Study Group


History







HONOLULU HARBOR: ITS PAST,
PRESENT, AND FUTURE



Overview

Students will be participants in an integrated unit of study based on the Honolulu Harbor. The unit will combine the elements of cultural appreciation, global awareness, environmental issues, and technology. Students will investigate and research how our island culture is tied to the Harbor's past and how our interdependence with others is tied to the Harbor's present. By learning about the Harbor's environment, students can project how the Harbor can be preserved for the future. A community of learners including families, members of the community, Nu'uanu School students, and a network of classes within the Harbors Project will share in our investigation, research, and learnings.

The unit will be presented in four parts. The concepts emphasized in each part will be:
Part 1, The Harbor
A harbor is a sheltered or protected part of a body of water deep enough for ships to anchor free of strong currents and rough seas.
Many ships from around the world come into Honolulu Harbor due to its location.
There are harbors in other parts of the world.
Harbors are part of a worldwide network of oceans and continents.
Part 2, The Harbor: Its Past
The Honolulu Harbor plays a part in the early history of Hawai'i.
Hawai'i is made up of people from many diverse cultures.
As we learn more about different cultures, we find that cultures share similar values and needs.
Our commonalties are expressed in a variety of different ways, making each culture's contribution unique.
We learn traditions from our family.
Part 3, The Harbor: Its Present
Interdependence -- People in Hawai'i consume products from many countries. These products arrive through the Honolulu Harbor or the airport.
Packages or labels carry information about a product, including its country of origin.
Many workers work at the harbor and airport doing different jobs.
Part 4, The Harbor: Its Future
Many animals and plants live in the undersea environment of the Honolulu Harbor.
Nu'uanu's stream flows into the Harbor and therefore is a vital link in protecting the environment of the Harbor.
Waters can be polluted in many ways.
What we know of the present can help us in planning for the future.

Suggested Levels: Grades 2-6

Time Frame:
Part 1, The Harbor: 1 month (September)
Part 2, The Harbor: Its Past 3 months (October-December)
Part 3, The Harbor: Its Present 2 months (January-February)
Part 4, The Harbor: Its Future 2 months (March-April)

Learner Outcomes

Demonstrate understanding of a harbor by recognizing, explaining, and creating a model of a harbor.
Performance Standard: Geography
Demonstrate the use of geographic tools and resources (e.g., maps, atlases, computer bases, Pacific navigational charts). (4-6, p. 128)

Record historical events of Honolulu Harbor and connect these events to the historical roots of their own ethnicity. Become aware of the global role the harbor plays in our everyday lives
Performance Standard: History
Demonstrate understanding of the roots and foundations of U.S. and Hawai'i History. (4-6, p. 127)

Appreciate the commonalties and differences among cultures.
Performance Standard: Cultural anthropology
Identify commonalties and differences among cultures. (K-3, p. 125)

Demonstrate an understanding of the effects that humans have on the well-being of the living and non-living things in the harbor environment.
Performance Standards: Ecology
Provide examples of the interaction between both living and non-living things in the environment and how living things require the resources of the non-living world in order to survive. (K-3, p. 77)
Demonstrate an understanding of the effects that humans have on the well-being of the living and non-living things in the environment which could cause a change in a stable ecosystem. (K-3, p. 78)

Demonstrate an understanding that humans have the responsibility to care for the environment.
Performance Standards: Ecology
Demonstrate an understanding that humans have the responsibility to care for the environment and its natural resources. (K-3, p. 78)
Demonstrate an appreciation for the environment. (4-6, p. 88)

Use technology, reading, oral language, listening skills, drama, and the visual arts to gather and share information.
Performance Standards: The Nature of Technology
Use a computer to assist in the completion of a task. (K-3, p. 79)
Demonstrate keyboarding skills. (K-3, p. 79)
Use a word processor, database, and spreadsheet. (4-6, p. 90)
Performance Standards: Habits of Mind
Communicate ideas and information orally and in writing. (K-3, p. 74.)
Depict information and relationships by constructing diagrams, charts, and graphs. (4-6, p. 82)


Part 1, The Harbor
Learning Processes/Strategies

Ask students to locate Honolulu Harbor in relation to other cities and countries in and around the Pacific.

Have students contribute their experiences to a KWL chart:.
What We Know about Harbors.
What We Want to Know about Harbors.
What We Learned about Harbors.

Read Harbor by Donald Crews and have students gather geographic information about a harbor as they listen to the reading. Have students also gather information about harbors through trade books, literature, slides, and through the Internet.

