May 2026 Character Education Curriculum Overview

In kindergarten, children continued to practice self-awareness by recognizing their own emotions and social awareness in identifying what various emotions may look like in others.

The children also pondered the concept of peace. We read several books and identified and discussed archetypal situations and images of peace, including resolving conflict, being in nature, and finding contentment with one’s own unique individuality. Drawing from their personal experiences and the literature, they visualized and expressed their ideas of peace through sketches and conversation.

Students then considered how they, even as kindergartners, could promote peace in concrete ways throughout the various areas of their own lives, whether in their classroom, out on the playground, in their homes, in their local community of Hawaiʻi, or the world. Some children mentioned that they could help promote peace in our world by recycling. To better understand how recycling works, we learned which plastic and cardboard items can be recycled here in Hawaiʻi (which is different from other locations). To reinforce the idea of “reuse,” we held a Book Swap.

Continuing the theme of peace, we brainstormed and rehearsed solutions to common problems that happen between peers, such as wanting the same item or getting one’s tower knocked down. We marveled that there may be multiple solutions to a single problem, as long as everyone involved feels some sense of peace with that particular solution. We practice developing problem-solving skills because as humans we will inevitably experience conflict in life, and we want our students to be peace-makers in this world.

We also practiced creative problem-solving and cognitive flexibility by turning a mark or rip in a paper into a piece of artwork. Another day students were handed a ripped piece of paper and challenged to create a piece of artwork from it. Becoming more familiar with reframing these potentially emotionally loaded, errant “oops” situations into more of a novel puzzle and a “beautiful oops,” children utilized a growth mindset perspective to help them adapt to unexpected situations that inevitably occur in the future.

In grades 1 and 2, we focused on better understanding the emotion of anger, since feeling angry is part of being human, yet can be potentially destructive to our well-being and our relationships. We learned the concept of “Anger Mountain” and how irritations can grow into rage unless we address it. Building upon what we learned in kindergarten about how our emotions can affect our body, and vice versa, we identified where in our bodies we each may feel the early warning signs of anger, as it varies from person to person. We explored healthy, evidence-based strategies that help us to feel better physically (such as sleeping, drinking water, taking deep breaths, and exercising) and emotionally (such as utilizing self-talk, being in nature, or hugging a loved one). Each child identified which of these various healthy strategies and solutions worked best both at school and home, to help themselves to find peace and be their best selves in relationships.

Children then applied this learning to real-life problems they experienced, using problem-solving when possible. When no immediate solution was available, they selected healthy coping strategies to help themselves feel even a little bit better. They identified problematic situations at school and at home.

When considering ways to promote peace throughout Hawaiʻi and the world, students wrote Valentines to organizations they appreciated. The children were pleasantly surprised by the delighted responses from City and County of Honolulu Fire Department and the Board of Water Supply, among others, driving home the lesson that we, even as first and second graders, have the power to positively impact our community. Students continued to write kind letters to an elderly care home in our Manoa neighborhood at Valentines. In addition, the students continued to walk up to our high school and put up encouraging post-it notes in the bathrooms, a place where worried or sad high schoolers may retreat, to support our Mid-Pacific community.

In third and fourth grade, we began the semester by reading aloud a biography of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and were introduced to a glimpse of Dr. King’s inspiring life. Looking back at the images we had visualized and sketched while listening to his biography, we chose one that particularly struck our hearts. Students then began a draft of a poem, sharing the various profound lessons they had learned, including the inherent worth of all humans and persevering even through seemingly insurmountable situations. We discussed peaceful ways to work towards solving problems and healthy coping strategies we could use to manage anger and frustration when faced with personal challenges and the importance of finding peace not only for ourselves, but for our community. There will inevitably be conflict between humans, and we want to figure out ways for all parties to find peace if at all possible, and to remain respectful towards each other even when we disagree.

We began a discussion regarding managing our jealousy and envy, natural human emotions which unfortunately may be destructive to ourselves and our relationships. Students tied in lessons from the beginning of the year, remembering ways they are special and unique, even amongst a world population of 8 billion people. They also reviewed the concept of a “glass half-full” and identified items and relationships in their lives for which they’re thankful. We also briefly reviewed positive self-talk, an easily accessible healthy coping strategy where one tells oneself encouraging, yet true, statements.

The rest of the semester was devoted to Peer Mediation training, another way of promoting peace in our community. This Peer Mediation program originated at Epiphany School over two decades ago and was brought here with us to Mid-Pacific Elementary. Training included familiarizing ourselves with the principles and general protocol of mediation, such as the importance of listening to both disputants, allowing them to share their feelings, and allowing disputants choose their own solutions. We reviewed the concept of “Anger Mountain,” taking particular note that the angrier people become, the less able they are to solve problems. We also named our own anger triggers and our personal healthy strategies we use to manage our own anger. We practiced scenarios where the students performed active listening and restated what disputants said and showed empathy by identifying and reflecting how disputants might be feeling, helping disputants to feel understood and enabling them to come down Anger Mountain. We acknowledged how powerful active listening can be not only in mediation, but in their relationships too. Students might use their mediation skills in their day-to-day lives as well as when they become Peace Team members in the 5th grade, helping the younger students in our school. Learning to regulate our emotions and solve problems in our own lives as well as showing care for others and helping them solve problems makes our world a better place.