A Snapshot of Sustainability-related
Curricular Projects at Punahou K-12
3.17.09
Please add to this list if you know of other projects not listed here!
Kindergarten / 1st Grade / 2nd Grade- Healthy snacks are served to the children daily
- Each classroom maintains their own garden plots & learns about growing different types of plants.
- Rain barrels are being used to reclaim water & use on gardens.
- Some classrooms have wormbins & students learn about recycling veggie/fruit waste & reducing solid waste production.
- Garden to Market project teaches kids how to grow own herbs and vegetables, and how to market their healthy, home-grown items.
- Classrooms use wormbins & students use vermicompost in their gardens for Garden to Market.
- Students in one class cook healthy dishes each week & broaden their exposure to new vegetables.
- Students reduce waste by making items for Garden to Market out of reusable materials.
- Families in one classroom have gone completely paper goodless. They use reusable plates and utensils at all class events.
- Students are researching sugar content in drinks.
- New industrial sized worm bin is being studied and used by one classroom.
- Students are making items out of recycled gift cards.
- Students have set up a system to capture unused sink water and use the water on classroom garden.
- One classroom has its own compost heap and students learn about decomposition and waste reduction through maintenance.
- Students create new art paper out of recycled paper.
3rd Grade / 4th Grade / 5th Grade
- Students learned about sugar content in different foods & also learned about healthy snack options.
- One classroom piloted a No Waste home lunch project.
- One classroom reuses tennis balls on bottoms of chair legs to reduce marks on floors.
- Students learn about native Hawaiian plants.
- Students have participated in native plant projects at Makiki Stream and other locations.
- Students go on field trips throughout the year that foster stewardship, caring for Hawaii, and growing and preparing their own food & luau plants.
- Students explored carpooling on campus and how to promote a Carpool Day.
- Students in one class reuse discarded Styrofoam and create art, topographical maps, and more out of this Styrofoam.
- Students maintain a wormbin and use vermicompost for their Three Sisters Garden project.
- Students in one class piloted a catalog cancellation campaign. They also collected unwanted catalogs in Winnie area and used an online tool to cancel unnecessary subscriptions or duplications.
- One classroom experimented with solar technology and cars via science projects.
- Students in one class are learning about alternative energy engines.
6th Grade / 7th Grade / 8th Grade
- Students growing own vegetables to make & market own salsa. They are also learning about the Garden to Table cycle.
- Students are using worm bins in Castle Art Barn to handle waste and promote waste reduction mindfulness.
- Students are growing own herbs and vegetables in Earthboxes. They use these herbs and vegetables in recipes throughout year.
- Students help maintain a Tilapia pond on campus which also provides runoff water to sustain a taro patch. Later, these Tilapia are harvested and cooked in Home Economics.
- Students researched and grew own vegetables in Earthboxes and made vegetable pizzas & Victory Garden soup.
- Students resuse 2 Liter soda bottles and have created hydroponic systems to grow lettuce.
- Students in one class researched facts about water and studied indigenous practices of water conservation.
- All 7th grade students carry out a Sustainability Research Science project.
- Students grew herbs related to Latin myths and culture. They researched the plants and herbs and grew them in Earthboxes.
- Students made cloth napkins and backpacks out of recycled cloth fabric.
- Students study nutrition and learn how to make healthy recipes from locally grown products.
- Students are using worm bins in Castle Art Barn to handle waste and promote waste reduction mindfulness.
- Students maintain worm bins & learn about waste reduction and decomposition.
- Students study indigenous use of resources.
- Environmental stewardship is integrated with health and fitness.
- Students on one team researched healthy snacks and ran a Healthy Snack Bar for one day.
- One team has chosen to use real dishes and cutlery instead of disposables. Parents donated tableware to support this project.
- Students created gifts out of recycled items and sold them to raise funds for a homeless shelter.
- Students in one class apply math skills to help solve problems related to sustainability.
- Students were exposed to different guest speakers focused on energy through the support of the Big Thinkers series.
- Students are growing own herbs and vegetables in Earthboxes. They use these herbs and vegetables in recipes throughout year.
- Students help maintain a Tilapia pond on campus which also provides runoff water to sustain a taro patch. Later, these Tilapia are harvested and cooked in Home Economics.
- Students maintain worm bins & study decomposition processes.
9th Grade
Art:
- In Ceramics students explored lowering fire temperatures of glazes to conserve energy.
- In Photography students reuse photography developers and other supplies.
- In all Art classes, teachers reuse art supplies whenever possible and encourage their students to do the same.
- In English 1, students explored stewardship of one's home and place in connection to their study of the Odyssey. Some classes use wormbins to reinforce sustainable practices.
- In English 1, one class participated in the Global Cooling Project, an international collaboration teaching environmental awareness & care.
- In Spanish, French, Chinese, Japanese, and Hawaiian, students explore sustainable practices in other cultures and countries.
- In Spanish & French, students carry out sustainability related projects, including translating Punahou's Sustainability Goals.
- Students in Hawaiian language participate in environmental service projects as part of their course.
- Students in Lifetime Fitness learn about nutrition and how to eat healthy. They also learn about different fitness plans according to different athletic activities.
- In 9th Guidance students learn about healthy choices including nutrition, eating, physical activity, minimizing risky behavior.
- There are wormbins in every Biology classroom. Students study decomposition as part of their ecology unit.
- Biology students also study other environmental issues relevant for Hawai`i such as invasive species, human impact, development, landfills, recycling, etc.
