Year 6 2023

Welcome back students and families,

We hope you all had a relaxing holiday and managed to escape out of Auckland and soak up some sun.

We are excited to see all your faces again, learn new things—and of course, have some fun!

A special welcome to our new students we hope you enjoy your time at Sherwood:

Ané Du Bois               Logan Badenhorst

Divij Mahna                Penelope Coghlan

Claire Chi                  Kaiah Nielsen

Kivesh Singh            Seoyoon Kim

Jason Zhang            Angela Meng

Vince Schilling Pitanga

Children succeed best when there is a positive and supportive relationship established between the teacher, child, and home. If you have concerns about your child during the year, please use Seesaw to message their home teacher. Parents should initially speak to home teachers but if additional assistance is required then please contact the Y6 Team Leader who is Mrs Dunning.

Meet the team…

Ginny Dunning-Rata D (Team Leader)

I have now been teaching at Sherwood for 9 years and I love it. I started off in Year 2 but have now been teaching in the senior part for six years.

Both my children, Noah Year 6 and Thea Year 2, attend Sherwood and they keep me and my husband Scott busy on the weekend. We have a cute Burmese cat called Inca who thinks she is a dog!

I have lived in the UK and America but call NZ home. I love travelling, experiencing different cultures, cuisines, and landscapes.

In the summer the beaches up north are where you will find me, paddle boarding, snorkelling, and riding the waves. In winter I love to go skiing! Wanaka is the place to go.

Pete Anderson-Rata A

Welcome back to 2023 at Sherwood Primary. Originally from Christchurch, I’ve lived on the North Shore for about fifteen years now. We have a 13-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son and an awesome dog, Frankie. My family and I have had a great break camping with family and friends up north. We’ve managed to tick some jobs off our list about the house, spend a bit of time at the beach, and on some family adventures—it’s been a great balance. I’m ready to get stuck in this year and look forward to hearing about the adventures and enjoyable times the kids have had these past six weeks.

Kelly Hildebrand-Rata H

I have been teaching in the senior school at Sherwood since 2015 and I love this year level. I have a passion for maths and working with children with unique learning needs. I am also one of the most competitive teachers in the annual students vs teachers netball match! My number one job in life is being a Mum. My daughter Kacey is in Year 8 and my son Nathan will be 2 in May. My family loves to travel and you will find us gallivanting off somewhere in the world most holidays. I am an armchair sports expert and love watching the Black Caps, any Grand Slam Tennis, and just about anything else!

In addition to being a classroom teacher in Year 6, I am also the I.T Lead for Sherwood which involves managing our online learning programmes, communication tools (such as Seesaw) as well as every other little I.T matter that may pop up!

Jae Lim-Rata L

Starting in Week 2.

Talitha Hesling-Learning Assistant

My name is Talitha and I’m the year 6 Rata Learning Assistant this year. Originally from the UK I have lived in New Zealand for 15 years and enjoy calling this beautiful country home. My children have attended/attend Sherwood and I have been working as a learning assistant here for five years. Most of the children will be very familiar with me as this will be my third year supporting their year group. In my spare time, I’m actively involved with the school parents association; I enjoy cooking, baking, sport, and travel. There are some exciting opportunities planned for Year 6. I’m looking forward to being part of the journey and seeing the children become prepared for their intermediate chapter.