Curriculum
Browse all Growing Pono Schools lessons. Search by title, or filter by theme — every lesson is listed below with its grade band.
- A Mele CreationGrades 4-8
Using senses to create a song of place Students will:
- Learn that our connection to a certain place can be captured through our senses
- Use sight, smell, sounds, touch, emotions, and relationships to create a valuable Oratory that preserves important ideas through oli
- A Puzzling PlaceGrades 4-8
Creating crosswords as a way to teach about place Students will: * Explore, learn, and share about the place with which they most closely identify * Create a crossword puzzle about the place they identify with that highlights key facts and features * Give a short presentation to teach their classmates about this…
- Aloha TreeGrades 4-6
Reinforcing daily acts of kindness Students will be reinforced for doing daily acts of kindness, which are “baby steps” to community service.
- Are We Smiling Yet?Grades 4-12
Genuine? Fake? Smiles cause… Students will:
- Increase ability to determine a genuine or fake smile
- Learn how smiling can affect your thoughts & feelings
- Understand that smiles positively affect others around you
- Believe – Be a GiftGrades 4-8
Identify & celebrate everyone’s gifts Students will: * Participate in an exercise to build confidence * Receive positive encouragement to believe in themselves * Experience success through service
- Bowl of LightGrades 4-12
Keeping your inner light shining bright Students will: – Develop a deeper understanding of self and inner strength – Participate in group problem solving that encourages positive solutions
- By Observing, One LearnsGrades 6-8
Developing the ability to focus Students will develop critical observation skills
- Co-Creating ProtocolsGrades 4-8
Establishing the way “to be” Students will: * Learn about protocols and agreements * Understand kuleana & interconnectedness of individual behavior in a group setting * Collaborate with teacher(s) to create specific agreements on “how to be” * Learn about any established school and classroom protocols
- Collaborative Video ProductionGrades 6-12
Communicate a message using video Students will: * Develop interest and knowledge about a relevant issue * Co-create a video production plan, including storyboard and script * Co-produce a video that shares a powerful message * Develop collaboration, communication and writing skills by working on a production team
- Collecting Community HistoriesGrades 4-12
Capturing Kupuna Wisdom and Community History Students will: * Increase understanding of their community through research and interviewing * Apply language arts skills including critical thinking, questioning, listening, speaking, and writing * Work in collaboration to document and perpetuate community wisdom and…
- Common GroundGrades 4-12
Exploring similarities & differences Students will learn what group members have in common.
- Community ServiceGrades 6-8
Learning by serving community Students will: – Build connections to their community by giving back in a useful way – Learn collaboration skills through authentic work experience – Develop abilities to problem solve and create – Identify benefits of community service
- Connecting with ManaGrades 6-8
Understanding the energy in everything Students will: * Deepen understand of mana, or spiritual energy * Help participants recognize and appreciate mana in people, things, and places * Experience a breathing technique that can help balance personal energy
- ContributionsGrades 4-6
Thinking about the importance of contributions Students will: * Learn about the importance of contributions from community members * Participate in an activity highlighting the importance of everyone contributing
- CrushedGrades 4-12
How it looks & how it feels to be bullied Students will: * Experience and discuss a “visual message” that demonstrates the effects of bullying on any youth or adult * Better understand the power of their words
- Culture Collage – Who We AreGrades 6-8
Creating through collaboration Students will: * Build group bonds to foster collaboration and friendships * Learn about everyone’s interests, connections, and cultures * Develop appreciation for diversity by learning about layers of culture
- E Ola Pono – Living PonoGrades 4-8
Living pono; protecting Hawai‘i nei Students and teachers will: * Gain a deeper appreciation for the land, sea, and their community * Find ways they can protect, defend and preserve what is important to them
- Eat a RainbowGrades 5-6
Hawaiian food pyramid and health Students will: *Gain knowledge about their ancestors * Make healthy food choices by studying a Hawaiian/local food pyramid * Sample a variety of healthy “rainbow” foods
- Ekolu Mea Nui – Three Great ThingsGrades 4-8
Tapping the power of hope, faith & love Students will: * Learn the song Ekolu Mea Nui – Three Great Things (Faith, Hope, Love) * Create a reflection (position statement, poem, personal quote, or illustration) incorporating the three key ideas presented in this song
- Food – Mea ‘AiGrades 4-6
Fostering a healthier diet Students will: – understand the importance of a healthy diet.
