Whenever the truck bringing crates of 'maziwa ya Nyayo' rolled into the school compound, squeals of delight interrupted the lesson and indeed, the entire school turned its focus to the distribution and drinking of 'maziwa ya nyayo'. Corruption was rife with prefects, teachers and upper primary kids stashing away more packets for themselves, some for drinking and in the case of teachers, some for making tea at home.
My friends from mixed primos tell me that the boys only wanted packets with the image of boys playing boxing, while girls only wanted packets with an image of girls playing netball. It was very embarrassing if you got a packet with an image of the opposite sex and one could even cry or be teased about it. I hear that in certain schools, smashing packets of 'maziwa ya nyayo' on the heads of classmates was a sport of great delight.
Alas! Those days are gone... or are they? Rumour has it that the school milk program may be reintroduced. Perhaps this time they will call it 'maziwa ya kibz'.
Friday 19 September 2008
Monday 1 September 2008
Primary English
Do you recall the climb up Primary School so aptly represented by the boy and girl taking a step each year on the cover of Primary English?
For many young people, that journey began with 'Hallo Children', your first English textbook. 'Like a lot of my friends, Hallo Children enthralled us with the mundane lives of Mr. Kamau, Mrs. Kamau and their children Tom, Mary and Peter. They were all speaking to us and saying, Hallo Children! As we would later learn, Mr. Kamau was a bus driver, Mrs. Kamau gave him a banana for breakfast, Mary was lazy and could not be woken up by countless domestic animals, Tom was prone to loosing pencils and Peter, the baby, loved playing with ink.
Then came 'Read with us' in standard two where Tom, Mary and their friends eat some grass soup and get awfully sick. Compelling eh?
We eventually moved on to 'New Friends' in class three.......things get hazy and muda si muda, we are almost 'Stepping Out' in class 8. Over the years debates happen, horrific dreams are retold and Mbogori cooks lunch.
For many young people, that journey began with 'Hallo Children', your first English textbook. 'Like a lot of my friends, Hallo Children enthralled us with the mundane lives of Mr. Kamau, Mrs. Kamau and their children Tom, Mary and Peter. They were all speaking to us and saying, Hallo Children! As we would later learn, Mr. Kamau was a bus driver, Mrs. Kamau gave him a banana for breakfast, Mary was lazy and could not be woken up by countless domestic animals, Tom was prone to loosing pencils and Peter, the baby, loved playing with ink.
Then came 'Read with us' in standard two where Tom, Mary and their friends eat some grass soup and get awfully sick. Compelling eh?
We eventually moved on to 'New Friends' in class three.......things get hazy and muda si muda, we are almost 'Stepping Out' in class 8. Over the years debates happen, horrific dreams are retold and Mbogori cooks lunch.
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