Hawaiʻi takes an approach to social-emotional learning that no other state can replicate, because it is grounded in something no other state has: a culturally rooted framework built on Hawaiian values, language, and history.
Nā Hopena Aʻo (HĀ), adopted through Board of Education Policy E-3, is a department-wide framework of outcomes that develops in students and staff a sense of Belonging, Responsibility, Excellence, Aloha, Total Well-Being, and Hawaiʻi. The acronym spells BREATH. The framework reflects the uniqueness of Hawaiʻi and is described as “meaningful in all places of learning.”[1]
Hawaiʻi is also the only state with a single statewide school district. When HIDOE commits to SEL, that commitment applies directly to every public school in the state without the district-level variation that exists elsewhere. HIDOE has stated its position plainly: “All learning is social and emotional. That is why the Department is committed to SEL, a purposeful and integrated part of the student experience.”[2]
The state adopted the National Health Education Standards in December 2019 with full implementation in SY 2023-2024, requiring at least 45 minutes of health education per week in elementary grades. HIDOE partners with Panorama Education to survey students on SEL competencies up to three times per year. And the Hawaiʻi Multi-Tiered System of Support integrates academic, behavioral, and social-emotional domains.
Nā Hopena Aʻo (HĀ): BREATH
The Framework
“The Breath of Learning” — Board of Education Policy E-3
Belonging
Strengthen a sense of belonging in school, community, and the broader world
Responsibility
Strengthen a sense of responsibility for self, others, and the environment
Excellence
Strengthen a sense of excellence by pursuing quality and continuous improvement
Aloha
Strengthen a sense of aloha through joyful, caring relationships
Total Well-Being
Strengthen physical, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual health
Hawaiʻi
Strengthen connection to place, culture, and identity
Nā Hopena Aʻo was developed through a community process led by former Board member Cheryl Lupenui in 2013, resulting in a culturally grounded set of outcomes rooted in Hawaiian values, language, culture, and history.[1] All six outcomes are described as interdependent and should not be used separately.
How HĀ Connects to SEL
| HĀ Outcome | Related Social-Emotional Skills | CASEL |
|---|---|---|
| Belonging | Connection, inclusion, empathy, identity | Self-Awareness + Social Awareness |
| Responsibility | Accountability, decision-making, self-management | Responsible Decision-Making + Self-Management |
| Excellence | Goal setting, perseverance, growth mindset | Self-Management |
| Aloha | Kindness, respect, caring relationships | Relationship Skills + Social Awareness |
| Total Well-Being | Emotional regulation, stress management, self-care | Self-Awareness + Self-Management |
| Hawaiʻi | Connection to place, cultural identity, community | Social Awareness |
A CASEL-aligned curriculum that teaches social-emotional skills provides the structured, explicit instruction that complements the culturally grounded HĀ framework.
HĀ as Department-Wide Policy
HĀ is not a program to be implemented in certain classes. It is a department-wide framework adopted through Board of Education policy. Every school in HIDOE operates within this framework. The guiding principles state that HĀ should “lead all efforts” in the educational system and that the framework “supports a holistic learning process with universal appeal and application to guide learners and leaders in the entire school community.”[1]
Health Education Standards
National Health Education Standards Adopted
The Hawaiʻi State Board of Education adopted the National Health Education Standards (NHES) in December 2019. A three-year implementation rollout began in SY 2020-2021, with full implementation in SY 2023-2024.[3]
Health Concepts
Analyzing Influences
Accessing Information
Interpersonal Communication
SEL-connected
Decision-Making
SEL-connected
Goal Setting
SEL-connected
Self-Management
SEL-connected
Advocacy
45 Minutes Per Week in Elementary
Health education is provided to students in elementary grades at least 45 minutes per week and secondary grades at least 200 minutes per week.[4] This time allocation provides the structural vehicle for delivering health education, including its social-emotional content.
