In classrooms across African cities and diaspora communities, children are learning about Shakespeare and Silicon Valley, yet many cannot name the village their grandmother was born in, or the meaning of the patterns in their traditional dress. Languages fade. Food traditions get replaced. Cultural identity becomes an occasional costume, worn only for weddings or school plays.
Know Your Roots, Know Your Truth was created to change that.
This is no ordinary workbook. Conceived by Chizoba Imoka-Ubochioma, educator, storyteller, and founder of Unveiling Africa, it is an invitation for children to discover who they are, where they come from, and why it matters. Through stories, drawing, elder interviews, and reflective exercises, children are encouraged to see history not as a static past, but as a living inheritance they can carry into the future.
“When a child knows their story,” Imoka says, “they can walk into any room in the world with their head high. That confidence is the foundation for everything else — leadership, creativity, and pride in our own.”
The Heart of the Workbook
Family Trees & Oral Histories – uncover names, stories, and customs that risk being forgotten.
Cultural Traditions – document foods, clothing, celebrations, and music unique to their heritage.
Identity Reflection – guided questions to help children connect their personal story to their community’s journey.
Creative Expression – spaces to draw, imagine, and reimagine their roots in a way that is joyful and personal.
It is equally at home in the classroom, community programmes, or the family living room. And it plants something deeper than knowledge: a sense of belonging.
Why This Matters for Go Local
Efforts to revive local tastes in fashion and food don’t start at the market stall; they start in the heart. When a child understands why their grandmother wraps moi-moi in a certain leaf, or the origin of a pattern in their aso-oke, they begin to see these not as commodities but as cultural treasures.
A generation that knows and loves these stories will grow into adults who buy local, wear local, eat local, and defend the value of those traditions in a global marketplace.
About the Author
Chizoba Imoka-Ubochioma, PhD, is a passionate researcher, educator, and cultural advocate. Through her non-profit, Unveiling Africa, she designs learning tools that help children ask bold questions, honour their heritage, and grow into leaders rooted in their identity yet ready to transform the future.
If we want a generation that chooses Nigerian fabrics over imported ones, or local dishes over foreign fast food, we must first raise children who understand and love where they come from. Know Your Roots, Know Your Truth is a tool to make that happen, one family story, one recipe, one piece of cloth at a time.
