The simulation using the Hawaiian compass was quite an experience. I never really thought about how people used to navigate, I'm used to just hooking up the GPS or getting a ride from someone who knows where their going. The fact that the Polynesians had all the stars memorized is amazing. I thought it was hard to memorize the one compass, but at the end of the simulation Kumu told us there was actually 4 compasses, one for each season!!!
The hardest challenge my group faced was memorizing the stars. We only knew half of them which made it very hard to locate the different islands. I don't know how the ancient Polynesians did it. Even if we knew the names of the stars, i don't think it would be much help if we were actually out on a canoe because it'd be hard to pick out the one star, out of the other million in the sky, that would lead us in the right direction. Other factors that would probably throw us off course would be storms or cloudy skies. Then we'd be in trouble!
The activity definitely helped me understand the Polynesians more. Their way of using and understanding nature is amazing. It's unbelievable how they discovered and settled all the different islands. They truly are masters of the sea!
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