‘Queen Nefertiti’ teaches Monroeville students about Egypt

When students at Evergreen Elementary School entered their school’s library to find Susan DeLaney dressed as Egypt’s Queen Nefertiti, they let out sounds of awe and excitement as they took in her costume, plus the bags of candy she’d brought for a Halloween afternoon reading.

“I love celebrating the characters of history,” explained DeLaney. “I’m a retired teacher, so this isn’t unusual for me. It’s a way to engage the kids and teach them more about the people in history. It’s an out-of-the-box teaching method, but I used to be known for that.”

During her teaching career, DeLaney would dress up as different characters of history to teach about their respective time periods. On Oct. 31, she dedicated her time with the students of Evergreen and University Park elementary schools in Monroeville to teaching them about Egyptian history.

She began the fourth-grade presentation by pointing out Egypt on a map and talking about the country’s well-known landmarks such as the Nile River. She then began reading a children’s book on Egyptian pyramids.

During the reading, children were taught about topics such as the Sphinx, mummification, tombs, hieroglyphics and various artifacts that are commonly found in sarcophaguses. DeLaney made the reading interactive by asking listeners questions throughout the story and fielding returned queries from students.

DeLaney is a member of Gateway School Board, the Monroeville Rotary Club and Raising Achievement in Monroeville and Pitcairn. She does readings periodically throughout the year, each time dressed as a different historical figure.

For the record, Nefertiti, whose name means “a beautiful woman has come,” was the queen of Egypt and wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten during the 14th century B.C., according to www.biography.com.