Newsletter: January 2008
Christmas Assembly 2007
Photos by Michael Young
Principal’s Message
Aloha Makahiki Hou e nā Mākua a me nā Haumana!
Happy New Year to all!! All is maika`i as we begin a new year and second semester at KES. Report cards have just been completed this week, and teachers and students are settling in for an enriching new year of learning. As you know, teachers will be attending a staff inservice training with educational leader Dr. Jay McTighe on Friday, January 18th. Students will have no school on Friday and a four day weekend, including Martin Luther King day on Monday, January 21st.
Next month in February, KES will be undergoing its midterm Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) accreditation. The KES WASC report has been sent to our visiting committee and we will be hosting them on February 10-12, 2008.
In February, our 6th graders and their teachers will be traveling to Hawai`i Island on their annual Huaka`i Aloha `Āina. A parent meeting to discuss this trip will be held on Tuesday, January 22nd at 5:30 p.m. in the Keku`iapoiwa Dining Hall. KES will also be hosting students and teacher visitors from Australia and Pennsylvania, who will be traveling to Hawai`i with our 6th graders.
Please keep Tuesday, March 4, 2008 available for a parent informational meeting regarding elementary school curriculum and program direction. We will be discussing our curricular progress and talking about our students’ standardized test results. We encourage parents to join us at Keku`iapoiwa Dining Hall at 5:30 p.m. for this informational meeting.
May God bless you all with his bright and shining light, guide you, care for you and keep you all healthy in the new year.
Mahalo nui loa a hui hou kākou,
Mr. Holoua Stender, Principal
2008-2009 School Calendar
Attached is the approved school calendar for next school year. Some important dates to keep in mind:
- August 13th - First Day of School for Students
- September 17th - Early Release Day
- October 22nd - Early Release Day
- December 19th (1/2 day)-January 5th - Christmas Vacation
- January 28th - Early Release Day
- February 27th - Early Release Day
- March 23rd-31st - Spring Break
- May 22nd - Last Day of School for Students
Please CLICK HERE for calendar
Mahalo to our Volunteers
Mahalo to the many parents who generously donate their time to assist us with the daily breakfast program. We truly appreciate the support you give to ensure our keiki have a great start to their day!
Mahalo also to the parents who have been providing coverage for our after school late bus supervision, car pick up, and study hall areas so that all our staff can attend monthly Home Ho`ona`auao, Hawaiian culture and language staff development lessons.
E lei nō au i kō aloha.
I will wear your love as a wreath. I will cherish your love as a beautiful adornment.
Bus ID’s and More
As we head into the second semester of the 2007-2008 school year, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of those bus riders who have worked hard to make the ride a safe and comfortable one for all. Many of our students have done very well with remembering their ID’s and in following expectations for riders. We strongly encourage all families to review bus expectations and consequences for infractions with your children as a refresher for the second semester.
Important to know: Beginning Tuesday, January 22, 2008, all students will have a second copy of their ID card kept in their file in the school office. Should they not have their ID for boarding the bus in the morning, the following procedures will be followed:
1. Student’s name will be reported to the office
2. Student will be asked to come to the office to sign out their secondary ID
3. Student will use the ID to board the bus for their return trip home
4. Student is responsible for returning the ID to our office within 24 hours
5. If ID is not returned within the 24 hour period, the student’s account will be charged $10.00 (the standard replacement fee for student ID’s)
We hope that students will continue to be responsible for carrying their ID’s with them to board buses daily.
COMMUNITY BUS MEETINGS: We have met with several parents in various communities during the first semester to collaborate on strategies for providing a safe and comfortable ride for students and drivers. These meetings have been very helpful and we will continue to meet with the remaining communities over the next couple of months. Attendance at one of these meetings is mandatory, so please watch for upcoming information regarding the scheduled dates, times and locations.
Kindergarten through Grade 3 Hawaiian Language
As you may know, Kumu Kealoha Soon has been ill and absent from school since last fall, 2007. Kumu Kealoha will continue to away from school until April, 2008. Your prayers for Kumu Kealoha are much appreciated. We are very fortunate to have Kumu Snowbird Bento substitute for Kumu Kealoha during her absence. Kumu Snowbird is a graduate of Kamehameha, and is a fluent Hawaiian language speaker. She is also a kumu hula and has taught at the high school for many years. Please join me in welcoming Kumu Snowbird to ke kula ha`aha`a.
