Hi Reader,

This week, my students and I “traveled” all the way to Cairo, Egypt and no actual passport was required! ✈️

To make our imaginary trip come alive, we pretended to ride camels around the Giza Pyramids and the Great Sphinx.Here’s a simple way you can do this too: have your students turn their chairs around so the back becomes the camel’s head! Camels stand up back legs first and it will feel like you might tip over and fall on their heads, so have your students lean back in their seats for a moment until their "camels" are fully standing up.

Then, show them pictures or a quick video of the pyramids and the Sphinx as you journey together through ancient Egypt. While they are looking at those, have them sway side to side on their chairs. It will feel like they are gently swaying on their camels. This is the first year I've used a backdrop for the lesson. In the past, I've just had pictures/videos up on our mimio board. Here's the link if you're interested in this backdrop for your classroom.

It’s such an easy, low-prep way to spark wonder and get kids excited about history and geography!

Here are 5 fun facts kids love learning about Cairo:

1. 🏜️ Cairo is the largest city in Africa, home to over 20 million people!
2. 🏰 The Great Pyramid of Giza was the tallest man-made structure in the world for almost 4,000 years.
3. 🌊 The Nile River runs right through Cairo and it’s the longest river in the world.
4. 🎶 The word Cairo means “The Victorious” in Arabic.
5. 🐫 Some people in Egypt still ride camels today and it's a popular activity to do near the pyramids!

From Cairo to St. Louis ✨

This past week, I also had the joy of connecting with so many amazing educators at the LEA Convocation in St. Louis, Missouri. I led a sectional on Global Awareness, sharing how the sooner we teach kids about the world, the longer they have to care for it. 🌍

A huge highlight for me was meeting Gerry Brooks - yes, the principal and comedian we all love! He was the keynote speaker on the last day and reminded us that it’s up to us to change the climate at our schools if we want to see positive changes. His message was such a powerful close to an incredible conference.

If your school or district would love a session on teaching global awareness, or you’d like me to speak at your next event, I’d love to connect!

Let’s keep inspiring curiosity, kindness, and connection...one classroom adventure at a time. 🌏

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