Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama on the power of education and self-belief
In December 2018, former first lady Michelle Obama paid a special visit to Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School in Islington, London, to mark the publication of her memoir, Becoming. She spoke to pupils about empowerment through education and the importance of self-belief in achieving your goals.
Following the publication of a younger reader's edition of her number-one bestselling memoir, former first lady Michelle Obama, virtually reunited with London schoolgirls students in 2021, to discuss resilience, sisterhood, motivation and leadership, as well the impact of COVID-19.
You can find the clips and teaching resources for both events below.
2018 Penguin Talk Resources
Age: Key Stages 3 – 5
Subject: PSHE
Topic: Self-belief
The following activities give KS3-5 students the opportunity to identify and discuss personal barriers both they and others may face, how to overcome these barriers, as well as how to grow in self-belief. The following activities can be used as standalone activities, or used together with the starter and plenary to form a complete lesson (approx. 1 hour 30 mins in total).
Learning Objectives:
How do we overcome barriers?
How can we support ourselves and others?
How can we become ourselves
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ZIP 3.1MB
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2021 Penguin Talk Resources
Age: Key Stages 3 – 5
Subject: PSHE
Topic: Resilience, social media and leadership
The activities give KS3-5 students the opportunity to identify and discuss how to build resilience, the qualities of a leader and how to engage positively with social media. The following can be used as standalone activities, or used together with the starter and plenary to form a complete lesson (approx. 1 hour 30 mins in total).
Learning Objectives:
1. How do we build resilience?
2. How can we be leaders?
3. How can we positively engage with social media?
Download all resources
ZIP 8.7MB
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THE NO. 1 BESTSELLER
BRITISH BOOK AWARDS, NON-FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR
THE SUNDAY TIMES, MEMOIR OF THE YEAR
BOOKS OF THE YEAR: THE TIMES, OBSERVER, GUARDIAN, EVENING STANDARD
Now in paperback featuring a new introduction by Michelle Obama, a letter from the author to her younger self, and a book club guide with 20 discussion questions and a 5-question Q&A, the intimate, powerful, and inspiring memoir by the former First Lady of the United States
In her memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle Obama invites readers into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her -- from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work, to her time spent at the world's most famous address. With unerring honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and her disappointments, both public and private, telling her full story as she has lived it -- in her own words and on her own terms.
Warm, wise, and revelatory, Becoming is the deeply personal reckoning of a woman of soul and substance who has steadily defied expectations -- and whose story inspires us to do the same.
What's important is our story, our whole story, including those moments when we feel a little vulnerable . . .
Michelle Robinson started life sharing a bedroom with her older brother Craig, in their family's upstairs apartment in her great-aunt's house. Her parents, Fraser and Marian, poured their love and energy into their children. She would go on to become Michelle Obama, the inspirational First Lady of the United States of America.
Now adapted for younger readers, with new photographs and a new introduction from Michelle Obama herself, this memoir tells a very personal, and completely inspiring, story of how, through hard work and determination, the girl from the South Side of Chicago built an extraordinary life.
A tale of ups and downs, triumphs and failures, this is an incredibly honest account. It will take you from the early years - first kiss, first school, first love - to the wonders of the White House, and the moment Mrs Obama shook hands with the Queen of England.
A book to read, share, and talk about with the adults in your life, this is a call to action and compassion, and hope for change in uncertain times, and in a scary world.
You'll be inspired to help others, and understand that no one is perfect. Just like Michelle Obama, you too are finding out exactly who you want to be (and, actually, so are the adults in your life).
Above all, it is a book to make you think: who are you, and what do you want to become?