Forest edge
Èdè Yorùbá
The language of home, proverb, and praise.
Beginner Intermediate Professional Kids yard Eré Òwe
Yard school
A short path a child can clap.
Yoruba uses three tones. The same letters can mean different things if the voice goes high or low — like a song.
beginner
Àlífábẹ́ẹ̀tì — vowels
Seven vowels. The dots under ẹ and ọ are signs: they change the sound.
The seven vowels a e ẹ i o ọ u. Hear the open ones. Letters with a sign ẹ ọ ṣ gb — the ones English does not write.beginner
Àmì ohùn — tone marks
The signs on the vowels. High ´ , mid (no mark), low ` . Same letters, different words.
High, mid, low The voice goes up, stays, or falls. Signs on a word Read the marks. They are not decoration. Same letters, new word Change the sign, change the meaning.beginner
At the door
The first words you say when you meet family.
The morning Greet the day the way elders expect. How are you A greeting is a question. Answer it well. Your name Introduce yourself without rushing.beginner
Ìdílé — family
The people the school is named for.
Parents Bàbá and ìyá, the root of the house. Siblings Age matters. Yoruba names the order. In the house Water, food, the table.beginner
Ọjà — the market
Numbers, prices, and the art of asking.
Count to five Start with the hand you already have. I want to buy The sentence that opens every stall. The food stall Names you will actually use at lunch.beginner · kids
Àwọ̀ — colours
Name what you see. Made for children — and anyone starting with the eyes.
Red and yellow Pupa is the colour of a ripe pepper. Green and blue Leaves first. Then the sky.beginner · kids
Ara — my body
Point, name, laugh. The lesson every child already plays.
Head and face Ori, ojú, etí — tap as you say it. Hands and feet The parts you use at the table and in the yard.beginner · kids
Ẹranko — animals
The courtyard zoo: dog, cat, chicken, goat, fish.
At the house Ajá at the gate. Ológbò on the wall. What they do Run, fly, eat — verbs children copy.beginner · wisdom
Òwe — first sitting
Òwe lẹ́ṣin ọ̀rọ̀ — a proverb is the horse of speech. Elders still ride it. If a form is wrong, send a correction.
Òwe — first sitting Five to keep in the mouth. Òwe · sitting 3 Five more. Hear them. Say them. Òwe · sitting 4 A third sitting. Still beginner.beginner · kids
Ìmọ̀lara — feelings
A child can name happy, sad, tired, and hungry.
How I feel Point to the face. Say the word. Be kind Share, wait, say please.beginner · kids
Aṣọ — clothes
Shirt, shoe, cap — dress for the yard.
What I wear Name it, then put it on. Put it on Wear, wash, fold.beginner · kids
Ojú ọjọ́ — weather
Sun, rain, wind — the yard tells you.
Look up Sun and rain first.beginner · kids
Oúnjẹ ọmọ — food
What a child asks for at the table.
I want to eat Rice, beans, fruit, water. Sweet and hot Taste with the mouth, not the eye.beginner · kids
Kà á — count on
Six to ten, then the hand is full.
Six to ten After five, keep counting.beginner · kids
Ọgbà — more animals
Cow, bird, snake, tortoise — the stories.
In the bush The animals òwe already know.beginner
Ìbéèrè — questions
Who, what, where, why — the adult's tools.
Who and what Ask without rushing. How and why The longer questions.beginner
Ìṣe — daily verbs
Do, see, know, want, give — the spine of a sentence.
The core five You will use these every hour. A day's work Wake, bathe, cook, go.