THE sights, sounds and smells of The Gambia were savoured by students in Swindon as part of a special day of activities.

Commonweal School’s Year 7 pupils went ‘off-timetable’ for Gambia Day for a cultural experience featuring drumming, dancing, art and food.

The day started with a special assembly in which pupils looked at the geography of The Gambia and how its people live, with the differences between life there and in the UK highlighted.

“The students learned about things that we take for granted, like shopping on a daily basis, as there is not an electricity supply,” said a school spokesman.

“If the children are fortunate they go to school, but resources are very limited and children often have an older child teaching them.”

After the morning assembly the children groups did four hour-long workshops in their tutor groups, before coming together in the afternoon to share their experiences and have a go at drumming and dancing on stage.

“It was really good fun and I learned loads of things about Gambia, such as don’t do anything with your left hand, because when you go to the toilet you have to use your left hand to wipe yourself,” said Myintmo Shi.

Fellow student Olivia Harrison said: “I think that the day was enjoyable and helped me understand other cultures and their habits.

“The day was a fun experience and it was great to get to know other personalities in my tutor group.”

“I really liked Gambia Day,” said Dianne Johnson. “I would love to do some more work on the Gambia. On the whole it was a fun and very educational day which I enjoyed a lot.”

Scarlet Tanner added: “I really enjoyed all the dancing, drumming, art and tasting the food. My favourite activity was the art because you could really express yourself.

“It was all really fun to do and I had a fantastic experience; it felt like I was almost in Africa,” said Nerea Perez-Chirgwin.