pizza, and a bowl of popcorn. The poem describes the panda as proud and invites the reader to come to his party, eat pizza, and play.
Storytelling is a vital part of early childhood and a key factor of early literacy and language growth( Isbell 2002; Dunst et al. 2012). These silly images could generate some creative conversation about the animals and their antics. However, their capacity for eliciting meaning making is limited. Even in a pretend context, it is challenging to explain why a panda would be holding a large fruit when playing a board game or how the four partygoers became acquainted. A quick internet search identifies a whopping 8,700 miles between the native habitats of the prairie dog and the penguin and another 6,800 miles between the panda and the prairie dog. Further, the commercial resources present a barrier to alphabet learning when they require knowledge that is not compatible with children’ s prior knowledge and experiences. Without any personal connection to prairie dogs or past experience with pumpkins, alphabet instruction that centers these constructs misses the mark for meaningful learning.
Our keiki deserve better. So, we made it better.
The Hawai‘ i alphabet poster that we created for the letter P is pictured on this page. The illustration without labels( on the left) is intended to anchor conversations with keiki. The annotated version( on the right) is provided as a support guide for kumu.
› What do you imagine papaya, pineapple, or punch would taste like?
The culturally responsive alphabet posters and their accompanying short-form poems are the tangible product of a generative and iterative process: We extensively brainstormed ideas and intentionally narrowed the focus of each image. Both the posters and poems contain rich and layered references to Hawaiian culture, history, traditions, geography, and the‘ Ōlelo Hawai‘ i language( see“ Short-Form P Poem” on this page).
Beyond the scope of our original intention, we then authored long-form poems as an opportunity to explicitly name and further explain these references. The long-form poems create an opportunity to incorporate additional‘ Ōlelo Hawai‘ i. In the case of P, new words include pā‘ ina( party), pīkake( a type of flower), pāpale( hat), pua( flower), poke( seasoned raw fish), and poi( a staple food made from kalo).( See“ Long-Form P Poem” on page 22.) Educators report that keiki have fun pointing to and talking about items that are familiar, accessible, and interesting to them while they build their working vocabulary in this historically silenced language. They experience a sense of belonging when they see themselves reflected in the instructional texts.
While some of the‘ Ōlelo Hawai‘ i may be new to keiki, most of the items in the illustration will be familiar to most of the children in the communities where these images are used. This supports keiki to feel confident naming, describing, and commenting on what they see. It also scaffolds them to make inferences about the scene because they can draw on both the picture and their lived experiences to generate plausible real-life responses to“ what if” questions. These include
› What do you think the word pā‘ ina means?
› Can you find something else in the room that is poni( purple)?
› Have you ever worn or made a lei pīkake before? › What kind of lei do you like to make? › Which do you like better, poke or poi? Tell me why.
Short-Form P Poem
A platter of poke and poi, A pitcher full of punch. Fresh pineapple for dessert, A pretty perfect lunch!
Summer 2025 Young Children 21