Poi Pounding Lesson
Written by Pohai
with Kindergarten students)
will be able to identify the part of the kalo plant that is used to
will be able to summarize the steps taken to make poi.
will be able to appreciate the amount of effort it takes to make poi
the way ancient Hawaiians did.
will be able to perform the chant, "Huli i ke kalo" and the
motions that go with it.
use the tools and methodology of social scientists to explain and interpret
ideas and events.
artifacts of cultures to make informed decisions and/or judgments based
on evidence found.
understand culture as a system of beliefs, knowledge and practices shared
by a group.
how different cultures, beliefs and practices are expressed in language,
stories, music, art and celebrations.
Procedures and Activities
event - wrap the poi pounder with cloth or put it in a bag. Have the students
guess what is in the bag. Give the students hints and the opportunity
to ask questions and keep guessing until they figure it out. Introduce
the Hawaiian term for a poi pounder and why it has that name.
Ask the students to remind about the parts of the kalo plant, using
different intellegences. Have them identify the different parts of
the plant, while I point to them. Then have them make their bodies
in the shape of the different parts of the plant and name them.
3. Start demonstrating
how to prepare and pound kalo - Peel with the opihi shell, explain
about having to cook it, show how you add water and pound at the
same time. Some questions to spur discussion:
- What happens
if you don't cook the kalo?
- How do you
think we would cook it today?
- How do you
think the ancient Hawaiians cooked it?
- How would
I pound it? Do I just punch it up and down with the pounder? What
would happen to the kalo?
- Show me with
your fist how you would pound the kalo.
- Why do you
think I add water to the kalo?
- What does
it look like (describe it)?
- How do you
think people make poi now? Is it the same as the ancient Hawaiians
did? Which do you think is easier? Why?
4. While I am
demonstrating, teach the students the different verses of the "Huki
i ke kalo" and have them chant it while I demonstrate.
5. After I demonstrate,
the students will break out into three centers. The first center
is a tasting center where they will have the opportunity to taste
the different things that are made with the kalo plant (laulau,
kulolo, poi). The second center will be for the students to try
to pound poi, giving them a hands-on experience. The third center
will be for the students to write in their journals about the experiences.
Students will also be given the opportunity to go back and write
in their journals after they have rotated through the different
6. Review the
chant again after the activity. Have a class discussion about what
to students about what they already know about kalo.
how to pound kalo.
making their own pa'i 'ai
journal entry ("We was pounding kalo")
example of student work.
- Student identification
of the parts of the kalo plant, using the actual plant.
- Student journal
writing about how to make poi.
- Discussion with
students about how poi is made today, as opposed to how it was made
by ancient Hawaiians.
- Student performance
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