When the Greeks ruled Egypt in the first century B.C., they stressed education for both royal boys and girls. Cleopatra and her sisters received the same education as their brothers in case one of the girls would rule Egypt. Living in the city of Alexandria, home of a great library, Cleopatra had access to the best teachers and great works of literature.
First, young Cleopatra chanted the Greek alphabet. When she successfully learned the alphabet, she traced its letters on a wooden tablet. Teachers then gave her difficult words to read aloud so she would learn syllables. Like children today, Cleopatra knew Aesop’s fables well. Sometimes teachers in the first century B.C. assigned a tale to their students and asked them to retell it aloud. Public speaking skills were highly regarded at the time, and historians have remarked on Cleopatra’s ability to speak well in front of others.
As Cleopatra grew up, she decided that she would also learn to speak and read Egyptian. Amazingly, there is no record of previous Greek rulers of Egypt learning the language of the people they governed. This was probably because Egyptian writing was so complex. Cleopatra, however, did not want to rely on others to interpret what the Egyptians were saying.
Historians state that Cleopatra learned languages easily; one says that she could speak nine of them. Ancient historian Plutarch said that “It was a pleasure merely to hear the sound of her voice, with which, like an instrument of many strings, she could pass from one language to another.” By receiving a good education, Cleopatra communicated easily with other rulers when she became queen of Egypt.
Heather on History 
was there a specific school Cleopatra went to? i need info for school.
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As royalty, she would have the best instructors, but it’s tough to say where her school was located. It could have been in a palace, or maybe she had tutors.
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i was wondering if i could use this for a report im doing at school
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You can use the post as a source if you say the information came from http://www.history4kids.info. You can’t use the whole blog post for your report. You need to do your own research, too.
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She had a tutor.she did not attended school
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According to Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley, Cleopatra may have had a tutor or a variety of tutors; however, there is no official record of this. It is known that Cleopatra hired a tutor for her younger children, though: scholar Nikolaos of Damascus.
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was she as beautiful as a goddes
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i think this can help me at my school project.
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what are some of the sources that you used for this post?
i am having trouble finding good reliable sources for a school project and my teacher won’t let me use a blog as a source.
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Hi Natalie. Your teacher is right. Biographies of Cleopatra should help you. I like Cleopatra: Last Queen of Egypt by Joyce Tyldesley. Just be sure you’re getting info on Cleopatra VII. Cleopatra was a very popular name in that family. Hope that helps.
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Hello, I want to Cite this page. Who was the publisher?
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I published it.
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Hi Heather, I want to cite this page. What year did you publish this?
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2011
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Hey I was wondering if Cleopatra also knew math.
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She would have had access to the library and museum at Alexandria. If she had a math question, she would have been able to get an answer there.
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Do you know what kind of education she received from her parents?
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No. Unfortunately the historians who wrote about her weren’t very interested in small children. There’s even doubt about her mother’s identity.
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do you have a list of the cites that you used to retrieve this information?
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These books were helpful:
Daughters of Isis by Joyce Tyldesley
Cleopatra: Last Queen of Egypt by Joyce Tydesley
Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff
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Also, who were these historians that you keep referring to?
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By “historians” I meant ancient historians like Plutarch and Cicero. I hope that helps.
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