Ok kiddo, let's talk about the history of West Africa! So, West Africa is a big area on the western side of the continent of Africa. A long, long time ago, before anyone can really remember, there were some big empires in this area.
Some of the most famous empires were Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. These empires were very powerful and had lots of people living in them. They also had kings or emperors who ruled over the people.
The people who lived in these empires were very good at things like trading, farming, and crafting things with their hands. They traded all kinds of things with other people who lived far away, like gold, salt, and even slaves - which wasn't a good thing.
The empires lasted for a long time, but eventually they started to break down. Other kingdoms and groups of people started to take over parts of West Africa, and it became a lot more complicated. People from outside of Africa also started to come in and trade and set up colonies.
Later on, in the 20th century, many of the countries in West Africa became independent from their colonizers and started to govern themselves. It wasn't always easy though, and there were a lot of struggles and conflicts along the way.
But even with all these changes, West Africa is still a really important and interesting part of the world, with a rich history and culture that is worth learning about!