Bino and Fino Blog

A list of museums, child care centers, pre-schools, after school clubs and schools that teach about Africa in significant positive ways. These range from centers that add teaching about Africa into the mix of what they do through to Museums that are focused on the spreading Knowledge about Africa and the African Diaspora. 

Finding black dolls to buy for kids can be a bit of a challenge sometimes. Now more then ever parents want greater diversity in children's toys.  After a bit of research we've put together a short list of black dolls from around the world that we feel are making waves and adding value to children's lives.

When you talk about Africa in the world of children's entertainment, very rarely do you see many programs for children to watch to help them learn about the continent. This issue is even more prevalent in Portuguese speaking countries like Brazil where there is a serious lack of media that portrays Africa for children to interact with.

Most children in Brazil know little about their African heritage, African culture, history and the positive impact it has had in Brazil and the world. They are not taught about this in schools, in the books they read or the TV shows they watch. 

Finding activity books with black characters can sometimes be a challenge. We believe that it is important for kids to see themselves not only in their favourite shows but also in their coloring books as well. With this in mind we have put together a list of coloring books that feature black boys and girls that you can get for your little one.

Playing card and board games can be a good way of boosting cognitive skills development in children.  Though it can be quite tricky to find such items centred around Africa we've found a few we would certainly recommend you checking out. 

Simple and easy to make Finger food. That's Nigerian puff puff! It is apparently the next most common yeast food product eaten in the country after bread. It is basically a deep fried batter of flour, yeast, sugar and water normally eaten as a snack. Of course there are variations of it all over sub-Saharan Africa. 

Image, self confidence and beauty is something that afflicts millions of black girls. Of course all girls are affected by this. But especially in societies where black people are in the minority it is important for there to be social groups that empower them to see their inner beauty and enable them to realise their full potential. We have compiled a list of organizations that are empowering little black girls around the world.

October the 1st 1960 was when Nigeria gained independence from Britain. The country became a republic in 1963. This is an important part of our na...

The Gele is a tall elegant head piece worn by women from Nigeria. Though originally worn  by women  from the Yoruba tribe it has become a popular fashion accessory for all women across the country and a must have for social functions .

Ankara is a very popular type of fabric from Ghana. It can be used for parties, functions, weddings and just about any social occasion. The peplum...

Cultural dances play a huge role in African societies. These dance forms are used to teach moral values, social etiquette and to help people mature and celebrate members of the community while celebrating festivals and other occasions. African dances are largely participatory and every ritual dance often have a time when spectators must participate. 

It is no surprise that there a lack of true positive African voices in the world of children's media. What can children watch,  read or play with to learn more about the wonderful continent in a  positive genuine way? Not as some afterthought. The key words being 'genuine' ,  'educational' , 'entertaining' and 'representative' . I'm not talking about Madagascar or Lion King here.  Nothing against Disney but those movies ( or similar) are not what I'm referring  to here as they don't really represent Africa in any real way beyond just being set there.