The first people in the world to start using counting to keep track of things were the African people. In around 35,000 BC, somebody made the first counting stick, and left it in Lebombo cave. This unknown person cut twenty nine notches into a stick. No one agrees on what this person was counting.

One very obvious contribution made by Africa were the pyramids, which show quite extraordinary knowledge of geometry and engineering.

Thousands of years ago, Greece was conquered by the Romans, and all of their work was lost. But then, nearly 900 years later, African scholars rediscovered all of these lost ideas and translated them, starting off the Renaissance.

Africa has many different languages. In the north, people spoke languages related to Hebrew and Arabic. In the east, people spoke Swahili, a Bantu language with many Arabic words. In the south, people spoke languages such as !Kung, which involved many clicking sounds. In the west, people spoke languages such as Yoruba, which is related to Bantu.

Very little was written and much was oral. Storytellers, called griots, were like special performers who retold traditional stories. One had to go through much training to become a griot. When they told their stories, they were allowed and even encouraged to embellish the story with their own inventions, never changing the plot of the story. The most famous story is the story of Sundiata, also known as the Lion King of Mali

Many people believed that when a person died their spirit stayed close to the village they had lived in. Their relatives and friends would build statues in honor of the dead. They would place food as an offering to the spirit of the dead, and they would bring them news of village life. They also believed that animals, water, and trees had spirits too.

For several millenia, the Niger River has supported many great civilizations. As recent as a few thousand years ago, much of Africa had a wet climate, but then the climate changed and became hot and dry. Suddenly, West Africa became a desert barely able to sustain life. Many people had to move and settle in places where there was still water.

Typical families consisted of everyone in the extended family and village life was very important. Everyone in the family worked very hard. The men hunted and farmed, while the women took care of the children, gathered firewood, carried water, farmed and ground grain. Family ties and loyalty were essential to daily life.

Ghana Scavenger Hunt

1. Ghana is one of five countries along the Gulf of Guinea. (the

answer is a body of water)

2. The official language spoken in Ghana is English.

3. To the north of Ghana is the country of Burkina Faso.

4. The three colors in the Ghana flag are red, yellow, and green.

5. The capital of Ghana is Accra.

6. Ghana is on the continent of Africa.

7. The highest point in Ghana is Mount Afadjato. (look for a

section on elevation extremes)

8. The climate is tropical. (one word)

9. This shape is in the middle of the flag. Star.

10. The largest river in Ghana is the Volta River.

11. To the east of Ghana is this country. Togo.

12. Two of the countries resources are diamonds and gold.

13. The best known national park is Mole National Park.

14. The country to the west of Ghana is Cote d'Ivoire.

15. Before Ghana gained its independence, it was a British colony. Its former name was the The Gold Coast.

16. In the United States, the people are called American. In Ghana, the people are called Ghanaians.

17. 1 cedi=100 pesewas.

18. Ghana gained its independence from Britain in this year 1957.