5-21-23 Dance Showcase was held in the upper gym. We left home 2-1/2 hours before showtime and…read morethe parking structure was already so full. We got one small stall on the top level in the sun. Fortunately they had a bake sale plus snack goodies and bottled water that I so desperately needed. Not even June but it's definitely very hot. The gym was packed with guests even sitting on the gym floor on one side of the perimeter. So cute to see the little ones just mastering tumbling to the 3 honored seniors. The instructors were decked with leis. Costumes ranged from ballet tutus, grass skirts, cute activewear, risqué almost bondage type get ups and lots more. Dances included breakdance by a crew which was surprising to see. Of course you come to see your dear to your heart performer but also enjoy many other groups and varied selections. Save the best for last, just like graduation, the flowers, leis, tributes from family and friends.

Excelling in excellence, Iolani Schools has provided a high standard in the state of Hawaii…read more I remember growing up days, the school I wanted to go to the most was Iolani. But being from the typical Chinese family, my mother told me it was more important for the boys to get that "excellent education". Which was indicative of the earlier days where the student population at Iolani seemed to have skewed towards Chinese males. Heck, at one time it was an all male school. Today's student profile boasts both male and female and a broad spectrum of ethnicities. And I am always happy to see my friends' kids attending my brother's alma mater where academics has always excelled. More recently I have enjoyed the numerous musical presentations the talented young men and women of Iolani have been performing. And happy to see them under excellent tutelage of friend Mary Chestnut Hicks and other outstanding talents. Theatre is top grade. Facilities well maintained. Staff are doing such an important and excellent job. Iolani, keep doing what you do in molding and encouraging our young children into outstanding future leaders of our community. You rock!

I went to this school and graduated as a May 2018 graduate and I had a really good time. All the…read moreteachers and staff really encourage to do your best and the school is like a family and everyone from Kindergarden to 5th grade know each other and its nice to have that because some schools are not like that. So I really appreciated this thought my time being there and it has really shaped me into who I am today academically and emotionally. So if you are thinking of sending your kid here or kids then you are making the right choice!

This review is for their summer school only…read more I LOVE this summer school for my kids, especially at the early elementary school age. They are smaller so it's easier for children who don't go here normally to adapt (and not get lost). The school is very organized and the children get name tags with their classes listed so the adults can help them get to their classes in the beginning of the year. They offer a variety of classes that are a nice blend of academics and fun and really have the kids engaged. My son just enjoyed his summer here and raved about it daily! He even wanted to be dropped off early! They have a very nice open house towards the end of summer school to be able to see what your child has been doing. The teachers do a great job of showing what the children have been learning and it's amazing how much they do over the course of the weeks. There are 2 morning classes, a midday care (lunch optional and separate) and 1 afternoon class ending at 2pm. Alternatively they have a care that lasts through midday through all afternoon (I think till 5:30ish?). So there are good alternatives depending on what your needs are. Summer classes run roughly $500 each with midday care a separate price. I believe the afternoon care is a different price as well. Ample information on their website and what I love is that you can register at the same time as the children who attend the school. FANTASTIC!

I have fond memories of visiting this school as a parent and parent of alum. The school's culture…read moreemphasizes exactly what "hanahauoli" means...Happy Work. They encourage students to love learning and doing. They encourage teamwork. They foster community by all of their school traditions. They encourage parents to accept their children's individual uniqueness and strengths. Each student I have met has such strong self esteem and a happy demeanor. I thought the former Headmaster who has since retired was amazing. He knew and greeted each child every day. What a blessing to attend this school or their annual Children's Fair.

I went here when it was still K-6 and overall I had a good experience. Of course there were the…read moretypical bullies and childhood drama, but I have good memories of making a few close friends, going to the cafeteria and the library, and selling ice cream after school to fundraise for different things. I played on the playground and fields A, B, and C, learned how to play the viola and ukulele, and made some student films. I learned how to type and use the old style Mac computers, and took after school Japanese classes. Times were simpler then, and now that I look back I really appreciate the teachers who really cared about us crazy kids.

My daughter just started kindergarten with Mrs Okamoto. She's a fantastic teacher and fantastic…read moreschool. The principal is very hands on and involved. The school property is clean, the pickup and drop off service is also very organized.

Mahalo Punahou School for hosting tonight's ILH cheer competition…read more Congratulations to all the participating schools, cheer squads, and supporters. Excellent win for Iolani taking all 3 divisions in first place: intermediate, JV and varsity. Love the comraderie of the audience sitting side by side with families of competing schools. The coolest thing was while waiting for the tallying of each school's points, the cheerleaders were in good spirits dancing on the floor to the music. So much aloha encompassed the gym. Smiles, hugs, leis of all kinds and roses being handed out to teammates and friends. A wonderful spectacle to witness and enjoy.

