Creating Books That Transcend Borders And Culture, Teaching Timeless Lessons To Our Kids
Dr. Ogbiji Victor Okom
Long ago, Tortoise was known to be one of the most respected animals in the kingdom. He walked with dignity and had no shell on his back, but a single act of greed changed his destiny forever. This captivating piece of African folklore follows the wily Tortoise as he plots to join the birds’ grand feast in the sky. When he cunningly tricks his way into the festival, his actions spark surprising events that change him forever. He soon discovers that his selfish scheme comes with a heavy price. Readers will have to turn the pages to discover exactly how his deception led to the permanent mark he carries today.
This book serves as both an entertaining narrative and a complete activity book for young minds. Beyond the tale itself, it features a special section packed with Comprehension Questions, Multiple Choice Questions, Short Answer Questions, and Discussion Prompts designed to deepen understanding. By combining this classic folklore with interactive exercises, the book helps parents and teachers guide children through essential life lessons.
Young readers will learn that greed and dishonesty lead to downfall, while understanding why community values matter. Ultimately, the story demonstrates that actions have lasting consequences and that true respect must be earned through integrity.
All Of You: How The Tortoise Got It’s Shell
For ages 3-18
Available In All Formats
Buy It Today!
Meet Our Animal Friends
Squirrel
Tortoise
Mole
Testimonials
Let our testimonials speak for themselves. These reflections from. parents, teachers, and caregivers show how this story connects with young hearts and inspires gentle reflection and lasting connection.
“All of You is an engaging folktale that uses humor and cultural storytelling to convey meaningful lessons. Its African heritage elements offer important representation and relatability for many young readers. Overall, it is a valuable and enjoyable addition to children’s literature.”
“The story is an absolute delight—simple to follow, full of charm, and brought to life with bright, whimsical illustrations that little ones love to linger over. Its lesson is wrapped in gentle humor, making it both entertaining and surprisingly useful in everyday parenting moments. It’s the kind of book that slips easily into a cozy bedtime routine or becomes a fast favorite during preschool or kindergarten story time.”
“The story is charming and easy to follow, supported by engaging, colorful illustrations. Its central lesson is delivered with humor while still offering practical value for young readers. This book works well as a bedtime read aloud or a group story time choice for preschool and kindergarten.”
My journey as a storyteller began in my village of Nyanya, within the Bekwarra clan of Eastern Nigeria.
In my childhood, storytelling was more than a pastime—it was a form of entertainment as well as a channel for conveying the tribal beliefs, moral values,and mythology of the tribe to children. Storytelling was the heartbeat of the village or community.
Traditional oral folklores are told by the elders to children, and the children in turn tell it to each other as a form of entertainment and as a reminder of life lessons about the tribe. During the day, children were expected to help their parents on the farms, but as evening fell, the village was transformed into pockets of gazebos of gathering places for children’s nightly storytelling. Accompanied with games and songs, storytelling became a way to preserve tribal culture and the gazebos, our most profound classroom for learning village ethos.
When I entered elementary school in Nigeria, this oral tradition was formally integrated into our daily instruction, usually occurring right after lunch. Many years ago, I returned to my village and was moved to find this tradition still thriving. I recorded several of these stories to bring back to my own children and, most importantly, to share with my students.
As an educator here in the United States, I noticed that this type of ritualistic storytelling was missing. I therefore, developed and incorporated storytelling as an art form and a framework along with tribal games, drumming or music, and artifacts into my instruction using a platform and a framework called African Village Safari™. The name “African Village Safari” suggests a journey of discovery and a focus on community – based learning. By using this culturally responsive strategy in my classroom to address the cultural and asset discrepancy or discontinuity between minority students’ home experience and school experience as a result of attending traditional school programs, students realize three related benefits: academic success, cultural competency, and social justice.
The African Village Safari™ framework can be adopted as a year-long powerful instructional approach to address equity and social justice in instructional design and curriculum planning. This Culturally Responsive Teaching approach effectively increases students’ engagement in the instructional design, knowledge production or creation, and ultimately results in their success. If classrooms, schools, community centers, or libraries are in need of an African Village Safari™ presentation, contact me.