Outdoor Educational Program O’ahu, Hawaii

Outdoor Educational Experience

Pono Outdoor Program PEA is a nature-rooted learning experience for keiki on the island of O'ahu. We meet Monday through Thursday from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM, and Fridays from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, in various nomadic outdoor locations across the island. We currently have no fixed headquarters, allowing us the freedom to explore and learn directly from the diverse environments around us.

Our program takes place 100% outdoors — rain or shine — supporting deep connection to the ‘āina, the elements, and each other through immersive, hands-on experiences rooted in curiosity and relationship.

Every week consists of farm/gardening time, hiking, beach days for swimming and surf instructions, crafting and creating, along with various field trips to museum's, aquarium, zoo and so on. Carpools and communication all arranged on Signal app between parent groups depending on your location on island.

We follow a seasonal rhythm, with our summer break running from June 1, 2026 through August 3, 2026.

Natures Immersion Program

We believe children learn best when they are free to explore the world through play, curiosity, and meaningful connection. While nature is our classroom and learning happens all day through lived experience, it is our kuleana (responsibility) to create a literacy-filled and numeracy-rich environment that naturally supports skill development.

We offer invitations and resources that spark curiosity and provide opportunities for keiki to engage in real-life practices across a wide range of learning areas:
reading, writing, math, science, social studies, language, visual and performing arts, physical skills, and what we call "thriving skills."

Rather than separating these into rigid subjects, we recognize how they all interweave naturally — just like in life. We trust that keiki will gravitate toward what excites them and honor their inner timing, without judgment or pressure.

Thriving skills — as we prefer to call them — are commonly known as "survival skills." These include fire-making, shelter building, water purification, knife safety, food foraging, herbal medicine, tool use, hunting, and regenerative farming. These are not only practical skills, but they empower our keiki to thrive in any environment with confidence and connection to the land.

Our Philosophy

We believe the greatest value of gathering outdoors is to give our keiki the freedom to play and socialize as nature intended. We honor each child’s unique rhythm, gifts, and interests — and we create space for them to express who they are without pressure or comparison.

Through playfulness, keiki are naturally self-directed in exploring their own questions. This fosters autonomy, intrinsic motivation, self-discipline, emotional intelligence, critical thinking, and healthy social negotiation. When we trust the keiki in their individual paths of learning, they begin to trust themselves — cultivating the roots of healthy self-esteem, joy, and confidence as they grow into adulthood.

As Peter Gray explains in Free to Learn,

“Play is exploratory, open-ended, and interest-based learning, as opposed to forced studies where the actions towards a goal (i.e., getting a good grade on a test) are merely the means to an end while taking the shortest possible route to that goal” (Gray, Free to Learn, p. 143).

“Children’s innate instinctive drives for survival and educating themselves to thrive as humans are curiosity, playfulness, and sociability” (Gray, Free to Learn, p. 114).

We hold this truth at the center of our program.

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Our Daily Rhythm

Each day is guided by three non-negotiable community pillars that all keiki participate in:

Morning Circle – A time to gather, ground, set intentions, and share voice in community.
Lunch Circle – A shared mealtime that nurtures connection, care, and gratitude.
Hoʻoponopono – A daily practice of resolving conflict, restoring balance, and building emotional intelligence in the Hawaiian way.

These anchors provide rhythm and reinforce our core values: indigenous wisdom, circle culture, health, pono (balance, righteousness), and community.

Between these pillars, the day flows with freedom, exploration, and open-ended learning, inspired by the interests of the keiki and the wisdom of the land.

Pono Outdoor Program PEA is a member ran, nature-based, child-led learning community based on the island of Maui. We operate as a Private Educational Association (PEA) — a lawful, member-based organization that is not a public or state-regulated institution.

As a PEA, we are protected under the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution, which allows us to self-govern and create our own structure, curriculum, and community values — free from government mandates or standardized requirements.

This unique framework allows us to offer a truly alternative, child-centered educational experience. Our program is rooted in Hawaiian values, cultural practices, nature immersion, emotional intelligence, and real-life skills. Learning is driven by curiosity, play, and relationship — not tests or rigid timelines.

We believe in honoring the whole child, meeting each keiki where they are developmentally, emotionally, and spiritually. By trusting in their natural path of learning, we support them in developing autonomy, joy, confidence, and self-awareness.

“Children’s innate instinctive drives for survival and educating themselves to thrive as humans are curiosity, playfulness, and sociability.”
— Peter Gray, Free to Learn

Becoming a member in our Association is by private invitation and agreement, and reserved for families who align with our mission and values. As part holding a member status in our association, there is a monthly member contribution which supports the operation of our program and the growth of our intentional learning ‘ohana. All details, policies, and expectations are shared during the family interview and enrollment process.

By joining Pono Outdoor Program PEA, you become part of a like-minded, sovereign community that values educational freedom, connection to the land, and the honoring of each child’s unique learning journey.

We are not just offering an alternative to traditional education —we are reclaiming it.