I Mea Aha Ke Kai? – What is the Kai For? (Hawaiian Version)

This story reminds us of the importance of water as a building block for life on Earth. By following the food chain from the ocean to the land, we see the roles and connections of living things. Woven into the food chain, we can also see the water cycle, where plants make the air, which in turn, changes into the clouds that give us rain to fill the ocean.

This book is available both in bilingual and all-Hawaiian language versions.

Lilinoe Andrews is the author of several Hawaiian-language children’s titles developed for use in Punana Leo preschools and Hawaiian language immersion education. Her works include Na Keiki Elima – The Five Keiki and Kelekolio, the Little Manini, all of which are produced in collaboration with ‘Aha Punana Leo and Kamehameha Publishing.

Brook Kapukuniahi Parker was raised in Kahalu‘u, O‘ahu. He has illustrated numerous books and has worked with the University of Hawai‘i, the Hawai‘i Board of Education, and the Pacific American Foundation. 

The ‘Aha Punana Leo, Inc. was established in 1983 to revitalize the Hawaiian language, primarily through schools taught entirely in Hawaiian. In 1896, a law was passed banning the use of Hawaiian as a medium of education in Hawai‘i’s classrooms. After 90 years, this law was reversed in 1986. The ‘Aha Punana Leo has grown to include eleven preschools, three K-12 sites, a scholarship program and other educational programs that promote the growth of Hawaiian as a daily language. For more information, visit www.ahapunanaleo.org.