Plunging into Action: The Birth of the HUP Cairo Initiative!

We’re using the Palestinian curriculum - English for Palestine

The Hands up Project now has an educational space for Palestinian children who have managed to get to Egypt. This blog post is by HUP volunteer Donna Campbell, who will be spending six months in Cairo to manage the space.

I can hardly believe we're only one week into our small Cairo project—it already feels like I've been here for ages! To keep you all updated, I'll be posting a brief blog each week. For those who don't know me, I'm Donna. Originally from Leicestershire, UK, I’ve most recently been living on a small regenerative market garden in Hempnall, South Norfolk. I wear a few different hats: I'm a co-director of the market garden project, a clinical support specialist in the operating theatre, and I volunteer with various refugee initiatives. In the past, I’ve also taught English as a foreign language to children and university students across Spain, among other diverse pursuits. All of this led me to Cairo, where I’m now embarking on this exciting new chapter as a volunteer.

The small group size means the students get lots of attention from the teacher and the chance to properly speak in English.

I think Nick had been toying with the idea of setting up a small educational space in Cairo for some time, so when I came on board as a catalyst, the whole project took off in less than four weeks. I landed into Cairo on 4th November, albeit a little bleary eyed after numerous emotional goodbyes. At the airport, I met Raja’a for the first time, who lovingly presented me with a huge smile & a gorgeous bouquet of flowers. Nick was there too; they were both waiting at the wrong exit (because of Nick) but we found each other eventually!

I was immediately swept into the warmth of Palestinian hospitality at a café in Nasr City, not far from the airport, where we of course ate falafel.

The place was full of Palestinians, and I couldn’t help but feel that I’ve arrived at my second home. Kids proudly showed us their drawings in exchange for malted milk biscuits (the best of British!) although Raja’a was disappointed that I didn’t manage to bring her a large fish & chips.

We’re focussing particularly on speaking and writing activities. Here they are sending emails to each other in English.

Incredibly, within just a week, Raja’a, Hassan, and Nick had not only secured an apartment for the school before I arrived, but also set it up with Wi-Fi. It even has an iron and a vacuum cleaner—things I haven’t had for years while living semi-off-grid! The very next day, Team Cairo dived straight into discussions with a Palestinian English teacher, and just four days later, the first class was underway. We don’t waste any time here, we’re juggling tasks at the speed of light. Before the classes started, I had the absolute pleasure of meeting HUP students who had fled Gaza and entered Egypt. Words can’t really describe how special this reunion felt & I’m in awe of their tenacity, creativity & intellectual curiosity. I can’t wait to see them all again soon.

As expected, there were a few nerves on the first day of school. But the moment five bright, smiling students walked in, all dressed to impress, my worries melted away. To my surprise, they handed me a beautiful pink rose as a gesture of gratitude—it was such a sweet and thoughtful gesture! In return, I offered some Medjool dates and a handful of nuts to share, creating a warm, welcoming atmosphere. Some of the students hadn’t spoken much English yet, but their smiles and the kindness in their eyes spoke volumes. It was the perfect start to a new adventure together.

Some of them hadn’t spoken English in over six months so we all felt a bit shy, but over the course of four lessons, we’ve blossomed into a lively, chatty group of learners.

The students are getting to know each other well

I say we because, in a way, we’re all learning together as we go! The teacher is following the Palestinian curriculum, with me introducing my native language to encourage speaking between myself and the students. As time goes on, we’ll get even more creative, in true Hands Up style, with stories and performances – inshallah.

Alongside the classes, we’ve been promoting our crowdfunding campaign, which is going well and has raised nearly two thousand pounds. Thanks to your generous donations, we’re not only able to run the space, but we’re also printing off English for Palestine books. We have so many exciting ideas in the works that we can’t wait to share with you, including a special Hands Up event we’re hoping to hold here on 6th December. We’re also developing new classes for our current students, new classes for new students, and new classes for students who don’t live near to our space. We’re also figuring out which HUP volunteers would like to visit us and provide classes for the kids…in particular, there’s a request for an intensive 2-week conversational course by a family in Cairo during the first two weeks in January 2025. Please get in touch if you’d like to come and deliver this or have other ideas about sessions you could provide that are fun & engaging. We can host you at our place (we have 2 spare rooms) so you wouldn’t need to pay for accommodation – just your flights & food. Please send an email to donnalucy84@gmail.com for more info.

Art activities in the classes

Lastly, Raja’a kindly took me on as a student for her Maqluba masterclass this weekend, where I had the opportunity to make this iconic dish with her and her family. It was such a special occasion, we all made sure we were super hungry before sharing our ‘upside down’ dish (literal translation). If you haven’t had this before, it’s a real showstopper! I’ll attempt to type up her recipe although the real art of this meal requires you to come to Raja’a kitchen in-person (that’s an invite, please come!).

So, I’ll leave this here for now. I’ve never written a blog before so please give me some feedback if you can. I can’t wait to get back into the classroom tomorrow and see the children again, I’ve missed them over the weekend. Stay tuned on the socials for more updates from us. Goodbye for now!

Donna

HUP Volunteer in Cairo.

Incorporating drama activities into the classes