There are lots of exciting changes underway at Alaka’i O Kaua’i, including expansion into new parts of our campus, adding: a new health room, staff lunch room, learner work room, and meeting room. We are also in the process of renovating our enormous gym, which will hopefully be ready for use by the end of… Read more
Intent To Re-Enroll & Registration for 2019-2020
Please keep your eyes open for Intent to Re-Enroll forms coming home with all learners this week. We ask that you please complete this form by Monday, February 4th to secure your child’s seat for next school year. Registration for all grades will also open up this Monday, January 28th. We will be adding two… Read more
Preventing and Treating Ukus
Last week, we sent home an informational article: Preventing and Treating Ukus. This article was sent out due to a few incidents we’ve had at school regarding ukus (head lice). We contacted the Department of Education District Office (Kaua’i), and found out that this problem is prevalent in all schools, especially elementary schools, since children… Read more
Friends of Alaka’i O Kaua’i Library
A HUGE THANK YOU to our group of parent volunteers helping organize our library! We are very thankful for all your hard work and dedication: Chad Long, Summer Dillberg, Amber Martinez, Taitai Ka’uhini, Leia Makanole, and Bonita Garma. NOTE: We are not accepting more library book donations at this time. Please hold tight if you… Read more
Enrollment for School Year 2019-2020
This Friday, January 25th, all of our families will receive Intent to Re-Enroll forms as well as copies of our new school application. Please return these forms to us no later than Monday, February 4th, if you want to secure your child(ren’s) seat(s) for the coming school year. **All of our current students and their siblings… Read more
Searching for a Kumu & Educational Assistants
We want to let our ohana know that the search for a Hawaiian Kumu has begun! This particular Kumu is to help us plan and carry out Alaka’i’s very first May Day celebration this spring. This is a contracted position and we will be accepting bids. If anyone in our community has connections to a… Read more
Attendance
We recently sent letters to every family regarding learner attendance. Please do not be alarmed if you received a letter concerning your child’s attendance. The purpose of the attendance letter is to bring awareness to the issue and remind parents/guardians that learners need to be at school every day, on time! Feel free to stop… Read more
School Quality Survey
On Friday, the “School Quality Survey” form from the Department of Education was sent home with each child. The purpose of this survey is to provide the State Charter School Commission with one indicator of parent satisfaction with Alaka`i O Kaua’i Charter School. Please do your best to complete and return these surveys with your… Read more
A Few Reminders
When driving on our school road, PLEASE DRIVE 15 MPH! Although we are aware that everyone wants to make it to school on time, it is very important that we SLOW DOWN. We share our road with the Mount Kahili community as well as the animals, keiki, and staff who live there. It is understood that 15 mph is… Read more
Discipline with Love and Logic
At Alaka’i O Kaua’i, our school-wide discipline policy is based on the foundational skills of Love and Logic. Love and Logic is a philosophy founded in 1977 by Jim Fay and Foster W. Cline, M.D. It is the approach of choice among leading educators, parents, and other professionals worldwide, as it is dedicated to making… Read more
Love and Logic Parenting Workshop on Jan. 15
Linda Krystek will be offering “Parenting with Love and Logic, Part 1” at Alaka’i O Kaua’i on Tuesday, Jan. 15, from 2:45-4 p.m. in the Library. Join us to learn how to show love and empathy while setting limits and holding children accountable with logical consequences. We will be diving deep into the Five Core… Read more
Alaka’i Bumper Stickers & Pencils for Sale
We have some great Alaka’i O Kaua’i bumper stickers and pencils for sale in the front office. They are $2 per sticker; $1 per pencil.
Extra Change of Clothing for Your Keiki
Now that we are in the heart of mud season here at Mount Kahili, please be sure to put an extra change of clothes in your child’s backpack so they are able to change if they get muddy or wet. We are also happily receiving clothing donations of all sizes/genders for children who do not… Read more
Lost and Found
Please check the Lost and Found right outside the office for any items that may belong to your child. Any items not recovered by Winter Break will be donated to charity or discarded.
The Giving Tree
The Giving Tree in our front office is to show our appreciation for all the hard work and time our facilitators at Alaka’i O Kaua’i invest with our keiki. In the main office, you will find a Giving Tree with paper ornaments that include teacher’s name and what they may be needing or hoping for… Read more
School Photos
Our Photo Retake Day has been rescheduled to Thursday, January 17th. If your child was absent on the previous photo day, or you would like a picture retake, please put this date on your calendar. Order forms will be available at the front desk once we return from Winter Break.
Reminders Regarding Arrival and Dismissal
Please note that school begins at 8:15 a.m. Please drop your child off by 8:10 a.m. so they make it to class on time. This is very important for the flow of our classroom schedules and their morning meetings. Similarly, we want to remind you also that dismissal is at 2:25 p.m. Please do not… Read more
School Garden
Our K-7th learners have been hard at work in the school garden this week in preparation for the Presentation of Learning on Dec. 14. Mr. Jon, our wonderful facilities manager, rototilled the soil, added amendments, and created rows so the ground was ready for our learners to plant seeds and plants. In the months to… Read more
Library Book Drive
We are actively working to expand our school and classroom libraries. We welcome new or gently used children’s books, ranging in level from kindergarten to middle school, of varying topics and genres. We are especially in need of chapter books. Just drop them in the designated box in the library!
