Logan Garcia has a look of intense concentration and elation as he spins a Samoan fireknife — especially when both ends are set ablaze.

"I just like spinning, especially with fire because it’s more dangerous," said the 12-year-old Kalihi boy, who plays football and other sports. "It takes hand-to-hand coordination and discipline."

At home, he practices in the backyard four to five times a week.

Putting fire and sharp objects in the hands of children generally is not a wise thing to do, but at Palama Settlement, youth specialist Larry Sweets says his fireknife dancing program has provided youngsters from low-income and immigrant families with a new focus and is keeping them out of trouble.

Garcia and about a dozen boys and girls ages 9 to 14 participate in Sweets’ weekly classes at the recreation center run by Palama Settlement, a nonprofit social-service agency serving the Kalihi and Palama neighborhoods.

Modern fireknife dancing has its roots in the Samoan warrior’s knife dance, or ailao, done to intimidate the enemy and psyche up the warrior. The fireknife, or nifo‘oti (deadly tooth), was displayed before battle and used to celebrate victory afterward.

Today, the traditional dance has evolved into a form of entertainment and is a common spectacle at luau stage shows. There’s even a world championship of fireknife dancing, held in May at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie.

Many of the kids at Palama come from Mayor Wright Homes, Kuhio Park Terrace and Kalihi Valley Homes, and Sweets says his class helps defuse potential rivalries among residents of the public housing complexes.

"This brings the kids together," he said. "It’s knocked down cultural boundaries because they work together and they perform together."

Many of the kids at Palama are Micronesian who weren’t raised on mainstream sports such as football or basketball, so fireknife dance has been a way to ignite their interest in a physical activity. For those who are Samoan, it’s a celebration of their culture, and for those who are not, it’s an opportunity to learn about another culture.

"It’s a flashy, exciting sport," Sweets said. "They can show off, it’s masculine and they just enjoy the movements.

"It teaches them discipline and focus. It teaches them to confront their fears."

For twin 9-year-old brothers Saualugogo and Silepahoturi Sataraka, it is a way to reconnect with their Samoan roots and their late uncle, who was a fireknife dancer. They play football and volleyball but are always spinning their dance sticks at home.

Sweets became a student of fireknife dancing three years ago after watching a young neighbor, Elijah Filifili, practice at the recreation center. "I enjoyed doing it," he said. "It was good exercise. … There’s a sound that’s mesmerizing when you’re spinning with fire."

Students at Palama Settlement saw Sweets practicing and expressed interest in learning, too, so he sought out instructors to see if he could start up a class. He found kumu hula Gloria Snyder of Hui O Kamalei, who offered to let him and a few students attend class for free on Saturday mornings.

Fireknife dance instills discipline but is also a form of expression, according to Snyder, who has been teaching for more than 30 years and counts Cirque du Soleil performer Micah Naruo among her students.

Learning the basics means mastering the vili, or spin. There are also figure-eight moves, a rolling behind-the-neck move, weaving the stick through the legs and a behind-the-back catch.

"Besides practicing, you have to overcome the fear of fire," she said.

During his class, Sweets encourages students to develop their own style. When they drop the stick, he tells them to just pick it up and keep on going. He reminds them that control comes first, then speed, which comes with practice.

Sweets plans to continue offering the class at Palama as long as there is interest. With a limited budget, he improvised practice sticks out of broomsticks with ends wrapped with tape. When students are ready, they graduate to a real nifo‘oti, which is heavier and has a metal blade on one end.

Only students who have proved their proficiency — and turned in a permission slip signed by their parents — may move on to dancing with fire. So far that’s only four or five of the youths. Cuts, burns and other injuries can happen and are one of the risks of fireknife dancing.

Kap Te‘o Tafiti, a Samoan fireknife dancer and host of the Island Luau at the Polynesian Cultural Center, visits the class from time to time to offer instruction and inspiration. The students received funding to watch last month’s Samoan Fireknife World Competition at the center.

Sweets hopes to find opportunities for the youngsters to perform here and outside of Hawaii. Seniors at the Palama Settlement center have already agreed to help sew costumes.

"When these kids have an opportunity to travel, it broadens their horizons and opens their minds."

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For more information on Palama Settlement recreation programs, call 848-2522 or visit www.palamasettlement.org.