Author Archives: Sean Aronson

Youthful Celebration

Monday, February 9th, 2009

Kainani Waits, 11, performs hula with keiki from Kilohana School.  The girls performed as part of the 5th annual Keiki Expo held at Mitchell Pauole Center.  
This year’s theme was ‘Opihi and highlights included the “Diaper Dash” and a reading of ‘Kai the ‘Opihi Gets the Point’ by Molokai’s own Gail Shima Omoto.
 Despite the hot day, hundreds of Molokai keiki took part.  Inside the pavilion, parents were able to sign their keiki up for preschool and take advantage of support services from the Department of Health and many other organizations.

Turn Off the Tube

Wednesday, February 4th, 2009

Unique reading program encourages adults and children to open a good book.

By Sean Aronson

At a time when most keiki have IPod’s glued to their palms and spend hours on the internet, reading may be more important than ever.  That’s the message from Jed Gaines and the Read Aloud Program, or RAP.

Gaines is founder and president of Read Aloud America and visited Molokai last week to attend the kick-off event at Kaunakakai Elementary School.  More than 200 people filled the cafeteria, all inspired to start reading more.

Kualapuu and Maunaloa Elementary participated in the program last year.  It is the second time Kaunakakai has participated and at least half of the adults and children are repeat customers.  Kilohana Elementary is participating for the first time.

While Gaines was in attendance at the kick-off event, the man running the show was Molokai High School staff member Matthew Helm.  Helm was a participant in RAP last year as a parent and loved the affect it had on him and his family.

Helm, who is also the Women’s High School volleyball coach, said taking on the increased responsibility was no big deal.

Since this was the first of six meetings over three months, Helm spent the majority of his time discussing the mission of the program and gauging the enthusiasm of the crowd.  This included asking trivia questions and throwing Frisbees to those answering correctly.

Perhaps the most challenging aspect of RAP is the TTTT requirement or ‘TV Turn-off Through Thursday’.  As implied, RAP participants are asked to leave the TV’s off until the weekends.  The suggestion applies for children and adults.

Helm admitted this was hard for him and his family when he participated, but it was important in keeping the reading a focus for the six week period.

“It’s so easy to get into bed and watch a little Sportscenter before going to sleep,” Helm told the participants, “But I found I could do without.”

To encourage reading, participants are given a list of suggested books to read, appropriate for each age group.  They are also persuaded to get a library card if they don’t already have one, and visit if frequently during the program.

Adults are encouraged to participate with the same vigor and enthusiasm as the adults.  This sets RAP apart, according to Gaines.

“The secret of the program is the adults,” says Gaines.  

While other reading programs focus on the mechanics of reading, RAP is really about the pleasure of reading.  At its heart, the program is reading for reading’s sake, says Gaines.  There are no book reports, no grades – just reading.

RAP is celebrating its ten-year anniversary and has reached more than 140,000 people in Hawaii.  

This unique family literacy program draws parents and children together for six sessions every other week in the early evening to share good books. Its goals are to reach families and stimulate their interest in reading, decrease television viewing, increase family time spent in reading activities, and connect the values of good books to everyday life.

Families who participate in RAP build Family Reading Handbooks and receive free books, reading lists, and dinners.

The free dinner takes some of the pressure off of adults and allows them to participate.
“The more adults involved, the better the program,” says Gaines.  Judging from the turnout at Kaunakakai, this should be a good year for RAP.

For more information, visit www.readaloudamerica.org or call (808) 531-1985.

Work To Be Done

Monday, January 26th, 2009

Farmers humble despite lopsided victory.
By Sean Aronson

"1-2-3 ‘hard work”

The team exclaims as they exit the huddle. They are up 14-0 at the end of the first quarter against the St. Anthony team last week, but there are no celebrations from players or coaches. Each face is stern and focused, readying for the second quarter.

And it opens with a bang. When Junior guard Kawaiola Kalipi hits a three from the corner, it’s 17-0. The Farmers continue to play stymieing defense and create turnovers on nearly every possession.

And the fast breaks follow. At least 10 times in the first half alone the Farmers successfully executed a fast break. The offense was quite spread out, too. At least six different scorers represented in the first half.

End of the first half – Farmers-38 and St. Anthony-9,

As the third quarter opens, the Farmers maintain their defensive intensity. A steal leads to a breakaway and a pass up the court leaves Alvin Ringor with and easy lay up.

As the clock ticks down, the Farmers don’t let up. Forward Scottie Rapanot completes a three-point play with panache.

End of the game – 59-13.

And the points were spread very evenly. Kawaiola Kalipi and Keoni Kahoalii were the high scorers, each with 10 pts. All seven healthy players scored and contributed.

Despite the positive results, players and coaches alike were hesitant to dole out too much praise.

“The defensive pressure is there,” says Head Coach Lee DeRouin, “but we have improvement in all areas.”

Over the weekend, the Farmers lost two close battles to M.I.L. rival Seabury Hall. Despite injuries to two starters, they fell by just three points on Saturday and four on Friday.

“We’ve still got a long ways to go,” says DeRouin.

The Farmers play their next home games on Jan. 30 and 31 against Hana. Game time is 7 pm. They will also host Lanai on Feb. 6 and 7 for the Homecoming games