The Nature Conservancy - Maoli No

Maoli Nō - Truly Native

Maoli Nō DVD cover

Welcome Educators:

We are pleased to provide educators with lesson plans and ideas that will help integrate Maoli Nō into their curricula. These lesson plans for grades K-12 were developed over two teacher workshops coordinated by ‘Imi Pono no ka 'Āina, a partnership for environmental education, on the island of Hawai‘i. These teachers volunteered their time over the summer of 2005 to develop these plans. Please note that the lessons were not field tested. All lessons are in pdf format and require Acrobat Reader.

Lesson Plans:

Grades K – 3:

The Birth of the Islands (182 kb)

The Three W's: Wind, Waves and Wings (175 kb)

Who is Living in the Forest? (184 kb)

Mālama 'Āina (183 kb)

Water all Around (187 kb)

Grades 4 – 5:

What Lives and Grows in the Ahupua‘a? (244 kb)

The Extinction Crisis at Home (227 kb)

Grades 6 – 8:

Biology/Ecology - Ahupua‘a (210 kb)

Biology/Ecology – Hawaiian Relationships to Nature (224 kb)

Biology/Ecology – Natural Laboratory (194 kb)

Grades 9 – 12:

Language Arts – Finding the True Meaning (149 kb)

Geography – The Many Aspects of the Ahupua‘a (444 kb)

Biology/Ecology – Measuring Biodiversity (260 kb)

Biology/Ecology – Exploring Co-Evolution of Plants and their Pollinators (158 kb)

We hope to be able to provide more lesson plans and ideas over time. If you have any comments and/or would like to offer your own teaching ideas, please forward your suggestions to: maolino@tnc.org.

Reference: 'Ōhi'a Project Curriculum

The ‘Ōhi‘a Project, comprised of three guide books covering grades K-3, 4-6, and 7-8, was developed in the late 1980s by the Moanalua Gardens Foundation and Bishop Museum, in cooperation with the Hawai‘i Department of Education. The goal of the ‘Ōhi‘a Project is to assist Hawaii schools in implementing effective environmental education curricula to aid teachers and students in making informed choices for our island environment. It is the most popular environmental education curriculum in Hawai‘i. Since its inception, more than one-third of the K-6 teachers in the state have been trained in its use. As the ‘Ōhi‘a Project is now out of print, educators who do not have this curriculum should check their school libraries. Every school and public library in the state received at least one reference copy. Some lessons have been put on the Moanalua Gardens Foundation's website, updated to meet the new DOE standards.

To download the lessons, go to: http://www.mgf-hawaii.org/HTML/School/ohia.htm.

Mahalo nui loa to the many people, organizations, and agencies who shared their talents and resources to further the educational value of Maoli Nō:

Mililani Browning

Suzanne Case

Rachel Goo

Larry Katahira

Marian Leong

Maura O’Connor

Kuhea Paracuelles

Pauline Sato

Leokāne Pryor

Terry Yamamoto

Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park

‘Imi Pono No Ka 'Āina (see list of educators below)

The Nature Conservancy

‘Imi Pono No Ka ‘Âina educators:

Renwick Bibilone - Ka'ū High

Debra Borges - Pāhoa Elementary

Mililani Browning - Coordinator, ‘Imi Pono No Ka 'Āina

Valerie De Corte - Hilo High

Valerie Delos Santos Duarte - St. Anthony School (Maui)

Joy Downey - Honoka‘a High

Gayle Enriquez - Pāhoa Elementary

Brenna Gorreson - Pāhala Elementary

Kristi Haleakala - Honoka‘a High

Marilyn Hiestand - Volcano School of Arts and Sciences

Amy Kanemoto - Waiākea Elementary

Ada Kubo - Waiākeawaena Elementary

Sunny LaPlante - Kalaniana'ole School

Melinda Mizuno

Jamie Nekoba - Waiākea High

Nani Pai - Kamehameha Schools

Malia Panglao - Ka'ū High

Kuhea Paracuelles - Past Coordinator, ‘Imi Pono No Ka 'Āina

Elsie Pflum - Waiākeawaena Elementary

John Replogle - The Nature Conservancy

Carma Samson - Kea‘au Elementary

Joyce Torrey

Jean Wence - Hilo Union Elementary

Julie Williams - Keakealani Outdoor Education Center (D.O.E.)

Maoli No teachers workshop discussion

Maoli No workshop discussion leader

Maoli No teachers workshop

Maoli Nō Teachers Workshop participants