“Flabber…what? Baba Boi Comes To The Rescue – Spelling Bee
“Ngo! Ngo! Ngo!”
There’s a knock on the door. “Wacha niende nikafungue mlango, mummy!”, Keni shouted as she ran towards the door hoping that it was Boi.
“BOI! Boi amekuja! Wametoka mid-term! Yess!!!”, Keni jumped at Boi and gave him a heartfelt hug. “Kumbe daddy alikuja kukuchukua kutoka shule, nimekumiss!”, Keni said as she held her brother’s hand and walked to the kitchen. Their dad, feeling proud to see his son and daughter bond, left Boi’s suitcase at the door and followed them to the kitchen. Mama Boi’s brown and soft-layered chapatis were calling them by name. She makes her chapos extra special by adding ghee.
“Mmmh…Chapos!”, they all exclaimed. “MMmmhh…ni tamuuu!”, Boi and his dad looked at each other as they took another bite. “Mimi na Sydo tumesaidia mum kupika chapo!”, Keni babbled.
“Good Job, guys! Ni tamu sana”, Boi commented while devouring a few more chapos.
(A few hours later, Boi and his family are relaxing in their living room)
“Boi, how were the exams?”, Baba Boi asked.
“Tough. I tried my best, dad”, Boi replied as he handed over his file to his parents.
“Ei! Na hii composition nikama ilikulemea! Hio jina ‘hodgepodge’ inaandikwa hivyo kweli? Ebu leta dictionary tuconfirm. Ei…more spelling mistakes? Flabber..what? Haha! Wacha tujifunze these words pamoja”, Baba Boi teased.
“Spelling is quite hard, dad”, Boi claimed as he brought the dictionary and sat next to his dad.
“Don’t worry, son. We will learn the correct spelling of the words you missed and come up with a plan to improve your spelling skills, sawa? ”, his dad encouraged him.
“And if you keep learning new words every day, you will be able to participate in spelling bee competitions like the one on Akili Kids! TV. Kwanza you’re just in time for episode 2!”, Baba Boi gushed.
“Episode 2 ni this Saturday and Sunday at 9am and 6pm! The competition is awarding the contestants amazing prizes! This time, the top prize is a tablet!”, Mama Boi added.
“Wow! I’d love to own a tablet”, Boi exclaimed.
“One day, you will get a tablet. Haiko mbali! First, let’s learn some new words today. Alafu, I want you to form a habit of reading short stories every week. Si shule mkona library?”, Baba Boi asked.
“Yes, dad”, Boi replied.
“Good! Make the library your second home. Pick up a book and if you’re not sure about a word, confirm by looking up the word from the dictionary. Before you know it, we’ll be seeing you on TV taking part in spelling competitions!”, Baba Boi said confidently.
“Sawa sawa, dad”, Boi agreed.
“So how do you spell this word?”, Baba Boi pointed out the word from Boi’s composition.
“F-l-a-b-b-e-r-g-a-s-t-e-d!”, Boi replied.
“Correct!” Baba Boi confirmed.