Ka Leka Makua ‘o Kepakemapa
September Parent Newsletter
‘O ka la 31 o 'Aukake, 2012
August 31, 2012
OLI ALOHA
'Akahai, Lokahi, 'Olu'olu, Ha‘aha‘a, Ahonui . . . ALOHA E
OLI PUNAHOU
Eia ka Punahou, ‘Aina o Kane, o Ka‘ahumanu e
‘Aina o ka Punahou, ‘Aina o ka Punahou,
ALOHA e, ALOHA e, ALOHA e . . .
ALOHA e Na Makua o Winne G-1, ALOHA Parents of Winne G-1,
ALOHA . . . This is everything in one word. We begin our days with ALOHA and end our days with
ALOHA. Be sure to ask your kukui to explain the essence of HA (breath, and how we say "Aloha a hui
hou" at the end of our day. Our bulletin board on our front door displays the OLI ALOHA , as well as this
quote from a leading anthropologist: “The meaning of a word is the action it produces.”
BIRTHDAYS . . . We will celebrate our 'AUKAKE (August) and KEPAKEMAPA
(September) birthday babies: Carter, Pono, and Emily. Hau‘oli la hanau e na kukui!
BUFF ‘N BLUE . . . and PEP RALLIES . . . It’s that time again and we love it! Fall
brings the proud wearing of school colors on Fridays and spirited Pep Rallies. We will try
to have members of our various athletic teams come and join us when they can. WEAR
BUFF ‘N BLUE ON FRIDAYS!
CALENDAR . . .
Please be sure to post it where you can refer to it daily. Included
in the monthly calendar are: birthdays, field trips, special events, chapel days, specials, and reminders.
CURRICULUM . . .
A. HAWAIIAN LANGUAGE . . . We’re off and running in the language of our ‘aina. Did you
know that Hawai‘i has 2 official languages? English and Hawaiian. From the “get go,” I
began speaking to your children in ʻOlelo Hawai‘i. Children learn so quickly! We do our
Oli ALOHA, greetings, calendar, morning message, and end of the day in ‘Olelo Hawai‘i.
I also use as many “everyday” phrases naturally throughout the day. For instance, “E
kiloi kou ‘opala.” (Throw away your rubbish). We are indeed fortunate to have a
“language special” and it’s HAWAIIAN - YAY! We will relish our time with my good friend
and colleague, Kumu Keomailani Fergerstrom, every “E “day. Keomailani also
teaches Hawaiian Language in the middle school and academy.
B. HAWAIIAN STUDIES . . . Our first study unit will focus at the beginning - the formation
of our volcanic island home. We are so very fortunate to have Kumu Marion Leong
from KA PAPAHANA KUAOLA “Lelekamanu Program" partner with us as we learn as
much as we can about our island home. Kumu Leong’s first classoom visit to our
class on Friday, September 7, will focus on GEOLOGY. Think VOLCANOES - COOL
- or should we say, HOT! Our first field trip will be with KUMU LEONG on Friday,
September 28, as we journey on a GEOLOGY BUS TOUR. This is learning at its finest!
More details later . . .
‘ao‘ao ‘elua - page 2
C. CHAPEL . . . Much of our character education building lessons take place in our chapel
services. Each class is involved in valuable learning experiences as we prepare and lead
a chapel service. Being a part of the chapel services of other classes/grades is extremely
rewarding and valuable. We will lead and fellowship on Tuesday, February 12, 8:15 .
D. HOMEWORK . . . As previously mentioned, homework will go home daily, usually 1 page in
our math student journals (workbooks), handwriting practice, spelling, Wordly Wise (vocabulary
building) and reading for 15-20 minutes and recording this in their reading logs. We also have a
"home journal" that goes home on most Fridays. then due back in Kukuiville on Wednesdays.
E. MATH . . . Na Kukui will love their EVERYDAY MATH program. It is intensive, and yes, we
will “do” math (almost)everyday. There is an SRB (student reference book) that we will
use from time to time as well as 2 student journals (workbooks).
F. READING WORKSHOP . . . I will be assessing your child’s reading ability in these early
weeks. ALL Na Kukui LOVE reading, as is evident from the first day when they
visited our classroom library to find books they wanted to read, pulled books out
from their backpacks that they brought to school, and also enjoyed their first trip to Ing
Learning Center as a third grader. They also LOVE being read to! They are eager,
attentive, active listeners. Hands go up to comment and/or ask questions. I love it! I wish I
could capture every learning moment for you and every discussion. It’s awesome!
I have been reading LEGENDS,especially Hawaiian Legends. Don’t be surprised if some
of these turn up on your doorstep as supplementary reading. Our first “class reads” kumu (teacher) choice will be Stories of Old Hawai’i, Hawaiian Legends of Tricksters and
Riddlers, and STONE FOX. These books focus on cool legends.
G. S.U.R.F. . . . Not with a board on a wave, but with a book, especially right after lunch, or
when we finish our classroom work. S.U.R.F. is the acronym :
Silent Uninterrupted Reading for Fun.
