Aloha to Our 2015-2016 School Year!

This past week we celebrated the completion of our 2015-2016 school year and also completed our Hawaii unit study with a combined End-of-School Luau!

It was so much fun.

Hawaii really exceeded my expectations as a unit study topic. Going in, I had very little enthusiasm. Being that I find direct sunlight (and thus sunny beaches) unpleasant, I have always regarded Hawaii as something I'd rather avoid.

But our study of Hawaii completely blew me away with awesomeness!

There is a ton of wonderful literature on Hawaii, and lots of interesting topics to study. We learned about lots of wildlife (sharks, whales), geography and weather (tsunamis, volcanoes, islands), and tons of interesting historical and cultural topics such as Pearl Harbor (about which I previously knew almost nothing) and the leper colony and Father Damien (fascinating stuff).

Here are a few of our favorite books from this unit study:

• "Magic Tree House: High Tide in Hawaii"
• "The Mystery of the Black Pearl" (Box Car Children)
• Our 9yo loved this one so much that we read it twice.
• "What Was Pearl Harbor?"
•  This one is also being read twice. 
• "Father Damien"
• "In the Shadow of Pali"
• "Under the Blood Red Sun" 
• Okay, this wasn't a favorite, but it did illustrate the plight of Japanese Americans in Hawaii at the time of Pearl Harbor

We were also able to use a friend's pictures from a recent trip to Hawaii as a fun perk during our study. 

In short, Hawaii was a big success, and our luau was a ton of fun. Here are a few recipes!

• Pork Char Sui (we skipped the red food dye)
• Rice
• Crockpot Sweet Potatoes (If you haven't tried this, do! It's the best! Scrub sweet potatoes, stick them in the crockpot, and cook all day on LOW.)
• Hawaiian Banana Bread
• Pineapple Punch
• Tropical Fruit Salad
• Pineapple Upside Down Cake

The big hit of the night was the Pork Char Siu - it was a huge favorite. Definitely a keeper - plus, having my husband barbecue it kept the heat and mess out of the kitchen!

A few pictures:

Happy Summer, everyone!