Ask students to enlist the help of their family and other children who live in locations having a harbor as they gather pictures of different harbors and their trademarks [e.g. Honolulu Harbor (the Aloha Tower), New York Harbor (the Statue of Liberty), Hiroshima Harbor].

Have students compile data on a chart and list similarities and differences of these harbors.

Have students create a bulletin board showing the location of the different harbors by studying maps -- direction, symbols, continents, oceans, distance; route for ships entering Honolulu Harbor.
Have students construct origami boats, place these boats on the furthest harbor on the bulletin board, and use these boats as markers as they travel from one harbor to another until they reach their home port. (This will be used as a "reading chart" to show the children their progress as independent book readers.)

Have students construct their own harbor in a corner of the room with their own name and trademark -- a place where they can go for shelter and relaxation.

Take students to visit Honolulu Harbor, ride on the Abner Longley Boat, and validate their in-class learnings about the harbor with the actual.


Resources
Crews, Donald. Harbor
Literature and trade reference books
A variety of maps for the Geography Center
Brochures from Honolulu Harbor
Port Hawai'i slides and script, "Approaching Honolulu Harbor"
Nu'uanu School's librarian, Sylvia Sheu; and technologist, Paul Stanley
Parents and Networking community
Internet

Assessment

Completion of the KWL chart.

Student's self-evaluation:
Did you enjoy finding out about Honolulu Harbor and the different harbors? Why?
What interesting things did you learn that you may want other people to know?
What were some things you did the best?
What was the hardest part of learning about harbors?

Ongoing assessment while unit is being presented by creating a checklist and recording observations of students as they go through their various learning tasks:
Following directions
Staying on task
Borrowing and reading books on the subject
Supporting teammates when working cooperatively
Persisting in project completion

Evaluation Criteria:
E=If observed many times
S=If observed often but needed to be reminded
S-=If observed less and did not follow through with reminders

Parental feedback of their evaluation of the harbors unit particularly of the field trip to Honolulu Harbor.


Part 2, The Harbor: Its Past

Learning Processes/Strategies

Have the Hawaiian Studies Kupuna relate the history of King Kamehameha and the Nu'uanu Valley and the role the Honolulu Harbor played in this part of Hawaiian history, as an introduction to Part 2. The students will be exposed to the immigration of many people who came from different countries to work on the sugar plantations and the role the Harbor played in the beginnings of Hawai'i's diverse cultures.

(Another resource is Donna Nakamura of Ma'ema'e School. Her class discusses how families of the Nu'uanu area influenced the history of Hawai'i as well as the connection between Ma'ema'e and Nu'uanu.) Once the Harbor is set as a place of historical significance, move on to the study of the student's own cultural history.

Read the story, Grandfather's Journey.
  • Have students make predictions and inferences as they listen to the story.
  • Have them glean geographic information for the story and identify land forms and locations.
  • Have students identify the various ways of travel Grandfather experienced.
Have students think of reasonable conclusions to these probabilities:
  • What is the probability that one of the harbors Grandfather touched upon is the harbor studied in September?
  • What is the probability that the Honolulu Harbor was also a dropping off place for people like Grandfather a long time ago?
  • What is the probability that someone in the student's own family came to the United States or Hawai'i like Grandfather did?
  • What is the probability of someone seeing Honolulu Harbor for the first time because of coming to work in Hawai'i?
Familiarize students with vocabulary such as history, ethnicity, culture, ancestor, descendant, tradition.

Have students gather data on the origin of their family and other information related to their history.

Ask students to interview parents and grandparents to find out:
  • What ethnic group or groups are represented in my family?
  • Where did my ancestors come from?
  • Why did they move to a different place?
  • How did they travel?
  • Did they arrive at Honolulu Harbor?
  • What do they remember about Honolulu Harbor?
  • What did they bring with them?
  • Where did they make their home when they arrived?
  • What traditions are observed by my family today that were also
  • Observed by my ancestors?
  • What did my parents learn from my grandparents?
Have students create a family book using the information they have received from their interview using both photographs and drawings and make a computer video slide presentation about their family's history.

Have students share their family history with the class or in small groups and have them chart and analyze the data for similarities and differences, validate the predictions of the probabilities, and generalize key ideas about the family histories of their classmates.

Have students network with other classes in the school to share their information.

Have students involve their grandparents on Grandparents' Day with the study of their history.


Resources

Family as well as senior citizens from senior citizen groups who would like to share their history/culture with students; family photographs.

Literature including Grandfather's Journey.

