Describe your first school

My first school was a primary school in a small village near Ho, in Volta Region of Ghana. I went there from the age of five until I was eight, because I lived with my grandparents.

The school was very simple. It had two long buildings with classrooms, they were painted with blue and yellow colour. In the middle there was a big mango tree, and when the weather was too hot, our teacher take us under the tree for lessons. Three children sat on one bench, and in every class there was about forty students.

Every morning we had assembly and we sang a song for God. Then we repeated the times tables many times. We didn't have enough books, so the teacher read and we repeated after her. On Fridays all the students must clean the compound with brooms, and at break time the boys played football with a ball of plastic bags.

My best memory is when I won the spelling competition. The headmistress gave me the bell for one week, so I was the one who ring it. But one day I was too much excited and I rang the bell ten minutes early for the break, and all the children ran outside. I was scared that she will punish me, but she only laughed. I still remember this day very clearly.

My first school was a primary school in a small village near Ho, in the east of Ghana. I went there from the age of five until I was eight, while I was living with my grandparents.

It was a very simple school. There were two long buildings with classrooms, painted blue and yellow, and a big sandy area in the middle with a huge mango tree. On really hot days, the teachers sometimes took us outside to have our lessons in its shade. Inside, we sat on wooden benches, three children on each one, and the classes were quite big, about forty pupils.

Every morning started with an assembly where we sang a hymn, and after that we spent a lot of time repeating times tables all together. There weren't enough books for everyone, so the teacher used to read aloud and we'd repeat after her. On Fridays we had to sweep the whole compound, and at break time the boys played football with a ball which they'd made from plastic bags.

The memory that stands out is from a spelling competition I won when I was eight. As a prize, the headmistress allowed me to ring the school bell for a week, which was a huge honour. I took it incredibly seriously. But one day I was so excited that I rang the bell for break ten minutes too early, and everyone rushed outside. I thought I was in a big trouble, but the headmistress just laughed. Even now, whenever I hear a bell like that, I remember that moment.

My first school was a small government primary school in a village just outside Ho, in the Volta Region of Ghana, about ten minutes' walk from my grandparents' house, where I lived until I was eight.

It wasn't much to look at, to be honest: two long classroom blocks painted blue and yellow, a dusty compound, and in the middle of it an enormous mango tree that did the job of a staffroom, a playground and, in the hot season, an extra classroom. We sat three to a wooden bench, and there were probably forty of us in a class, all in the same brown and yellow uniform.

The day had a very fixed rhythm. We'd start with assembly and a hymn, then spend what felt like hours chanting times tables in unison. Books were scarce, so the teacher would read a passage aloud and we'd repeat it line by line. On Fridays everyone swept the compound with brooms made from palm fronds, and at break the boys played football with a ball made from plastic bags tied together with string.

The memory I treasure most is from my last year there. I won the school spelling competition, and as a reward the headmistress, Madam Agbeko, let me ring the brass hand bell for a whole week. I was unbelievably proud of it; I carried that bell around as if it were a trophy. Unfortunately, on the third day I got so carried away that I rang it for break about ten minutes early, and the entire school poured out before anyone realised. I was sure I'd be punished, but she just laughed and said I clearly had a future in management.