"I live in Algiers, where I start school at 8 o’clock in the morning every day. My favourite subjects are maths and sciences. I like swimming and playing tennis, and I support a soccer team called CRB. My other hobby is drawing. I like coming home after school, when I can relax and watch TV." Adila, aged 17

"My school is very nice, with a lot of trees in the courtyard and good teachers. I like maths and English, and when I come home from school I like listening to dance music and practising sports – my favourite is volleyball, and I play in a volleyball team. I support Mouloudia, a football team from Algiers. I like embroidering, making cakes with my mum, swimming and playing computer games." Lydia, aged 13

"I attend a big lycee (school) which has hundreds of students. I like meeting up with friends after school and talking about what everyone has been doing during the day. I like playing Trivial Pursuit, Scrabble and Monopoly (board games), and I’m a Mouloudia FC fan. I like going to the cinema and the beach on Fridays (our weekend) and listening to rap and dance music. My favourite foods are fish, soups, fruit, and yoghurts." Mehdi, aged 16

"Each day I wake up early, wash my hands and face, and get ready to go school. I am in class by 8am. There are 42 of us in the class. We have a break at 10.30am, when we play for a quarter of an hour. Then we go back to class till 12. We have lunch in a big dining room with other pupils of the June 9^th School – there are 2,500 pupils altogether. Then we play or rest in our dormitories, as it is often extremely hot in the middle of the day. Lessons start again at 4pm and go on until 6pm. On Fridays, which is a holiday for us, I usually go on a picnic in the desert with my friends. We take with us a little food, water, and things for making tea. We split up into groups – one to collect firewood, another to make the tea, and so on. On Friday night we have time to wash our clothes and get ready for a new school day." Omar, aged 12, Western Sahara refugee camp

"We get up at 7am and start our lessons at 8am. At midday we have a small lunch and listen to a bit of Radio Escuela Saharawi. We play football after we have eaten, and then have a siesta (a rest) until 4pm, when classes start again. We finish the school day at 6pm and have dinner at 7.30pm. Then we go to the special sections where we sleep, and we talk or play games or sometimes study by ourselves. We go to sleep at 10pm." Salma, aged 13, Western Sahara refugee camp