Disclaimer: this is a review of the tennis facility. I have played and coached many matches at this…read moreschool and it has a very impressive tennis complex. In the years since I was competing, they renovated the office/viewing area to include an upper deck. There are 6 courts with lights on the lower side and up a steep road there are 3 more courts. There is also a bleacher area to watch some of the matches from. Parking can be tricky and the one-way setup of the lot is difficult. If you pass an area, you have to go all the way out of the campus and back around the hill to get back on property. If you see a spot, even if it's not that close, take it! Weather is also an issue since it's in Manoa so we sometimes have rain delays/cancelled matches. Yesterday we almost had to postpone but luckily the weather held up enough to finish the match!

Love this gem of a school!…read more My child is now finishing our second year of school at Honolulu Waldorf School, and will be starting 2nd grade next year. It was very important for our family to attend a progressive school, and in this case "developmentally progressive" in terms of educating the whole child. Our child is very active and talkative, and we didn't want to go the traditional route of public school - especially when on our first tour of a public school they pointed out a "wiggle chair" in a corner that kids would go sit in if they couldn't sit still for long periods of time, and that particular teacher indicating our child might not do well there. For kindergarten, and where our child was developmentally - this was not going to work and we could visualize a year of phone calls about inability to sit still. In Waldorf education (and many other countries) children don't start classroom lessons at desks until they are in 1st grade and 6-7 rather than 5-6. And for us, that felt like the right fit. The teacher we had in kindergarten in the early childhood program (EC) was phenomenal, and I loved that the kindergarteners are in a mixed age class ranging from age 3-6 with various stages of development acknowledged (star children age 3-4, moon children age 4-5, and sun children aka kindergarteners age 5-6). When my child was a "sun child" they were the oldest in the class and became leaders in many opportunities. They have a very structured day which leads to a lot of centeredness and calmness as they move through play time, reading circle, snack time (provided by school and quite nutritious!), arts, more play time, nap time, music - lots of singing - and each activity meeting the child where they are and building on that. My child was very resistant to arts at the start of kindergarten, and by the end was weaving, sewing (!), painting, and drawing. Being restless was not an issue throughout the year, and going without a nap during nap time was also something that could be worked around. After finishing kindergarten, the children move into 1st grade with a beautiful crossing of a symbolic bridge leaving the grounds of the early childhood area and entering the grounds of the grades area / classrooms. In 1st grade, a the class size was 16 children which was a great size for us, and subjects of reading/writing, math, Spanish, Japanese, Hawaiian studies, handwork, movement, music are covered throughout the week. If a child needs more attention in an area, they are quick to spot it and suggest additional support of needed. Our teacher was incredible at holding the class, and attentive to all of each child's progress and needs. What's also amazing is that the same teacher continues into 2nd, 3rd and beyond as is part of the Waldorf pedagogy. Sometimes life changes happen (pregnancy / moving etc), but at this school the same teacher can be expected to continue on for many grades, building a beautiful bond between teacher and student. Also for the community; the school fosters a great sense of community with a strong Parent Hui group (parent volunteers) that work to make each of the many Waldorf traditions come alive. The school participates in Waldorf events of Michaelmas, Saint Nicholas Day, the Winter Spiral, Lantern Walk, and also brings in via its Spanish program a celebration of Dia del los Muertos, Salsa Night, and through its Japanese program Girls Day, Children's Day, Hawaiian - La Mei (May Day) and more. When thinking about all of the events throughout the year it's a magical, welcoming and educational experience for the children and families alike. Not knowing a lot about Waldorf education at the start of our attendance, I have gained a whole new perspective on childhood development as this school also educates parents on how children learn. The reading and literacy is on a different timeline than public school for valid developmental reasons and by 3/4th grade many students are avid readers reading and comprehending books well above their public school peers. Overall, I believe the children become excellent learners through and can tackle any topic with the curiosity and enthusiasm for learning. Last, the school is screen free up to a grade (6th?) This is a huge incentive for our family, as we do not want our child to be exposed to screens more than necessary - as we learn how it is negatively affecting brain development in young children. Eventually, the concept of appropriate screen use is introduced in Cyber Civics classes in middle school - as it is unrealistic for screens to be completely avoided in life, and an awesome opportunity to teach children about how to have an online presence, be responsible and respectful online, and to have personal boundaries around its use with social media, and length of time. Big fan of the school, the caring teachers and admin, and the awesome and strong parent community that goes above and beyond to be involved in their children's learning and environment.

