A new, free mobile preschool aimed at helping homeless families is traveling up and down the Wai'anae Coast, providing training, food, clothing and information for toddlers and their parents living on the beaches.

The Malama Mobile looks like any other white Chevrolet van as it bounces along Farrington Highway. But this is a van with a vital mission, say educators who work with disadvantaged children in the region.

"Children who have had preschool come into kindergarten with considerably more knowledge than students that have not had preschool," said Myron Brumaghim, principal of Nanaikapono Elementary School, one of several Wai'anae Coast schools that have many homeless and hidden homeless students.

"The mobile preschool is very important because it goes right to where the kids are located. Many of them would not have preschool otherwise," Brumaghim said.

The Malama Mobile officially hit the road March 12 and goes to homeless beach locations on the coast each Tuesday and Thursday. Starting next month, it also will set up an outdoor preschool every Wednesday and Friday at the new $6.5 million Pai'olu Kaiaulu emergency shelter in Wai'anae, the state's first around-the-clock facility for the homeless.

SCHOOL'S IN SESSION

On Thursday, the vehicle wheeled into the parking area at Lualualei Beach Park No. 1, otherwise known as "Sewers Beach," and the Malama Mobile team went to work.

Within a half-hour, they had erected a 20-foot-square open-air tent by the ocean and filled it with floor mats, tiny tables, writing tools, books, building blocks and art supplies. Moments later, preschool was in session.

After "Circle Time" and a sing-along, Danni Lee, 24, held her 4-month-old baby, Danica, while her 3-year-old son, Dominic, improved his hand-eye coordination by putting paint to paper with a brush. Nearby, son Marc-Dylan, 5, was learning to write his name with a black marker.

"I did it! I did it!," he shouted with glee when he'd finished printing the letters M-A-R-C. "I wrote my name!"

Like other parents who visit the Malama Mobile, Lee said she wasn't sure what to expect at first. Now she's sold on the concept.

"My boys love it here — they basically like everything about it," she said. "I like it because it educates them. So, we'll be coming back each time it's here."

Kathy Fong, the team's preschool teacher, said initially the homeless were apprehensive about joining in. Slowly, she said, that's changing.

"When we first came to this beach, there was a lot of buzz while we were setting up — I don't know if it was good buzz or bad buzz" Fong said. "But then, as we continued setting up, things quieted down and it was like they gave us space to do this. Now, they seem to respect the idea that we're setting up something for their children — that we're doing something good for their kids."

The Malama Mobile is part of a homeless outreach pilot program, known as Ka Pa'alana Preschool, that operates under a $700,000 grant that is thought to be the first project funded jointly by the state Department of Human Services and Kamehameha Schools. The project is operated by Partners In Development Foundation, a nonprofit organization that offers assistance to Island residents.

Danny Goya is project director for Ka Pa'alana, which is based at the state's Onelau'ena "Good Beginnings" shelter at Kalaeloa and operates a preschool there twice a week. That shelter is operated by Wai'anae Community Outreach, which has developed a collaborative partnership with Ka Pa'alana.

A key component of the preschool program is its emphasis on family literacy, a method of motivating the whole family through the success of the children.

"It empowers the whole family to learn through the child," Goya said. "We try to get the family to rally around their child's education."

SIDE BY SIDE

The preschool team encourages parents to work side by side with their children, enabling the adults to become the primary educators of their children as they are learning themselves.

The Malama Mobile is modeled after a successful, federally funded Partners In Development traveling preschool program known as Tutu & Me that's designed for the increasing number of grandparents who have become the primary caregivers for their grandchildren.

With the Malama Mobile, the concept focuses on the rapidly rising number of homeless toddlers on the Wai'anae Coast and those who care for them.

"The difference between us and Tutu & Me is that with them, the focus is on the grandparents as caregivers," said Kia'i Lee, outreach coordinator for the Malama Mobile. "We are welcoming pretty much anyone who has their hand in assuming that caregiver role in targeting the homeless or houseless families on the Wai'anae Coast."

And although Malama Mobile is a pilot project, Goya said it's likely that it will be around for awhile.

"Unfortunately, there's a growing need for it," he said.

Reach Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com.