OUR SCHOOLS • NANAKULI ELEMENTARY
Goal-oriented programs enlist teachers, families

By Jennifer Hiller
Advertiser Education Writer

At Nanakuli Elementary School, adults don't ask the students to do anything they won't do also.

Michelle Levins teaches the special-education class at Nanakuli Elementary School, where posters in each classroom outline class lessons so that students know what the goals are. Cory Lum • The Honolulu Advertiser

Kids who meet the reading goal get to celebrate with cake, ice cream sundaes, pizza or McDonald's meals supplied by Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center. Last year, the 17 teachers who met their goal got treated to brunch.

"Everyone is frantic at the Christmas break and spring break to catch up on their reading," said Principal Sandy Ahu.

But the 25 Book Campaign and other learning initiatives have gone beyond academics to help make the work done at Nanakuli Elementary more of a team effort.

The school used to have a monthly coffee hour for parents and grandparents. Now the school holds "Talk Story Hour" because a parent suggested the name change.

And while students several years ago were mostly left in the dark about why they were learning certain lessons, now they all know their academic goals. Posters in each classroom outline what the class is learning with each section of the curriculum.

"I think the missing ingredient was involving the students in their own learning," Ahu said. "Now the kids know exactly what the goals are and where they are going."

The school has made a major effort to improve reading and writing. Every student in kindergarten through third grade spends an uninterrupted 2 1/2 hours each day on reading and writing, while all fourth- through sixth-graders devote at least two hours. The school holds readers workshops, writers workshops and math hour.

"You just want to cry when you see some of the writing," Ahu said. "Even the special-needs students are writing so well. It's amazing to hear these little children talking about metaphors and similes."

Jan Panee, the coach who has helped Nanakuli with its reforms, said the school's literacy coordinator hopes to start a Nanakuli literary magazine, which would include at least one work from each student in a variety of writing genres.

Nanakuli is in its fourth year of America's Choice, a reform program designed to help schools get their students to high, internationally benchmarked standards in English, math and science.

"We try to help the teachers develop professionally," Panee said. "We do a lot of training and teaching about the standards and how to be consistent in the curriculum from year to year."

The benefits of the school reform are starting to show. "We can see evidence in the student work," Ahu said. "Even the change in vocabulary is amazing to see."

Several children are being raised by grandparents or foster parents, and are sometimes transferred in and out of the school as the families move around. "We cry, too," Ahu said. "It's hard for us when the students get pulled out. ... The teachers build such strong relationships with their children."

What are you most proud of? "I'm most proud of the gains the students have made, the teachers for their dedication and the parents for their support of what we do," Ahu said.

Best-kept secret? The school store, run with the help of Margaret Roe, a volunteer and part-time employee, and the generosity of the Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center. "We can't do anything by ourselves," Ahu said. "We have partnerships." Students can earn coupons called "gotchas" to use at the store by following school rules, doing particularly well on an assignment or doing extra school work. Ten coupons buy a school T-shirt, but there are also slippers, school supplies and other items for purchase.

Everyone at school knows: Robert Momoa, known around campus as Uncle Robert. He's the head custodian and is known for his positive attitude and smile.

What we need: Playground equipment. The campus is getting a new building with eight new classrooms this year, which will help relieve some of the overcrowding on campus. Playground equipment is still a glaring need.

Special events: At the Prince Kuhio Day celebration, parents, grandparents and friends are invited to the campus to watch a mini-concert of song and dance by each grade level. At quarterly celebrations, the school's chorus, called the Golden Sunshines, will sing and play 'ukulele. During Spirit Week, the student council organizes special days when children dress up as storybook characters, as twins, with wacky hair or as career professionals. They end the week with a sports day.