- Goalsetting – The SMART WayGrades 6-8
Setting goals for school and life Students will: * Deepen understanding of how goals support achievement * Identify respected people; discuss how they achieved their success * Create SMART goals
- Grow Where Your RootedGrades 7-12
This lesson engages students in a hands-on project to create and care for a vegetable garden, with each plant representing different personalities. The goal is to help students understand their own personalities as well as those of their peers, while also emphasizing the importance of teamwork in creating a healthy,…
- Growing PonoGrades 4-6
Using Appreciative Inquiry to cause change Students will: * Work in collaboration to create an activity or project that promotes pono and peace in their school or community * Follow Appreciative Inquiry steps to identify a campaign focus and design and implement their campaign steps * Share what was accomplished by…
- Guts on the TableGrades 9-12
Sharing stories & building communities Students will: * Deepen understanding of self and relationships with others * Build bonds between the participants through heartfelt sharing in a safe place
- Halaʻea – A Greedy ChiefGrades 6-12
Learning about kuleana and community roles through story Students will: * Learn the importance of community through the mo‘olelo (story) of Hala’ea * Think about their own kuleana (responsibility) to community
- Happy BirthdayGrades 6-12
Learn by watching & listening Students will: * Learn about each other * Complete a task without one of their constantly used senses * Provide an opportunity to reinforce observation skills * Help students learn how to work together when there is a challenge
- Hawaiian SymbologyGrades 4-12
Creating meaningful representations Students will: * Focus attention on relevant topics (self, family, community) * Learn about the meanings of symbols, both historical and current * Create meaningful representations that incorporate historic Hawaiian symbols
- Human Jan Ken PoGrades 4-8
Having fun with communication Students will: * Learn about different forms of communication * Become aware of personal leadership styles through play interaction * Build relationships within a group by having fun
- HĀ – Breath of LifeGrades 4-8
Learning the power of your breath Students will: * Learn the importance of breath in Hawaiian culture * Study how important oxygen and correct breathing are for human health
- I Am From – Sharing Your HistoryGrades 4-12
Exploring Culture through storytelling Students will: * Use a writing template that encourages exploration of their cultural heritage * Interview family members & co-write a cultural heritage poem using same template * Practice presentation skills by reading aloud their poems * Explore diverse mediums of expression…
- I Am Pono!Grades 4-8
Facts and discussion prompts about bullying Students will: * Review current information about bullying behaviors, roles, and impact on people * Become familiar with appropriate ways to respond to bullying experiences * Discuss scenarios to help students discern teasing from bullying (gr. 6) * Review current & create…
- I Belong – The 4 BsGrades 4-8
Group connections & how they feel Students will: * Identify groups they belong to * Think about feelings attached to belonging to a group as well as not belonging
- In Your ElementGrades 4-6
Linking passion & ability to excel Students will: * Explore and discover their passions and abilities to help them chart a course for their future.
- Kalo ZentangleGrades 7-12
Students will create an original work of art by identifying, applying, and communicating patterns and motifs of their ancestral cultures/backgrounds. To enhance this lesson, you can give students this worksheet as ha’awina (homework) to complete and bring back before the next class. Students will: – Identify their own…
- Kalo-ologyGrades 6-8
Using kalo (taro) to represent family Students will: * Use the metaphor of the kalo (taro) to represent their ʻOhana (family) and connections to their genealogy.
- Knowing Your PlaceGrades 6-8
Words from kūpuna on the importance of place Students will: – Be introduced to the significance of “place” in Hawaiian culture. – Read and discuss various quotes from respected Hawaiian leaders and scholars. – Deepen understanding of why place is so important in Hawaiian culture.
- Lau + LauGrades 6-8
Learn & compare Hawaiian counting Students will participate in a math activity coming from a Hawaiian cultural practice and compare what they learn to the math they practice today. The activity outcome will include creation of a Hawaiian math guide.
- Leading the PackGrades 7-12
School mascots & how we relate Participants will investigate how the characteristics and attributes of their school mascot may relate to themselves and how they, in return, can represent their school’s spirit
- Line UPGrades 7-12
LGBT awareness and sensitivity
- Lonoikamakahiki – My TotemGrades 4-12
Makahiki games & leadership Students will: * Study the story of Lonoikamakahiki to learn about leadership through a cultural lens * Learn about and teach the basic Makahiki games and equipment use to other students * Identify personal potential for leadership and growth through a Hawaiian social framework
- Moʻolelo MuralsGrades 7-12
This lesson engages students in their ahupuaʻa of Heʻeia through their experiences and existing relationship with the fishpond, through moʻolelo and art. The objective of the project is more students to collaborate with each other to create one mural draft or sketch that represents their loko iʻa and expresses the…
- Multiple IntelligencesGrades 6-8
Smart in many ways Students will: * Learn about multiple ways that intelligence is demonstrated * Use a self-assessment to discover the different ways they are smart * Begin learning how these strengths can be applied to daily life
- My Community LensGrades 6-12
Capturing community images Students will: * Look at their surrounding community and environment through the lens of a camera. * Create a mural with images of community. * Increase collaboration and observation skills while expressing creativity and learning about their community.
