We have been told that in Uganda, where birth records are often sketchy, schools have a little trick to find out if the children are 5 years old. Children are asked to put their arm over their head. If the child is able to touch the bottom of the earlobe on the opposite side of their head, then they are 5 and can be admitted to school. The belief is that younger children cannot do this. We tried this with our 6 year old and discovered that if he was in an Ugandan school he would not be considered 5 because he cannot touch bottom of his earlobe. Hmmm.... Is this only African children that this applies to? Do we just have an unusual child? Or is this merely a Ugandan wives' tale? Not sure, but our helper who is 30 said that when her parents took her to 1st grade, she had to do that. We are going to try this with some of the kids here at the orphanage and see what we find.
So here is something for you to try. Put your arm over your head and see if you can touch your earlobe and see if your children can. I'd love to hear your findings. Can you or your children be admitted to Ugandan Kindergarten?
