“Huakai” is the Hawaiian word meaning trip or voyage. The huakai for Kealakehe Elementary School fifth-graders was a voyage of deeper understanding of Hawaiian culture and the environment. Through a partnership with kumu from the Kamehameha Schools enrichment program, students
“Huakai” is the Hawaiian word meaning trip or voyage. The huakai for Kealakehe Elementary School fifth-graders was a voyage of deeper understanding of Hawaiian culture and the environment. Through a partnership with kumu from the Kamehameha Schools enrichment program, students traveled and learned about their state through two service learning projects.
One group of students experienced the natural habitat of the Big Island. They planted native Hawaiian trees and plants with Kamehameha Schools and Three Mountain Alliance staff members at Keauhou Uka in Ka‘u. Kamehameha School leads an effort to reforest 30,000 acres of former pastureland to protect Hawaii’s watershed and native Hawaiian plant and bird species. They planted nearly 600 seedlings in two days. Students also witnessed first-hand how the bird sanctuary has helped bring the alala, the Hawaiian crow, back from extinction in the wild.
A second group of fifth-graders took a four-day cultural huakai to Honolulu. Students and their families raised funds for the trip — for some students, it was their first visit to Oahu. They toured Bishop Museum, Iolani Palace, Sea Life Park, Honolulu Zoo and Aulani Resort. In conjunction with Kamehameha Schools, these students weeded and cleaned a kalo loi at the Punaluu ahupuaa. This ahupuaa is dedicated to sustainable agriculture. Students learned how kalo is planted, as well as the different parts of the plant and species of kalo.