- My ImpressionGrades 4-12
Making Polynesian designs, shapes, and symbols Students will: – Gain knowledge about Polynesian designs, shapes, and symbols – Deepen understanding of connections to the environment and things important – Create a representation of self
- My Mixed PlateGrades 4-8
Exploring roots & preferences Students will: * Learn about family and personal connections to community and culture * Develop deeper understandings about each other to build a strong learning community * Create & share a collage of personal connections to Home, Host, Local, & Global cultures
- My Place in “Dis Place”Grades 6-8
Exploring relationships and responsibilities to place Students will: * Be able to understand themselves and how they fit in their place * Start to think about their kuleana to that place and how they can contribute and help their community thrive
- My Symbol – Ku‘u Hō‘ailonaGrades 6-8
Identifying relationships to nature Students will: * Develop a deeper understanding of who they are * Build deeper connections with the world/environment around them * Grow respect for all life and its unique and relevant expressions
- Myth or FactGrades 7-12
LGBT awareness activity
- Our Community CollageGrades 6-12
Creating through collaboration Students will: * Discuss and select an image or topic that is important to their community * Work in collaboration with peers to plan and complete an art project * Make a group collage that exemplifies how individuals can collaborate to create a new “whole”.
- Paddling ProgressionsGrades 6-8
Understanding the canoe to help set goals Students will: – Learn about canoe paddling in Hawaiian culture to gain understanding of the importance of patience, responsibility, support systems, and having a destination to paddle to. – Participate in an activity that teaches critical thinking, collaboration, and…
- PerspectivesGrades 4-8
Understanding different points of view Students will: * Better understand listening/communication skills * Learn there are many ways to look at the same thing * Be aware that our personal perspectives make us who we are * Recognize that individual differences keep relationships interesting * Learn that different…
- Place to Place – A Paper Boat JourneyGrades 6-8
Learning about life’s journey Students will: – Listen to a story to prompt thinking about “life’s travels” (ups and downs) – Deepen understanding of the importance of challenges and overcoming obstacles.
- Power of the WordGrades 6-8
Learning about the power of words Students will: – Understand Hawaiian thinking about the power of words – Consider how this ‘Ōlelo No’eau (historical saying) can help people think & speak pono thoughts
- Promoting Pono – Preventing Huhu (Anger)Grades 4-6
Examining injustice to promote pono Students will: * Examine the ways that injustice affects people * Describe ways to address injustice with pono behaviors * Understand the meaning of nonviolence by identifying nonviolent qualities
- Read AloudGrades 6-8
Read-Aloud to Younger Students Students will: – Improve reading fluency and expression. – Demonstrate effective reading skills using appropriate tone, pacing, and engagement techniques. – Develop their presentation skills by reading aloud to younger students. – Actively engage younger students in the reading…
- Shaping UpGrades 7-12
Hands on leadership and team building Students will: * Practice teambuilding and communication skills * Connect to the characteristics and attributes of a leader
- Skills & Interests SurveyGrades 6-12
Identifying skills, interests, and passions of a group * Provide students with a chance to identify some of their skills, interests and passions * Allow a group to learn about each other’s unique and common strengths and interests * Provide information about students that enables teachers to build relevancy and…
- Slam Poetry – I Got IssuesGrades 4-12
Hawai‘i Slam Poets personify issues impacting youth Students will… * Identify social and emotional issues that come up for many youth * Discuss prevalent issues in their lives and/or school * Brainstorm ways to reduce the challenges and stress they face everyday
- Soaring Like a Kite – Lele Ka LupeGrades 4-8
Setting & supporting goals Students will: * Use the analogy of a kite to think about what it takes to achieve goals * Build and decorate a kite that represents their goals and dreams (on the top) as well as what will support them to do well (underneath).