Librarian, technologist, Kupuna, and other classes who would like to share in learning with class.
Assessment

Evaluation of students' learning as they share their culture. A rubric showing criteria for minimal, satisfactory, and superior achievement will be set up. Criteria will be based on presentation of project, knowledge and use of information, critical thinking (questions asked, how problems were solved), and communication of ideas.

Current events: Students show their awareness of people and their culture by being aware of traditional events as reported in the media. A checklist of students and the number of times they have contributed related articles will be kept.

Student participation in Tribes activities focusing on appreciating and respecting diversity. Anecdotal records on how each child performed on these various activities will be kept.
  • Meet Someone Special
  • Partner Introduction
  • Joy
  • My Favorite People and Things
  • One-Minute History
  • Campaign Manager
  • What Will Happen Next?
  • A Special Friend I Know
  • Family Changes
  • Graphing Who We Are





Part 3, The Harbor: Its Present


Learning Processes/Strategies

Have students make a survey of different things that come from different places (e.g., clothing, food, toys, cars, and locate these places on a map).

Have them investigate the sequence of events from origination to destination of these items and draw a web to show the interdependence of Hawai'i's people to the rest of the world. Have students research in teams how these items are brought into Hawai'i:
  • Boats
  • Airplanes
Have student make comparisons as to what is brought in, how much, what facilities are used, who works at these facilities, what other operations are on the facilities (harbor & airport). Have them show how these facilities demonstrate the interdependence between Hawai'i and the rest of the world.

Make arrangements and take students to visit the airport and the harbor. Have them use their math skills to plan the field trips.

Have students present a report on their research.


Resources

Internet
Trade books, reference materials
Field trips to the Honolulu Harbor and airport
Guest speakers


Assessment
Observation, checklist, self-evaluation


Part 4, The Harbor: Its Future


Learning Processes/Strategies

Plan a stream study of Nu'uanu Valley near Nu'uanu School. Have students visit a stream and study the ecology of the stream. Have them:
  • Investigate where the stream water flows
  • Become aware that the water from our streams eventually flows into the ocean and the Honolulu Harbor as a part of that ocean
  • Conduct a study of the marine life in the stream water
Have students study the waters of the Harbor and its marine life and compare the results with those of the stream.

Have students study the results of pollution and see how what we do to our water system affects the stream, and in turn the ocean.

Have students network with other students in the Harbors Project who are studying about the environment.

Assign them to listen for any news on the Harbor.

Have students project what the Harbor will be like in 20 years.

Encourage students to invite other students to participate in their studies and/or to share their research findings.

(By studying how people can negatively and/or positively affect Hawai'i's environment, children will come to a full circle in wanting to preserve the Harbor for all the history it holds -- for all that it holds for them in the present, and that in the future they will continue to appreciate the usefulness of the Harbor for their livelihood.)


Resources Guest speakers on marine and stream life
Parents whose backyard has a stream environment
Community speakers such as Quentin Kawananakoa and Alynne Loupe'-Shears on the history of the Nu'uanu area and particularly about water


Assessment
Reasoning on environmental issues as well as research projects
Drawings and writings
A model showing the student's vision as to what the harbor will look like in 20 years. Criteria will focus on problem solving, reasoning, and decision making skills:
  • Finds research materials to gather information
  • Organizes information in a clear manner
  • Chooses information that is relevant to topic
  • Sets up experiments to test hypothesis about scientific questions
  • Projects creatively about the future of the Harbor
  • Makes generalizations about what is learned


Acknowledgements

John Bickel
Peter Coleman
Clayton Fujie
Eleanor Fujioka
Dennis Hokama
Ellen Imamura
Sharon Luke
Donna Nakamura
Sharrie Rapalee
Julie Shimonishi
Ron Spinney
David Taba




Sample Lesson Plan Number 2

THE WESTERNIZATION OF MA'EMA'E, HONOLULU

The students will pursue an inquiry about the Ma'ema'e community's rich history in conjunction with our school's centennial celebration in 1996 - 1997. (FYI - "Ma'ema'e" is the original Hawaiian name of a specific area in Nu'uanu, from which the chapel and school are named.) Ma'ema'e School was founded in 1896, which was also the midst of the economic and government transition of the state of Hawai'i. Many of the "movers and shakers" of this era, lived and worked in the Ma'ema'e area. The emphasis of this project will be on the first settlers of the area and research topics and sites will be initiated by the students. The students will learn about: the original Hawaiian community, the westernization of Hawai'i as it relates to the westernization of other native American communities, missionary-merchant families who made Nu'uanu their home, and the waterfront businesses these families started which greatly impacted Hawai'i's economic growth and governing methods.

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