that Igbo could be extinct by 2025 and subsumed by other Nigerian languages. However, as of May 2022, some say that the Igbo language is defying extinction, which I agree with. My agreement is fueled by the evident trend of parents ensuring that the Igbo language is taught at home, in school, and is a language of engagement for them and their kids — especially parents who create children’s content online.
On page thirteen, Kindergarten introduces us to a very crucial aspect of Igbo culture. With Muna asking her father what the fruit served to Mazi Ndu is and learning that kolanut is served to guests in Igbo culture, the section titled “Kolanut” speaks on the significance of oji (kolanut) to Igbo people. The popular Igbo proverb ‘onye wetere oji, wetere ndu’ which translates as ‘he who brings kolanut brings life’ does not elude our gaze in this section.
“Accent Battle” on page fifteen is one for laughs. I read it and laughed for a couple of minutes before reading further. Somehow, I saw the scenes in this section play in my head. Each time an American asked me why my English sounded good but different and enquired what I spoke, I always said Nigerian English. Emphasis on Nigerian and they’d ask if there was an English like Nigerian English. In “Accent Battle”, we see Muna the narrator, correcting her dad’s pronunciation with the father insisting that his was correct and he speaks with an Igbo accent which is reflective of his origin.
Moving over to page sixteen with the section titled “Water”, we see Muna telling her father that it’s water (worra) and not water (worta). And on page twenty-one in the section titled “Walking Home” where Muna corrects her dad’s pronunciation when he pronounces birthday as baiday or as many other Nigerians would pronounce it as betday. Muna insists that it is berfday not baiday. Like many Nigerian English speakers whose English pronunciations are heavily influenced by mother-tongue interference in Nigeria, a similar case is seen where a Nigerian English speaker in conversation with an American, for instance, where the Nigerian would pronounce security as securiti and the American would pronounce the same word as securidi. In my opinion, neither of these pronunciations should be faulted as they are a reflection of where the speaker is from or where the speaker learned the language.
Kindergarten interestingly embraces the benefits of social media as the narrator and her father start an Instagram account where videos they make together are posted, gaining admiration from social media users and boosting their fanbase.
The book ends with Muna and her father being invited for a TV interview to talk about her viral videos and how the videos have inspired immigrant parents across the world to teach their children their native language.
We must begin to encourage literacy in children from very tender ages. If a child can get involved in an idea that would impact their society or the world at large, parents/guardians should always be there to encourage them. Dr. Ibe (known as Obyno Daddy- Muna and Kachi) has set a road map for many Nigerian or African parents to follow with this amazing project he pulled with his daughter.
If the world predicts that Igbo (or your language as the case may be) will go extinct in years to come, it is your responsibility to preserve it by teaching it to your children.
Today, I’m charging young kids to read. And charging parents to provide helpful resources to help their kids become better. Not every child will be passionate about writing a book. But every child should be exposed to reading right.
“…Recent research shows that the imagination may be more powerful than believed previously — scientists now believe that creative imaging can ‘rewrite’ certain memories to be less traumatic, and can even enhance certain physical connections within the body. Research by the UK National Literacy Trust (NLT) found that 90% of children feel “happiest” when reading and writing, as opposed to playing games or watching favorite cartoons. That might sound a little unbelievable if your kid is more often glued to their screen, than with their nose in a book, but maybe a little nudge in the right direction is all they need…” https://kidskonnect.com/articles/why-children-should-read-20-minutes-a-day-and-how-this-impacts-your-kids-development-at-any-age/
If you enjoyed reading this review and want a copy (or copies) of Kindergarten for your kids or any child you care about, check out @obynodaddymuna on Instagram.
