As part of her visit,Michelle Obama visited the Mulberry School for Girls in Tower Hamlets, east London, where she was met with a heartfelt embrace from pupils.
Reports state the school's student population is 'nearly all of Bangladeshi heritage, with a very small minority from other backgrounds'.
On her arrival at the school she was treated to a performance of interpretative dance and song from the schoolgirls, who are aged between 11 and 18.
Mrs Obama went on to host talks with International Development Secretary Justine Greening and returned Peace Corps Volunteer Bina Contreras.
They spoke about her Let Girls Learn campaign, which was launched in March.
They unveiled a five-year programme in the Democratic Republic of Congo to give 450,000 children the chance to get a primary school education.
It will also help almost 1.4million girls and boys learn to read.The programme will focus on helping girls who are out of school in conflict affected areas, such as North and South Kivu and Katanga.
It will give them the skills they need to get a job and reintegrate back into society having faced significant upheaval.
Julia Gillard, former prime minister of Australia and a strong advocate for girls’ education, also joined for a question and answer session with the First Lady, chaired by head teacher Vanessa Ogden.
She then gave a speech to the young girls where she thanked them for their 'touching' welcome and described them as 'powerful' and 'beautiful'.
Visibly moved, she told the girls - many of whom come from working-class backgrounds - that she understood the struggles they faced and that she wanted them to succeed.
She told them: 'Some might be wondering why the First Lady of the United States came here to Tower Hamlets and chose this school when I could have gone anywhere in the country.
'I'm here because of you, because girls like you inspire me. I'm so proud of you and your passion.
'I'm here because when I look out at all of these young women I see myself. I may come from a country that's an ocean away and I may be a bit older than you all. But in so many ways your story is my story.
'I grew up in a working class neighbourhood - a one a lot like this one - where people work hard to make ends meet and where families are tight-knit with strong values.
'Perhaps like a lot of you we grew up surrounded by our extended family. I had grandparents, aunts, cousins living just blocks away from our apartment.
'Our home was often busy with family coming and going and because our apartment was so small there wasn't much privacy.
'I can remember how hard it was to concentrate on my homework because someone was always talking or watching TV right next to me.
'I often woke up at 4am when it was quiet so I could finish my homework because our home was always so busy,' she told them. 'I read every book I could get my hands on and did my best in every assignment because my parents said that a good education was the ultimate key to success.'
She added that she could understand how it feels to be 'lost in the shuffle' and that she never would have believed she would one day be the First Lady of the US.
Mrs Obama also told them it can be difficult to feel comfortable when people are saying things about your religion and you have to face those who need to 'see beyond the headscarf'.
She added: 'With an education from this amazing school you all have every chance you need to rise above the noise and fulfil every one of your dreams.'
An impressive 83 per cent of the students from the Tower Hamlets school, including many from ethnic minorities, manage to secure a place at university.
Mrs Obama said: 'The world needs more girls like you growing up to lead our parliaments and our board rooms and our courtrooms and our universities,' she said. 'We need you.'
Mulberry School for Girls is just a short drive from Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School which Mrs Obama visited in 2009. She used her speech today to thank the 'inspirational' students for their time at the previous visit.
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