Hawai‘i was once a bird paradise — a new curriculum seeks to inspire the next generation to help save its surviving native honeycreepers before it is too late.
A new curriculum to teach students from kindergarten to high school about Hawaiian honeycreepers is available for teachers to use beginning this month. The curriculum, developed by American Bird Conservancy (ABC) partner group “Birds, Not Mosquitoes” along with Kamehameha Schools and the Kanaeokana schools network, aims to inspire a love of birds and support for Hawaiian honeycreeper conservation.
The material is divided between two presentations: the first on civics, and the second on Hawaiian bird natural history and conservation. The idea was inspired by students and teachers who used their voices to help pass a bill earlier this year designating the ʻŌhiʻa Lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha) as the official Hawaiʻi State Endemic Tree.
“We are looking forward to working with the kumu [teachers] and their haumana [students] to do something similar for honeycreepers,” said Luka Zavas, Outreach Manager for Birds, Not Mosquitoes. Zavas and the rest of the team hope to empower Hawaiian children to use their voices to advocate for a resolution that would declare August 8 Hawaiian Birds Day.
A New Curriculum Will Teach Students in Hawai‘i About the Islands’ Native Birds
A new curriculum to teach students from kindergarten to high school about Hawaiian honeycreepers is available for teachers to use beginning this month. The curriculum, developed by American Bird Conservancy (ABC) partner group “Birds, Not Mosquitoes” along with Kamehameha Schools and the Kanaeokana schools network, aims to inspire a love of birds and support for Hawaiian honeycreeper conservation.
The material is divided between two presentations: the first on civics, and the second on Hawaiian bird natural history and conservation. The idea was inspired by students and teachers who used their voices to help pass a bill earlier this year designating the ʻŌhiʻa Lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha) as the official Hawaiʻi State Endemic Tree.
“We are looking forward to working with the kumu [teachers] and their haumana [students] to do something similar for honeycreepers,” said Luka Zavas, Outreach Manager for Birds, Not Mosquitoes. Zavas and the rest of the team hope to empower Hawaiian children to use their voices to advocate for a resolution that would declare August 8 Hawaiian Birds Day.
A New Curriculum Will Teach Students in Hawai‘i About the Islands’ Native Birds