- In Biology students figure out their own carbon footprint when studying the Carbon Cycle. They examine their own impact and behaviors related to carbon dioxide emissions.
- In Introduction to Social Studies, students study their connection to place and their communities.
- In Introduction to Social Studies, students in the past created P.S.A.'s related to sustainability.
- In World Civilizations, students learn about different contemporary issues including environmental ones.
- In Hawaiian Culture, students learn about preservation of culture and island stewardship.
10th Grade
Art:
- In Ceramics students explored lowering fire temperatures of glazes to conserve energy.
- In Photography students saved empty film canisters, which were later sent to be used by the Pacific Whale Foundation.
- In all Art classes, teachers reuse art supplies whenever possible and encourage their students to do the same.
- In English 2, many students choose sustainability related projects as part of their Quality Project.
- In Spanish, French, Chinese, Japanese, and Hawaiian, students explore sustainable practices in other cultures and countries.
- Students in Hawaiian language also carry out environmental service projects as part of their course.
- Students in Intro to Computer Programming create simulations to solve specific sustainability related issues.
- Students participate in a Food blog to help analyze eating habits.
- Students participate in Yoga to help maintain physical and mental well-being.
- In Chemistry and Chemistry Honors students research alternative energy options and compare fuel efficiencies used by different types of transporation/ vehicles.
- In Chemistry students are building cooking devices to minimize the mass of fuel consumed.
- In Physics students study energy and electricity and carry out energy comparisons.
- Students in AP Environmental Science spend the year delving into various environmental problems and solutions.
- In Oceanography, students learn about weather patterns and impact of global warming.
- In Marine Biology, students learn about human impact on reefs and other marine ecosystems.
- In Marine Biology, students participated in an aquaculture experiment to raise larvae of reef fish.
- In Biology and Geology of the Hawaiian Islands, students learn about Hawaii and impact of human activities on different ecosystems.
- In Science and Sustainability, students will travel to Costa Rica during the summer and work with scientists at Earth University to explore farming and other sustainable practices.
- In Hawaiian Culture, students learn about preservation of culture and island stewardship.
- In Global Perspectives students examine real world applications of environmental issues in Beijing.
- In Modern Japan, students learn about preserving the natural environment of Sado Island in Japan.
11th Grade
Art:
- In Ceramics students explored lowering fire temperatures of glazes to conserve energy.
- In Glass Blowing students can see a demo model of a biodiesel glass furnace which ran on malasada oil.
- Also in Glass Blowing, all pieces are made from recycled glass.
- In Arts and Letters, students carried out a Book "Drive" project by reusing pages out of unusable manuals to cover a real car.
- In all Art classes, teachers reuse art supplies whenever possible and encourage their students to do the same.
- In American Literature-Nature, students are studying their connection to land, agriculture, and are actively gardening. They are also partnering with a 1st grade classroom to reinforce importance of land and gardening.
- In On Lily Pond, students are exploring their relationship to nature.
- The Japanese V textbook has a strong focus on sustainability issues.
- Students in Intro to Computer Programming create simulations to solve specific sustainability related issues.
- Students in AP Statistics applied their skills to help answer specific questions the school has regarding sustainability.
- In Physics students study energy and electricity and carry out energy comparisons.
- Students in AP Environmental Science spend the year delving into various environmental problems and solutions.
- In Oceanography, students learn about weather patterns and impact of global warming.
- In Marine Biology, students learn about human impact on reefs and other marine ecosystems.
- In Marine Biology, students participated in an aquaculture experiment to raise larvae of reef fish.
- In Biology and Geology of the Hawaiian Islands, students learn about Hawaii and impact of human activities on different ecosystems.
- In Science and Sustainability, students will travel to Costa Rica during the summer and work with scientists at Earth University to explore farming and other sustainable practices.
- In Global Perspectives students examine real world applications of environmental issues in Beijing.
- In Modern Japan, students learn about preserving the natural environment of Sado Island in Japan.
12th Grade
Art:
- In Ceramics students explored lowering fire temperatures of glazes to conserve energy.
- In Photography students reuse photography developers and other supplies.
- In Glass Blowing students can see a demo model of a biodiesel glass furnace which ran on malasada oil.
- In On Lily Pond, students are exploring their relationship to nature.
- In Spanish, French, Chinese, Japanese, and Hawaiian, students explore sustainable practices in other cultures and countries.
- Students in Hawaiian language also carry out environmental service projects as part of their course.
- Students in Intro to Computer Programming create simulations to solve specific sustainability related issues.
- Students in AP Statistics applied their skills to help answer specific questions the school has regarding sustainability.
- In Physics students study energy and electricity and carry out energy comparisons.
- Students in AP Environmental Science spend the year delving into various environmental problems and solutions.
- In Oceanography, students learn about weather patterns and impact of global warming.
- In Marine Biology, students learn about human impact on reefs and other marine ecosystems.
- In Marine Biology, students participated in an aquaculture experiment to raise larvae of reef fish.
- In Biology and Geology of the Hawaiian Islands, students learn about Hawaii and impact of human activities on different ecosystems.
- In Science and Sustainability, students will travel to Costa Rica during the summer and work with scientists at Earth University to explore farming and other sustainable practices.
- In CapSEEDS, many students choose projects related to sustainability issues and current campus needs.
- In Global Perspectives students examine real world applications of environmental issues in Beijing.
- In Modern Japan, students learn about preserving the natural environment of Sado Island in Japan.