Fwd: Kick Off Your Week:

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Supt. Christina Kishimoto <reply@hawaiidoe.org>
Date: Tue, Sep 12, 2017 at 9:19 AM
Subject: Kick Off Your Week:
To: 20048903@notes.k12.hi.us

VIEW EMAIL ONLINE Inspiring school models As I continue my school visits, I recognize that I have a unique vantage point as I get to see the instruction occurring across our public school classrooms. I am enjoying my discussions with our students, teachers and principals. Very few people get to see the breadth of school models, great teaching, the student engagement, and the leadership decisions across our schools that impact the lives of our children and youth every day. Very few people get to see what it means to educate every child, from keiki who need additional supports, to keiki with multiple disabilities, to keiki who are gifted, to keiki who change schools many times as the children of active military, to keiki with and without means, to keiki who do not speak English or who speak multiple languages, to keiki who are curious to learn. We serve all keiki. This is an honorable mission! I am reminded, as I observe and interact with the myriad of great student-centered school design models that make up our great HIDOE system, that we must find a way to tell our stories. Our stories include great successes and continued development as we reflect in practice and design around our students. Here are a few school models from around our state. 'Ohana-Based School Last week I visited Maunaloa Elementary School in Moloka'i and I had the opportunity to sit with two parents during breakfast. They shared with me how special their school is to their agriculture-based community, despite its very small size of 40 students. The students and staff began their day at the flagpole singing Hawai'i Pono'i. Students left their shoes at the classroom doors, and began their collaborative morning activities. This was followed by instruction in multi-grade classrooms (necessary because of the small enrollment) where teachers organized students in learning centers. Maunaloa is a very small 'ohana-centered school where the love and care for students is a core assumption of the school design. Rather than see the small school as a deficit, the principal and school team use the intimate size to create a rich learning environment where students, teachers, staff and parents work together. Effective Middle School Model Later in the week, I visited Kailua Intermediate, a school located within a thriving commercial area in O'ahu. Students participate in a rich middle school learning design that includes diverse exploratory options at the start of each morning, from STEM projects to visual arts to design technology. Students walk confidently throughout the school from learning centers within classrooms to learning spaces for science experiments and performances in the courtyard. Teachers have designed this school around students. All middle school students need rich, hands-on, creative learning opportunities both within the school day and in after-school enrichment offerings. Small School Support Setting The third model I will highlight truly showcases how we serve all of our young people in Hawai'i, including those who need second chances. We know the challenges of being a teenager, an important developmental transition to a more independent self. For teenagers who have become distracted from their studies, or for those who may have made poor choices, this time period can be extremely difficult. When I visited Olomana High School, I saw the love and care that a team of educators give to young people who need second and sometimes third or fourth chances. This school welcomes our teenagers, builds their collaboration skills and engages them in a hand-on industry-grade learning curriculum that re-empowers them through learning. Hawaiian Language Immersion Finally, I want to highlight our Hawaiian Language Immersion program for 7th and 8th graders at Moloka'i Middle School. With a focus on biliteracy, the Hawaiian Language Immersion program provides a rigorous, culturally infused learning approach to students who want to develop their proficiency in the Hawaiian language through content instruction. Students may continue their studies in Native Hawaiian through the 12th grade and earn a seal of biliteracy. The goal is to graduate students who can critically think, reason, speak, read, write and engage with proficiency in two languages. Hawai'i's program is unmatched nationally. These are only four examples of the breadth of school models that we have in Hawai'i, but I hope that it reminds you of our important calling as a team of educators, and highlights the pride with which we serve our keiki. We educate, support, nurture, and inspire about 180,000 students within their communities. We will continue to honor our students as learners, infusing their language, culture, community and history into how we deliver education. If you are an active tweeter, tag your great school-based stories with #HI4PublicEd. Share your story! FOLLOW US: Facebook | Twitter | Vimeo | Pinterest | LinkedIn | Google+      ONLINE: HawaiiPublicSchools.org This email was sent to all Hawai'i DOE staff. unsubscribe

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