When students enroll at Pearl Harbor Kai Elementary School, they are instantly welcomed into a "family."

The family concept, which groups about 15 students of all grades with a staff member other than their teacher, is a way to help kids find a place to fit in from the start.

At a school where 98 percent of students are military dependents and most stay for only three or four years, "it helps them to feel that sense of belonging, to feel at home, to have someplace other than their classroom to belong to," said Principal Elynne Chung.

It helps children learn to interact, even with students from other grade levels, she said. In some cases, the fifth- and sixth-graders help take care of 5- and 6-year-olds.

"It helps the kids to get along with each other," Chung said.

The families work together on character education and activities that reinforce the Department of Education's "general learner outcomes." For instance, one group of students adopted a needy family to help learn how to contribute to the community.

Families are just one way the school seeks to help its students quickly adjust to a new school. "It's very challenging because children come not just from all over the nation, but all over the world. They come from all different types of school systems," Chung said.

When students enroll, they are sent to a transition coordinator and quickly assessed to make sure they are placed appropriately, "then we work from there," Chung said.

What are you most proud of? "Ninety-eight percent of our (students are) Navy and Army families that experience long deployments and frequent relocation as part of their military life. Despite this high transient rate, our students are very resilient and our parents continuously support the school," Chung said.

Best-kept secret: The whole school has been accredited for the past six years by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, and the school's Primary School Adjustment Program was the first program in the state to be nationally accredited, Chung said. Now in its fifth year, the program offers transitional support to all students in kindergarten through third grade.

Everybody in our school knows: Counselors Wesley Wee and James Wolfe, who have been at the school for a total of 40 years. "Our two counselors greet the students each morning in the breezeways and provide academic, emotional and behavioral support for all students," Chung said.

Our biggest challenge: Meeting "adequate yearly progress" under No Child Left Behind annually is a challenge, as it is with all schools, Chung said.

"We offer a rigorous, challenging curriculum while providing a balance of music and physical education. Every attempt is made to provide all students academic and emotional assistance. Our teachers strive to make each student feel welcome, comfortable and supported as they enter school at various times of the school year."

What we need: The school, which exceeded the state's reading targets on the Hawai'i State Assessment, needs to do the same in math. "This school year we were 2 percent shy of meeting the 28 percent goal set by the state in math. Our teachers are working very hard with our students to help them meet or exceed the state requirement," Chung said.

Special events: Parent-child workshops, intramural sports, Winter SongFest, Christmas Read Aloud, a curriculum fair, May Day and a Family Fun Fair.

Reach Treena Shapiro at tshapiro@honoluluadvertiser.com.