An Easter Island and South Pacific global studies unit for homeschool, worldschool or just for fun.
Nothing fascinates like the Moai Statues. The first time we studied this, we only focused on Easter Island but the second time I brought in more from the entire region.
Printables
All of this week's information in an easy-to-read printable.
On the Dining Room Wall
This map of Polynesia and this map of Easter Island that charts the locations of Moai statues.
This diagram that shows the scale of the statues in comparison to humans.
A few prints of Paul Gaugin art from an old calendar of ours. If you want a copy here's one of the images from Wikipedia.
The tear out portion of the Who HQ book (we own it)
What We're Listening to This Week
Music from Polynesia, including a Hawaiian music station from Pandora.
Books
One from each category plus an assortment of picture books is usually just perfect.
Not all book series are as good as the next. Get the scoop on some of our favorites here.
Base Non-Fiction Books
Read every word or simply flip through and reach what catches your eye.
Where is Easter Island? (Who HQ Book) One of our favorite from the series! There are so many interesting facts about Easter Island and this book goes through them in a very engaging way.
Base Fiction Chapter Book
(Some of these books are part of a series but all of them work as standalone books.)
Younger Learners:
The Treasure of Easter Island (Geronimo Stilton Book #60) The madcap pace and format of Geronimo Stilton books is not my favorite but if your kids like the books, it's a relevant little adventure.
Older Learners:
Call it Courage I really wished we would have read this one instead of the Geronimo Stilton book but we simply didn't get to it.
Other Notable Books
Have more time? Try these too.
From the Mouth of the Monster Eel & Pacific Island Legends These are both story collections that unfortunately weren't available through our library. So if you find them, let me know how they are.
Picture Books
Search these keywords at your local library: Easter Island, Moai, Polynesia.
The Impossible Voyage of Kon-Tiki This 1940s sea expedition was mentioned in our Who HQ book and it was good to have a little background.
On a School Day in the Marshall Islands This was such a cool book that only took a few minutes to flip through. I found it in the World Languages section of our library and it's written and illustrated by 5th and 6th grade students from the Marshall Islands.
Let's Visit Easter Island! (Bella & Harry Book) We always love Bella & Harry and their incredibly accurate illustrations but unfortunately this one wasn't available through our library. If you found it, let me know what you think!
Things to Watch
Wayfinders: A Pacific Odyssey We turned this on one evening and the kids were in and out of the den watching it.
In the News
Arts & Culture
Oceanic Art We perused this book had conversations about native art and how it is frequently overlooked when art history is presented from a Euro-centric view.
Paul Gauguin Ugh. Exactly like this. I understand that it's problematic to focus too much on a European artists who moved to French Polynesia instead of actual Polynesian artists, but I still felt like he was important to mention. It was a good opportunity to explain my internal conflict about this with the kids. We picked up this Paul Gauguin book from the Getting to Know the World's Artists series.
While You Read Activity Ideas
Build Moai statue replicas with Legos, playdough, sand, mud, you name it.
Color some pictures from Easter Island!
Interactive Learning: Crafts, Food, Activities
This Interactive tour of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park These tours, put out by the National Parks Service are really fascinating and give you a chance to feel like you're really there!
Field Trip Ideas & Activities
Go eat Polynesian food. Hawaiian is definitely the most common option near us and we love it!
Check to see if any local art museums have any Polynesian art on display.
Do a little stargazing. Imagine guiding a boat based on what you see. Find the North star if you live where you can see it!
Trivia
Q: How did the Moai statues move around the island? A: They really did walk!
Q: What is the one star that never moves in the night sky? A: The North Star.
Charitable Giving Suggestions*
*I have not done research on any charity listed on this blog. I personally liked the idea of teaching our kids to be charitable and thought it might be helpful to list a few ideas here as well. Please do your own due diligence it you have high expectations of charities.
End of Week Movie Night Ideas
Moana (PG, 2016) Who doesn't love this movie? A brave, young girl sets out on an epic quest to save her people? It's great! Also, it's nice to have a Disney movie that doesn't contain a romantic aspect.
Lilo & Stitch (PG, 2002) I had never seen this movie and was pleasantly surprised. Lilo and her sister have been through a lot and concepts the importance of family, friendship and love are strong, especially when faced with tough times.
Segue Ideas... Amelia Earhart, Exploration, Australia
Wrap Up
Even though Easter Island was our main focus, I'm really glad we added in other parts of the region this week as well. It was fun to see how various places are connected through culture even if they aren't connected by land and it certainly made watching Moana and eating Hawaiian food feel like less of a stretch. All of this material would work great for a Easter Island and the South Pacific homeschool unit or, in our case, just some fun, extra learning. My pancakes this week weren't my best. After one attempt, I quickly abandoned my idea of pancake Moai and instead went for blue ocean with green islands. Not my best work but they still tasted great!
Final Moment
We haven't taken the kids to this part of the world yet but I got to visit Hawaii once in college and apparently only took five pictures. Here's one of them!
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