- Sticking TogetherGrades 4-6
Learning to work together in unity Students will: * Experience how working together as a team can be challenging * Learn about effective team collaboration and communication
- Story of My Name
Participants (teacher and students) will engage in an introduction activity about their name and themselves, with the goal of building connections with one another
- Take Care of the Water – Mālama I Ka WaiGrades 4-6
Water: In need of protection Students will: – Learn why Wai (water) is at the core of Hawaiian culture and the ahupua‘a
- The Animal In Me – Creating TotemsGrades 4-6
Identifying your power animal; creating class connections Students will: * Gain knowledge and understanding how different cultures relate to the attributes of different animals. * Learn how our observations of these different animal attributes may teach us about our own attributes.
- The Four AgreementsGrades 7-12
Helping others; helping yourself Students will: * Learn about personal agreements we make that help shape who we are * Relate ‘Ōlelo No’eau on the power of words to the Four Agreements * Use the “The Four Agreements” to practice pono communication skills
- The Golden RuleGrades 6-12
A universal guide to living pono Students will learn about the universal truth of the Golden Rule and how this understanding might be incorporated into everyday life to support e ola pono, living pono (doing the ‘right thing’).
- The Many Pieces of MeGrades 4-8
Sharing self through art Students will: * Deepen their understanding about themselves * Build connections with peers by sharing about their lives
- There! Fish!Grades 6-8
Observing nature to learn lessons Students will: * Understand how the Hawaiian people of old observed things in nature to teach them valuable lessons about themselves * Learn how they can use nature to influence positive values & behaviors
- Think Before You ActGrades 8-12
Strategies for Kōnane and life Students will: * Create a Kōnane game set and learn how to play this game * Be introduced to strategies for success relevant to Kōnane as well as life * Participate in a Kōnane tournament to apply knowledge of strategies
- Thinking Vs FeelingGrades 6-12
Head or gut? Which to listen to… Students will: * Discover how to reach within for their truth * Learn a strategy that will help individuals discern what is pono (right choice)
- Too Sweet-Sugar and HealthGrades 5-6
How much sugar do you drink? Students will: – Better understand the health risks associated with excess sugar consumption. – Assess their personal consumption of sugar that they drink
- Truth, Justice, and the Pono WayGrades 9-12
Living the Pono way Students will: * Learn about the Law of the Splintered Paddle * Explore the universal concepts of justice, mercy & forgiveness * Design and deliver a personal doctrine about “Truth, Justice & the Pono Way”
- Two Wolves InsideGrades 7-12
Struggling with Good vs Bad Students will: * Learn that every human faces the same struggle choosing to be good instead of bad. * Provide students with new “tools” to help them have positive thoughts and feelings about themselves, others and life in general. Main ideas to be shared during the workshop: 1. Forces of…
- Uncovering History Through NamesGrades 4-6
Learning stories of familiar places Students will: * Select a place name in or near their community, or a place that holds significance in Hawai`i, to study and explore * Deepen connections to this place by researching the meaning of its name and history * Prepare and give a short presentation to educate classmates…
- What Is With This PlaceGrades 7-12
Polling communities: A simple process to learn a lot Students will: * Explore, learn, and share about the place that is their community * Create and facilitate a one-word reaction poll to assess how others view their community * Give a short presentation about people’s reactions and their own thoughts about this poll
- What’s the Big Deal About TreesGrades 5-6
Understanding trees Students will: * Deepen their sense of place and understanding about the importance of trees * Understand the interdependence between plants and humans
- When Heaven Weeps – WaiGrades 4-6
Knowing importance of water Students will: * Gain a deeper understanding of the importance of water in Hawaiian culture * Learn about or review the water cycle from a scientific aspect * Identify sustainability issues; work toward understanding solutions
- Who I AmGrades 4-8
Using the ipu to introduce self * Participants will do an introduction activity about self, using the Ipu (gourd) in connection to the Hawaiian host culture.
- Who’s Your Mountain, Land & Ocean?Grades 4-6
Appreciating special people and places Students will: * Deepen appreciation of the environment and important people * Write an essay about individuals who help them grow and inspire them to become leaders * Optional: Demonstrate technology skills in publishing
- Words To Live ByGrades 4-12
Word cards encouraging pono actions Students will: * Learn about or revisit the concepts “words have power” and “thoughts become things” * Develop a pattern of reflecting on a “word of the day” and what insights they can
- ʻAha Weave – Working TogetherGrades 4-12
Weaving strands to strengthen intent Students will:
- Learn a way of leadership in Hawai‘i before the ali‘i system of governance
- Create an ‘Aha where each aho has meaningful representation
- Apply understanding of ‘Aha to support health and well being for individuals & groups