The Lōkahi Wheel
HIDOE's health education framework incorporates the Lōkahi Wheel, a Hawaiian concept of balance, harmony, and unity for the self in relationship to the body, the mind, the spirit, and the rest of the world. This culturally grounded approach to health education connects directly to HĀ's Total Well-Being outcome and provides a framework for understanding health holistically.[3]
Panorama SEL Surveys
Statewide Data Collection
HIDOE partners with Panorama Education to collect student voice data on school climate and social-emotional learning. Schools have the opportunity to offer the Panorama Student SEL Survey up to three times throughout the school year (Fall, Winter, Spring).[5]
Sense of belonging
Growth mindset
Self-efficacy
Self-management
Social awareness
Relationships
Assessment + Instruction = Growth
Hawaiʻi is assessing social-emotional competencies at the statewide level through a systematic, multi-wave survey process. Assessment without instruction produces data without outcomes. The survey identifies where students are. The curriculum builds the competencies the survey measures.
Hawaiʻi Multi-Tiered System of Support (HMTSS)
HIDOE uses the Hawaiʻi Multi-Tiered System of Support (HMTSS) to integrate academic, behavioral, and social-emotional support for all students. A research partnership with the University of Hawaiʻi examines SEL outcomes in Title I schools and develops recommendations to “guide decision making conversations around SEL and the Hawaiʻi Multi-Tiered System of Support.”[7]
Tier 3
Intensive Support
Tier 2
Targeted Support
Tier 1 — Universal SEL Instruction
Structured curriculum for all students
For elementary schools, structured SEL instruction functions as Tier 1 universal social-emotional support within HMTSS. A 40-week curriculum covering all five CASEL competencies serves as the instructional foundation that the tiered system builds on.
Anti-Bullying
HIDOE connects its anti-bullying work directly to HĀ and SEL: “In our schools, we cultivate [respect and empathy] as part of Nā Hopena Aʻo, social-emotional learning, and other efforts.”[8]
Prevention strategies include building positive school culture and climate, the Speak Now HIDOE reporting app for anonymous incident reporting, and community-wide strategies that identify and support students who experience bullying.[8] Social-emotional instruction that teaches empathy, conflict resolution, respect, kindness, and communication skills directly supports the prevention approach.
The Single-District Advantage
Hawaiʻi is the only state in the country with a single statewide school district. When HIDOE adopts HĀ as a department-wide framework, partners with Panorama for statewide surveys, and commits to SEL as “a purposeful and integrated part of the student experience,” these decisions apply uniformly to every public school. There is no district-level variation. Every school operates within the same framework.
How to Align Your Elementary Program With Hawaiʻi's Framework
Ground in HĀ
Nā Hopena Aʻo is the cultural foundation. Connect your SEL instruction to the six HĀ outcomes. When teaching empathy, connect to Aloha. When teaching self-management, connect to Responsibility. When teaching perseverance, connect to Excellence.
Address Health Education Standards
Document how your curriculum covers the social-emotional content within the NHES. A comprehensive scope and sequence covering all five CASEL competencies across 40 weeks addresses every social-emotional strand.
Use Panorama Data
If your school administers the Panorama SEL Survey, use the data to identify areas of strength and growth. Select or adjust your curriculum to address the competencies the survey measures.
Build Your HMTSS Tier 1
Your SEL curriculum serves as the Tier 1 social-emotional instruction within HMTSS. Document how it connects to your behavioral expectations and academic instruction.
Support Anti-Bullying Efforts
Document how your social-emotional instruction supports HIDOE's anti-bullying approach. A curriculum teaching empathy, respect, kindness, and conflict resolution is the prevention foundation.
Communicating With Hawaiʻi Parents
Connect to HĀ
“Our social-emotional program supports the HĀ framework by teaching students the skills that strengthen Belonging, Responsibility, Excellence, Aloha, Total Well-Being, and connection to Hawaiʻi. Students learn to manage emotions, build healthy relationships, set goals, show empathy, and make responsible decisions.”
Reference the HIDOE Commitment
“Our Department has committed that social-emotional learning is a purposeful and integrated part of every student's experience. Our program delivers on that commitment through structured weekly lessons that develop the skills students need to thrive.”
Be Concrete
“Students learn to identify and manage their emotions, resolve disagreements peacefully, set and pursue goals, show empathy and kindness, persevere through challenges, and make responsible decisions. These are the skills that HĀ describes and that our surveys measure.”
Choosing a Curriculum for Hawaiʻi Schools
When selecting social-emotional curriculum for your Hawaiʻi elementary school, verify that the program:
Complements Nā Hopena Aʻo. Your curriculum should teach the social-emotional skills that bring the HĀ outcomes to life. The curriculum provides the explicit skill-building instruction that supports them.