New Report Cards
Kamehameha Elementary School has just issued its new semester report cards. Beginning in this 2007-2008 school year, report cards will be issued to parents twice a year in January and in late May. Parent conferences will be held with classroom teachers in October and March. Please contact your teacher, Mrs. Kopp, or Mr. Stender, if you have any questions regarding the new report cards. Please also note that for grades 4 through 6 science grades, academic probation will be calculated at the end of the school year. Student grades in Lab Science and Classroom science will be computed separately, and grades will be averaged into the second semester progress report. Please view the Kamehameha Elementary School Handbook for Students and Parents 2007-2008, p. 11 for criteria regarding Academic Probation.
Jump Rope for Heart
It’s Jump Rope Time again at Kamehameha Elementary School. This is our elementary school community service event. We have been participating in this event for the pass 26 years. This event was chosen for the following reasons:
- Hawaiian and part-Hawaiians have a high risk of heart disease and stroke
- This event promotes fitness
- It is part of the health and physical education class
- Money raised goes to advancing science research in heart disease and stroke
- Money raised goes to heart education programs
Important Jump Rope for Heart Dates
- Permission forms are due by January 31, 2008
- Money raised is due February 11-13, 2008
- 5th and 6th Grade Jump Rope event is on February 21st from 9-11 a.m.
- 3rd and 4th Grade Jump Rope event is on February 22nd from 9-11 a.m.
- K-2nd Grade Jump Rope event is on February 22nd from 12-2 p.m.
Mahalo for your support!
Grade 3 - Developing Understanding of Self and Others (DUSO) Program
Attached is the information for parents regarding the upcoming program for Grade 3 students. Please contact Ms. Kala, if you have any questions regarding the program.
Nation of Wimps
by Joy Shimamoto, Psy.D.
Educational Evaluator/Outreach Counselor Kamehameha Elementary School
As I reminisce on my childhood, I remember injuries that required stitches, teachers calling home for misbehaviors that my parents expected answers to (because the teacher was always right), searching frantically for a pay phone to call my mother to let her know I would be home late, and getting lost on the City Bus. Through these experiences, I have learned to use protective gear when engaging in physical activities, how to behave in the many different setting and environments I work and play in, how to be responsible and on time, and how to plan a trip ahead so I do not get lost.
Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Depression, and Anxiety were not household terms. If you did not pay attention when you were supposed to, you suffered the consequences. Late homework meant you received a failing grade for the day, and if you were nervous about a test, that was because you did not study, not because the teacher made the test too hard.
Children of yesterday have evolved into technological “geniuses” who spend more time on the computer or playing video games, than running around outside and making mud pies. They walk in groups in the mall talking to each other; other children/adolescents on the other side of the cell phone, rather than to the group they are technically hanging out with. If they are not on the phone, they have a familiar white earphone blasting today’s latest track on their ipods again, with limited interaction amongst each other.
As parents we try to give our children every advantage in life we feel we were not fortunate enough to access. We push academics and believe they can do anything in life we want them to do, rather than what they want. Society appears to have become much more competitive with more people seeking advanced degrees. Remember when people could earn a descent living with their high school diploma?
Many of us want so much for our children to be safe, which is understood in this evolving society that has been the focus of child predators, a slew of illegal substances that are as easily accessible as candy at the store, random school shootings, and binge drinking parties on college campuses. We want our children to learn how to solve their own problems as they grow into adolescents and adulthood, but when do we stop feeding them the answers and allowing them to falter and learn from their mistakes? When do we stop pushing them so hard that they can barely stay awake in class? What is the balance between working hard and overworked to a point of depression? How do we give our children that quality of life that will provide the balance between a westernized way of life and the maintenance of our Hawaiian culture in which our ancestors lived in the moment, enjoying each other and their environment, rather than planning the next important meeting?
The following article does not provide answers, and in fact may create more questions. However, more questions lead to more insight. This article, Nation of Wimps, is lengthy, but worth the read. It highlights some of the some of the mental health challenges children and adolescents face today, as a result of a more academically driven, versus developmentally driven, parents and schools.