H. WRITING WORKSHOP . . . We begin our writing workshop curriculum with composing
“acrostics.” We use this acrostic poetry form to compose original acrostics
using our names. Na Kukui also compose an acrostic for me and for the class. You will
see these original pieces at Open House. I’m so proud of them.
I. SCIENCE . . . We will focus our study on the Geology and Geograhy of the Hawaiian Islands.
The haumana (students) LOVE it, and this kumu loves teaching it! How can you not love
the magic of PELE and our active (and dormant) Hawaiian volcanoes? We will also
frequent our GATES SCIENCE WORKSHOP in the academy to supplement our learning.
Our first lesson there is on CRAYON ROCKS, which focuses on igneous, sedimentary,
and metamorphic rocks. Did you get all of that?
J. VALUES . . . ‘OLELO NO‘EAU . . . SEPTEMBER focuses on HO‘IHI or RESPECT and
DIGNITY. This “Waiwai” or value goes hand in hand with ALOHA. One ‘OLELO NO‘EAU
or WISE SAYING for this month expresses the importance of our words. The old “sticks
and stones...words will never hurt me” does not apply in Hawaiian thought. The ‘olelo
no‘eau says:
“I ka ‘olelo no ke ola, i ka ‘olelo no ka make.”
Life is in speech; death is in speech. Words can heal; words can destroy.
We will endeavor to practice ‘OLELO PONO - proper language each and every day.
‘ao‘ao ‘ekolu - page 3
E-MAIL . . . Mahalo for sending in your e-mail addresses so promptly! I will be using this means of
communication quite frequently. We’re off and running . . .
HOME LUNCH . . . We are completely sustainable in G-1 for water and home lunches. MAHALO for
sending home lunches in reusable bags (see me if you need one) and water in refillable bottles. The
'AINA thanks you! :)
ON TIME FOR SCHOOL . . . I want to say MAHALO for getting your kukui to school on time. We OLI
(chant our greeting/welcome) at 8:00 am and begin right away. Wouldn’t want your kukui to miss anything
(especially a field trip bus)! Getting your child to school by 7:45 am is best! MAHALO NUI LOA!
PARENT NIGHT . . . BACK TO SCHOOL FOR YOU . . . It’s “back to school” night for you at our Parent
Night on Wedsday, September 5. A “sneak preview” for the night: my “rubber band” philosophy, my
ROOTS & WINGS presentation, and more. You don’t want to miss this! So, mark those calendars and
learn more about what makes me and the Na Kukui “tick!”
PLANNERS . . . We love love love our planners! We begin using these at Punahou in third grade. Your
kukui is learning right away to TRAC their learning: THINK, RECORD, ACT, AND CHECK. Please refer
to your kukuiʻs planner daily to keep up with homework, due dates, etc.
TELEPHONE . . . KELEPONA . . . “ALOHA, ‘O G-1 keia. ‘O ______________ keia! I bet you figured out
that this means: “ALOHA, This is G-1. This is ______.” They get to practice their phone etiquette as well
as their ‘Olelo Hawai‘i!
TIME FOR NEW BEGINNINGS . . . We have the signs that our wonderful school year has begun: the
"‘awapuhi keo’keo" (white ginger) and "‘olena" (tumeric) are in bloom in the garden (come see), along with
our campus-wide "panini o ka Punahou" (night-blooming cereus). The kolea (golden plover) have arrived
from Alaska, the band and football team are on the field, the water polo teams are in the pool, AND the
voices of our keiki fill the halls once more.
All is well . . . in Kukuiville and with our “kukui nuts!”
UA PAU . . . Finished for now. Will communicate via other notes and e-mail throughout September.
Mahalo nui loa once again, for a wonderful beginning with your kukui. We are “nested” comfortably at our
“punana” (what we call our clusters of desks) – PUNANA UKA, PUNANA KULA AND PUNANA KAI. We
are poised for a year of unprecedented learning fun!
As we say everyday when leaving Kukuiville . . .
ALOHA A HUI HOU, E MALAMA PONO, (ALOHA until we meet again; Take good care)
Max Nu‘uhiwa
Ke Kumu o Ka Papa ʻEkolu
Winne G-1: Ka Home o Na Kukui
Ke Kula ʻo Ka Punahou
1601 Punahou Street
Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96822
Kelepona: 808-945-1317
Ka Leka Makua ‘o Kepakemapa
September Parent Newsletter
________
‘O ka la 31 o 'Aukake, 2012
August 31, 2012
‘AE, I/We have read the September Parent Newsletter.
Comments/He mau ninau (questions):
______________________________
KA INOA o kou kukui
(Your Kukui’s name)
Ka Leka Makua ‘o Kepakemapa
September Parent Newsletter
________
____________________________________
KAKAU INOA o ka makua
(Parent’s Signature)
‘O ka la 31 o 'Aukake, 2012
August 31, 2012
‘AE, I/We have read the September Parent Newsletter.
Comments/He mau ninau (questions):
______________________________
KA INOA o kou kukui
(Your Kukui’s name)
____________________________________
KAKAU INOA o ka makua
(Parent’s Signature)