About Us

Vision & Mission

Vision: Kapalama is a Community of Learners who believe, achieve, and succeed.

Mission: The mission of the Kapalama Elementary School Community is to provide an environment that nurtures, empowers, and challenges all children to become caring, responsible, and literate citizens who are active contributors within an ever-changing global community.


About Kapalama Elementary 

Kapalama Elementary School is located at the entrance of Kalihi Valley in historic Kalihi, a busy residential neighborhood of Honolulu. The school community is multi-ethnic, with a substantial number of students who come from outside the school’s normal attendance area. Kapalama is one of the largest elementary schools in the Honolulu District. The faculty and staff are dedicated to establishing a positive and nurturing school environment where students are able to develop a strong foundation in core subject areas while learning to think critically and creatively.

Kapalama Elementary is focused on addressing learning gaps in student achievement and improving instructional practices.

Parents, educators and staff at Kapalama Elementary all nurture children’s self-esteem and promote literacy and critical thinking. The school annually conducts a curriculum fair to display student work and to promote better understanding of standards-based learning.

The school enjoys strong partnerships with area businesses and organizations that help provide learning opportunities and promote civic responsibility. It also offers several parent workshops on topics such as physical education, science, reading, math, career planning, bullying, disaster preparedness and safety.

quick Facts

Core Values & Mindset

Kapalama empowers students to achieve in a challenging academic environment by promoting a growth mindset approach towards developing the whole child. Students at Kapalama learn that through their hard work, effort, and perseverance they have limitless potential to achieve their goals.

Students are also encouraged to become caring and responsible citizens through the school’s Na Aikane program that is seamlessly integrated with the General Learner Outcomes (GLOs).  Kapalama identified a social emotional learning program, Choose Love, to teach critical social competencies necessary for student academic and life success.

Curriculum & Learning Design

Kapalama utilizes State adopted standards-based programs in Language Arts and Mathematics that provide digital access for students. Rigorous STEM lessons and hands-on learning experiences are also key components of the curriculum. Selected grades 4 and 5 students have the opportunity to compete in robotics competitions in alternate years.  Multiple measures of formative and summative assessments are used to progress monitor student learning and academic achievement.

Kapalama believes in student-centered classrooms where students are engaged in building their own understanding of content through instructional practices such as collaborative conversations, cooperative learning projects, student self-reflections, and involving students in a decision making process.

Kapalama School develops the whole child through weekly music, computer, and physical education classes that are taught by specialized teachers. Extracurricular activities such as ukulele and intramurals provide students with a creative and athletic outlet to develop their talent and build teamwork. 

Infrastructure 

To enhance 21st century skills, each student is assigned an electronic device (iPads/ Chromebooks) to access resources and information to support their learning. Students are encouraged to demonstrate their learning utilizing multimedia. 

Kapalama School supports academics through its Response to Intervention (RtI) system which screens and progress monitors students’ learning to ensure academic success. Our Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) program is a proactive approach that encourages students to demonstrate positive behavior in our school and community.

Kapalama School uses student data to determine professional development that is an ongoing approach to improving teachers’ and administrators’ effectiveness in raising student achievement.

Student Learning Products & Voice

Student voice is promoted through school wide opportunities for students to set and achieve individual learning goals. 

Kapalama Student Council prepares students to develop leadership skills by organizing and carrying out school activities and service projects while promoting school spirit, leadership and civic engagement among all students. 

The school’s Curriculum Fair showcases student academic learning in alternating years. Parents and the community are invited to view preschool to grade 5 student projects that address grade-level standards.