See this documentary! I see the gears turning. I see students thinking. It’s great. Many questions to ponder. Hopefully they will take this ʻike home and have meaningful discussions with their ʻohana.
The unexamined life is not worth living. ~Socrates
Reading about ʻUmi a Līloa to learn more about our aliʻi class. Talked about the kāʻai today being liberated from Bishop Museum. Hoihoi.
Tomorrow we’ll take a break from the reading and look at the aloaliʻi – the chiefly court. Who made up the court? What kinds of kuleana did these lesser chiefs have?
Is anyone reading this stuff? Just wondering.
We’ve been discussing ancient society. The students visualized then wrote down what ancient Hawaiʻi looked like. Then we learned that we tend to think of ancient times as static and never changing. We discussed the development of society, the social structure/class system and all the innovations Pa’ao brought which really shaped Hawaiian culture as we know it.
We covered the main points of the overthrow and will delve into it later in the semester. For manaʻo of the day, I asked, “Can we Hawaiians govern ourselves today?” This question generated a lot of discussion on independence, nation within a nation and current day Hawaiian politicians.
Today we talked about the importance of family. The most important lesson being that the Hawaiian point of view is, we are our ancestors. We do not stand alone, rather we gain mana from those who came before.
Moʻokūʻauhau or genealogies are important for remembering our ancestors. Not only should we remember their names but their stories, their character, & what made them who they were. Parents have homework tonight in assisting their students with family information.
Names are also important. They contain meaning. Names are derived from events, natural phenomena, ancestors, some given in dreams.
We are exploring who we are in our families as well as who our makua & kupuna were so that we can understand that we all have stories/histories. Soon we will begin the discussion on us as a lāhui, a people/a nation. Where did we come from? Who are we?
HAʻAWINA: 1st line of Ka Pule Lanakila & get ʻohana info.
Aloha kākou. I look forward to a great semester, Seniors. You’re on the home stretch.
Talking about Hawaiians outside of Hawaiʻi through the lens of hula. Watching American Aloha: Hula Beyond Hawaiʻi.
What is a Hawaiian? What does it mean to be Hawaiian? Is it defined by blood quantum? Is it defined by how much one practices culture?
How do we see ourselves? How do non-Hawaiians see us?
This will be an interesting discussion!
