The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

“School psychologist during school hours and storyteller on school breaks” – that’s how Sima Habib likes to introduce herself. Leaving stories behind all around Cairo, Sima Habib, the teacher behind Sima’s Miniatures, brings children a one-of-a-kind experience through her love for storytelling. 

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Habib has been known for having a unique way of telling stories from a very young age. In family gatherings, Habib was always the designated storyteller when sharing funny occurrences. Later, Habib grew up to become everyone’s favourite teacher. Hosting circle time, play dates, and story times for her students who always end up asking for more, Habib’s incredible skills with kids and storytelling gave birth to the idea of “Sima’s Miniatures”. Inspired by her students, Habib brought her project to life. Collaborating with various venues and locations around Cairo, she elevated her in-class storytelling sessions, allowing children beyond her students to have fun, use their imagination, and learn a new lesson with every new story. 

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Sima’s Miniatures started as a blog where Habib documented her classroom memories. During the Covid pandemic, with her classroom activities on pause, Habib began making videos for her students. After some time, Habib was contacted by the founder of Pyjama Backyard, who was a close follower of her online blog, to collaborate and share her storytelling expertise.

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Sima’s Miniatures began in 2022 with the first live storytelling session as a part of an event titled “Sensory Pyjama Playdate”. The event took place in Cozy Co Working Space in collaboration with Pyjama Backyard and included sensory play activities and a storytelling session by Sima as a guest storyteller – the event became the first of many. 

 

Habib’s current goal is to incorporate her expertise in psychology into Sima’s Miniatures by helping kids to express themselves better. “Sometimes you would ask an adult how they feel about a certain situation, and they would say ‘I wanted to leave’ – that’s a thought, not a feeling. I would love to help kids learn about big feelings and be able to express them clearly and with ease”, shared Habib. 

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Ever since their kick-off,  Sima’s Miniatures has been unstoppable. Their latest event was at Sheikh Zayed’s Walk of Cairo and organised by Tails. Sima told kid-friendly stories about Palestine and its history. If you’re looking for your children to socialise, enhance their imagination, and indulge in an activity that will help shape their personality, then look no further. Make sure to join Sima’s next event. For more info, check out Sima’s Miniatures Instagram page.