Aligns with the NHES. The health education standards include interpersonal communication, decision-making, goal-setting, and self-management. Your curriculum should address them at every elementary grade level.
Maps to CASEL competencies. A CASEL-aligned curriculum provides the structured five-competency framework that connects to both HĀ and the health education standards.
Supports the Panorama SEL Survey. If your school uses the survey, your curriculum should teach the competencies it measures: belonging, growth mindset, self-efficacy, self-management, social awareness, and relationships.
Functions as an HMTSS Tier 1 component. Your curriculum serves as universal social-emotional instruction within the tiered framework.
Provides grade-band differentiation. Programs that provide distinct content for each grade level match the developmental progression students need.
Offers a full-year scope and sequence. A program providing 40 weeks of sequenced instruction ensures consistent coverage across all competencies.
Supports bilingual learners. Hawaiʻi serves a highly diverse and multilingual student population. Bilingual curriculum in English and Spanish supports equitable access for multilingual families.
Requires no devices or student accounts. Device-free, teacher-led programs eliminate data privacy concerns and preserve the shared classroom experience.
Requires minimal prep. Programs that provide ready-to-use weekly lessons are more likely to be implemented consistently.
What to Avoid
Treating HĀ and SEL as separate initiatives
HĀ provides the cultural values. SEL provides the skill-building methodology. They are not competing frameworks. The strongest approach integrates both.
Surveying without teaching
A school that administers the Panorama survey without providing structured instruction to build the competencies being measured is documenting a problem without addressing it.
Treating the 45-minute weekly health block as purely physical health
At least four of the eight NHES standards are directly social-emotional. Schools using the allocation exclusively for nutrition and safety are delivering an incomplete health education program.
Assuming statewide commitment means automatic school-level implementation
HIDOE's commitment creates the framework. Whether it translates into structured weekly instruction depends on what each school actually does in its classrooms.
Final Thoughts
Hawaiʻi has built a distinctive approach to social-emotional learning. Nā Hopena Aʻo provides a culturally grounded framework rooted in Hawaiian values that no other state can replicate. Board of Education policy makes it department-wide. The NHES provide health education standards with social-emotional content at every grade level. Panorama surveys measure SEL competencies up to three times per year. HMTSS integrates social-emotional support into the tiered framework. And the single statewide district means these commitments apply uniformly to every public school.
HIDOE has stated it directly: all learning is social and emotional, and SEL is a purposeful and integrated part of the student experience.
For Hawaiʻi elementary schools, the path forward is practical: choose a program that complements HĀ, addresses the health education standards, supports the Panorama survey data, and delivers structured social-emotional instruction to every student, every week, all year. HĀ provides the breath. The curriculum provides the voice. Start there.
References
- Hawaiʻi State Department of Education. Nā Hopena Aʻo (HĀ). Board of Education Policy E-3. hawaiipublicschools.org
- Hawaiʻi State Department of Education. Social-Emotional Learning. hawaiipublicschools.org
- Hawaiʻi State Department of Education. Learning Design: Health Education Standards. learningdesign.hawaiipublicschools.org
- Hawaiʻi State Department of Education. Health Education. hawaiipublicschools.org
- Panorama Education and HIDOE. Student SEL Survey Overview. sites.google.com/panoramaed.com
- Hawaiʻi Board of Education. Student Voice Data: Educator Effectiveness and SEL Surveys. boe.hawaii.gov (PDF)
- Hawaiʻi Education Research Network. Understanding the Impact of SEL in Title I Schools. coe.hawaii.edu
- Hawaiʻi State Department of Education. Anti-Bullying. hawaiipublicschools.org
- Hawaiʻi State Department of Education. School Social and Emotional Learning Guide. hawaiipublicschools.org (PDF)
- Durlak, J. A., et al. (2011). The impact of enhancing students' social and emotional learning: A meta-analysis. Child Development, 82(1), 405-432. doi.org
- Cipriano, C., et al. (2023). The state of evidence for social and emotional learning. Child Development, 94(5), 1181-1204. doi.org
Social-Emotional Learning for Hawaiʻi Schools
Be The Buffalo provides the structured skill-building instruction that brings Nā Hopena Aʻo to life in the classroom. 40 weeks of K-5 curriculum covering self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. Interactive projector activities, original songs, stories, printable worksheets, and teacher guides. Bilingual English and Spanish. No student accounts. No devices. No prep.
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