Moana's favourite way to spend her time is being with her five children and mokopuna. Kai, music and being active are important to her whānau and they can quite often be seen running the sand dune at Back Beach together.
Hongona is important to Moana, connecting with taiao - the natural world, in the garden, beach, or forests. Moana's Kuia taught her, when we look after te taiao it will look after us.
Connecting with tamariki, seeing them and honouring them for who they are and supporting them with who they are growing to be is Moana's passion and is at the heart of her teaching.
Connecting with community, it takes a Pā to raise our tamariki and we need each other to do this successfully!
mtewaaka@puketapu.school.nz
Vicki has a wide range of experiences in teaching and taught for 15 years in an Immersion Maori setting and teaching in Western Australia for 10 years.
Vicki loves spending time with her whanau, tamariki and mokopuna and is looking forward to growing her own vegetables and tending her very large flower garden in her spare time. Te Reo Maori has been a lifetime passion and she loves being able to share her knowledge and reo.
Supporting and guiding tamariki to be the best that they can be and providing a safe environment to work is an important aspect of her classroom. "Ka whangaia, ka tupu, ka puawai." That which is nurtured, blossoms then grows.
vpihama@puketapu.school.nz
A recent arrival to Taranaki, Michelle is an experienced teacher who thrives on working collaboratively. She believes in inclusion in all areas of schooling, ensuring Te Tiriti o Waitangi is reflected in her teaching practice.
Michelle enjoys teaching all aspects of the curriculum, with a special interest in literacy. She encourages students to hold high expectations of themselves in all areas of school life and believes in co-constructing engaging lessons that are relevant, hands on and responsive to the learning needs of each student.
mswan@puketapu.school.nz
We met Milly in 2017 when she completed her student placement in our junior school.
She taught at Woodleigh School for 4 years before taking a year off to have her son, Tatum. Milly has slipped seamlessly back into being a kaiako. She believes that mistakes are learning opportunities and loves making lessons fun for her students. Milly enjoys spending time with her whānau, working out, strengthening her te reo Māori and playing netball.
mtuheke@puketapu.school.nz
Originally from Taupō, Jess is not only a netball player and downhill skier, but also an individual who fully appreciates all that Aotearoa has to offer, bringing an active element to the Puketapu learning environment.
Jess believes it is important to empower tamariki to take control of their learning and be a contributing member of their community.
jmcleod@puketapu.school.nz
A familiar face in Bell Block, Sharron joined our kitchen team at the start of 2022.
Sharron now helps to provide healthy, delicious lunches to all our tamariki every day, and always with a smile.
Karen has been part of our team since 2023, providing classroom release for the senior school.
In 2024, Karen takes on the role of Design & Technology teacher, educating Year 7&8 students in practical and creative skills, guiding students through the process of ideation, prototyping, and creating tangible products while also imparting knowledge about materials, tools, and relevant technologies.
kcopestake@puketapu.school.nz
An ex Puketapu School pupil herself, Cara joined our teaching team in 2019 as a newly qualified teacher, so you could say Cara has Puketapu in her blood.
Cara is passionate about the abilities of all students and especially loves those lightbulb moments when a students gets something for the first time.
Cara is also continuing her own learning journey by learning te reo Māori.
cknuckey@puketapu.school.nz
While on paper Andrea is a beginning teacher (now in her second year), she is not a novice teacher, having been a teacher aide for nine years, relief teacher for two years and successfully raised
three children of her own!
Andrea understands that each child has unique abilities, and is skilled at building meaningful relationships with students.
Andrea has a broad range of interests, has coached primary level netball, soccer and athletics, enjoy drama and is deeply interested in ecology and sustainability. She also has a great sense of humour.
atait@puketapu.school.nz
Part of our team since 2022, Micaela believes passionately that building curiosity and using a strength based approach helps to build a foundation that ākonga can feel safe to explore and take risks.
Having previously worked as an outdoor education instructor, Micaela sees the value in all of us being in nature, using our bodies, collaborating and supporting each other through challenge by choice.
mwestrupp@puketapu.school.nz