Meaning
The small framed writing tablet of dark stone that schoolchildren once wrote on with a 'slate pencil', wiping it clean to use again — the reusable exercise book of old-time Jamaican schools before paper was cheap. A nostalgic symbol of early schooling; 'wipe di slate clean' means to make a fresh start.
Examples
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Granny learn fi write pon a slate.
Grandma learned to write on a slate.
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Di pickney dem write dem sum pon di slate.
The children wrote their sums on the slate.
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Wipe di slate clean an start fresh.
Wipe the slate clean and start fresh.
Origin
From 'slate' (the writing stone); the old-time school writing tablet. See [[chalk]], [[extra-lesson]].
How it’s used
The old reusable stone writing tablet of early schooling. See [[extra-lesson]], [[headmaster]].