The MonkeyPod Mākeke at Honolulu Waldorf School is a cozy shop open for 45 minutes after school on…read moreFridays. Created and run by parents, it has beautiful Waldorf art supplies: beeswax molding clay, watercolors, colored pencils, and coloring blocks - alongside small treasures children love to choose for themselves or friends: journals, necklaces, and other thoughtful trinkets under $3. You'll also find handcrafted gifts like felt leis made with care by parents and teachers. I purchased one for Mother's Day! It is a warm, intentional space that brings joy to the children and community alike.

This is probably the most educating campus i have ever enrolled my keikis into. I love the teachers…read moreand staff here. And my keikis they love it here. The breakfast and lunch program they have is way awesome and nutritional. I recommend this school to any parent.

Student body comprised of those residing in Mānoa Valley, Makiki, Makiki Heights, Tantalus,…read morePapakōlea, Kalāwahine, Punchbowl, Pauoa, Pauoa Valley, Pacific Heights, and some from Nuʻuanu Valley too. Many students that lived outside of the district and had a GE were from Kāneohe, Kailua, Waimānalo to Wai'anae. There were also students who attended Iolani, Kamehameha and St. Louis, then transferred to Roosevelt. There are some staff and many students with different last names that are related to each other, have attended and still attend RHS. One day one of my grandma's cousins approached me. I later found out she was a cafeteria monitor during the day and custodian after school. Coming to think of it, I have relatives that graduated in the late 1970's till mid 2000's on my maternal side of the family. During Hawaiian studies class, a substitute teacher asked me, "Where do you live? What's your family name?" I responded. Then she said, "I graduated same year with your relative's name." I was quite surprised. There are currently many entrepreneurs, including those married to entrepreneurs so they help with other aspects of thriving businesses, alumni with successful careers in the public and private sector. Let's not forget about notable celebrities listed in Wikipedia. Hawaiian language classes offered and counted as foreign language credits toward college, along with Mandarin, Japanese, Spanish, and French. I vividly recall signing up first choice: Hawaiian, second choice: Spanish, third choice: Japanese. I remember getting my last choice while my other friends got Hawaiian and Spanish classes. My favorite instructors who definitely made an impact in my life were Mrs. Wells, English teacher who immersed us in reading, writing, grammar, spelling, and working together in class ranging from The Hobbit, Beowulf, Shakespeare, Hamlet, too many to name, and our last individual project and typed essay for the year, Les Miserables. School is known for their language arts. Fine Arts and Cooking teacher, Mrs. Fong. She was the one who encouraged me to consider applying for colleges to arts schools on the mainland. I've also enjoyed learning baked recipes. One of those recipes taught in class was how to make pumpkin pie. We had access to ovens, sinks, and clean counter tops. Fun, practical, and life learning skills. Japanese language sensei, Mrs. Fujinaka for teaching us one of the first things is, "Otearai e itte mo ii desu ka?" Translation in English, "May I please go to the restroom?" Reserved for when really got to go and having a brain fart. Hiragana, katakana, and some of the kanji ingrained in memory. Economics teacher, Mrs. Leung taught us how to write checks which I thought was cool as it applies to signing legal documents till this day. Sports was and still is an integral part of the student body. I remembered running between two to four old football field laps daily after school, where dirt would kick up and if wearing white shoes, would get dirty fast. I vividly recalled running snakes weekly on red and gold bleachers, north, south, east, and west, in no particular order. Legs would get jiggly or charley horse if out of shape. Yet, great cardio, conditioning for the body. Sports practices ended at 6 PM. Games on Saturdays either on or off campus. Loved the swimming pool especially during P.E. Earned school credits while working on a life skill. They're also known for their band. Many clubs offered on campus too. Enjoyed underground cafeteria, choice to eat indoor or outdoors. Cafeteria staff offered a choice of school lunch or chef salad. Limited parking. First come, first get in the morning at 7 AM. Some lessons I don't recall learning and wish instructors taught at that time were study skills, time management, and financial literacy. There were cliques here and there. Now, we're all grown peeps and if we run into each other in public, it's "Hey! How's it going?" followed with a hug and honi on the cheek.

I'm sure this is a great school, however, there has been a very loud siren or alarm coming from the…read morehigh school a few blocks away from where I live. It starts around 11 PM and continues until about 6 AM, making it difficult to sleep. I live over 30 floors up and can still hear it clearly, so I imagine it's affecting many people in the neighborhood. I'm not sure if others have reported it yet, but I hope this issue can be addressed and fixed soon.