The Giving Tree
The Giving Tree in our front office is to show our appreciation for all the hard work and time our facilitators at Alaka’i O Kaua’i invest with our keiki. In the main office, you will find a Giving Tree with paper ornaments that include teacher’s name and what they may be needing or hoping for… Read more
School Photos
School photos went home yesterday with our learners. If you ordered photos and did not receive your child’s packet, please let us know. Our Photo Retake Day has been rescheduled to January 17th (It is no longer on 12/12). If your child was absent on the previous photo day, or you would like a picture… Read more
Reminders Regarding Arrival and Dismissal
Please note that school begins at 8:15 a.m. Please drop your child off by 8:10 a.m. so they make it to class on time. This is very important for the flow of our classroom schedules and their morning meetings. Similarly, we want to remind you also that dismissal is at 2:25 p.m. Please do not… Read more
Take a Seat at the Buddy Bench
Our learners love hanging out together at our school’s buddy bench. A buddy bench is a simple idea to eliminate loneliness and foster friendship on the playground. Alaka’i O Kaua’i wants to spread the message of inclusion and kindness! Girl Scout Troop 823 helped make this possible, and we thank them for this generous gift!… Read more
Walmart Foundation Grant
Alaka’i recently got a shipment of new iPads and Chromebooks for our keiki, thanks to a Walmart Foundation Grant of $32,500. We are so thankful for this generous gift, which has allowed us to purchase some much-needed technology for our school.
Top Ten Benefits of a Flexible Seating Classroom
Walk into any classroom at Alaka’i O Kaua’i, and you notice something is different. You won’t find learners seated in traditional rows of desks during instruction. Flexible seating helps create a more active, engaged, enthusiastic, and relaxed room of students! This article lists the top ten benefits for incorporating flexible seating into our classrooms.
Winter Break Projects – Facilities Beautification
We have several projects over the Winter Break (after New Year’s Day) around campus. We will be looking for volunteers to help paint, organize, and move furniture. Please let us know if you are willing to pitch in!
Driving Reminder
Please remember to DRIVE WITH ALOHA! As a community, we all share our school road. Please be mindful of your speed, passing with care (only if necessary), and practice patience in one-lane areas.
Welcoming Our New Director
We are pleased to announce that our new director, Frederick Birkett, will be joining us this week. Mr. Birkett comes to us with many years of experience as a charter school leader. Mr. Birkett spent 15 years as a charter school principal in Massachusetts, New York City, and Hawaii. In addition, he has a Master’s… Read more
Rockin’ Around the Clock for Our 50th Day
It was the 50th day of school on Friday, Nov. 16, and what better way to celebrate than to dress up ’50s style and Rock Around the Clock!
Writing to Pen Pals
Miss Frenette’s class is learning how to write friendly letters to their pen pals in Oklahoma.
10 Questions to Ask Your Child About Their Day at School
Do you ever ask your child about how his or her day went and get a one-word answer? Read this article to find out 10 questions that are great conversation starters! “The trick is to ask about things that are specific, but still open-ended. Move beyond ‘fine’ and ‘nothing’ by asking your child to describe… Read more
Driving Reminder
Please remember to DRIVE WITH ALOHA! As a community, we all share our school road. Please be mindful of your speed, passing with care (only if necessary), and practice patience in one-lane areas.
The Importance of Learning Outside
I love to see learning “al fresco,” as I call it, at Alaka’i O Kaua’i. This week, during my “rounds,” I observed a class doing a writers’ workshop outside under the big tree by the playground, another class solving word problems during math with writing outside under the awnings, and several other classes composting, preparing… Read more
MAP NWEA Computer Adaptive Testing
Our learners were able to begin MAP testing last week, which will provide valuable information about the skills and concepts they have already mastered and what they are ready to learn next. Alaka’i O Kaua’i partners with MAP NWEA to assess their learners three times a year. MAP, which is an acronym for Measures of… Read more
Heads-Up from the Health Office!
It’s uku (lice) season, and we wanted to share some information from the Hawaii DOE about prevention, identification, and treatment. The school health practice for ukus will include: Inspection by the school health aide of a student who may have ukus; Notification of the parent/guardian that the student has ukus; After the parent is notified,… Read more
Multicultural Thanksgiving Feast
We will hold our first annual Multicultural Feast on Friday, Nov. 16, at noon. All families are welcome to join us for the festivities. This tradition will be a wonderful way to kick off the Thanksgiving week and allows us to build community and share foods that represent our unique family backgrounds. Sign up here… Read more
Halloween Fun at Alaka’i
We had such a fun Halloween at Alaka’i O Kaua’i. The 5th-grade learners put the finishing touches on the Halloween-O-Grams and personally delivered 171 treats to students and staff. Our costume parade started with Miss Casey’s class, and picked up each subsequent class until the whole school was circling the school. It was wonderful seeing… Read more
What is Morning Meeting?
Every morning, our learners gather together for Morning Meeting. It’s an engaging way to start each day, build a strong sense of community, and set children up for success socially and academically. Each morning, students and teachers gather together in a circle for 20-30 minutes and interact with one another during four purposeful components: Greeting:… Read more
Multicultural Thanksgiving Feast
We will hold our first annual Multicultural Feast on Friday, Nov. 16, at noon. All families are welcome to join us for the festivities. This tradition will be a wonderful way to kick off the Thanksgiving week and allows us to build community and share foods that represent our unique family backgrounds. Please bring a… Read more