At Tamariki School I could do whatever I wanted.

Of course I had to obey school rules, but I could do anything else.  This meant playing with my friends or reading books most of the time, though when I wanted to learn a teacher was there, always willing to teach. 

Prospective parents are often worried by this lack of academic rigour at Tamariki.  They believe if their daughter is not absorbing the rules of sums, fractions, multiplication, and grammar she will fall behind and be overwhelmed by high school.  This is false.

When I started high school I was equal to everyone else.  Indeed, I wanted o learn; I had not been forced to learn since I was 5 years old, so I learnt faster than my peers.  I enjoyed learning so much that I did 3 university papers while in high school, 2 of them when I was 15.

Now I am 18, studying for a BSc in Biochemistry at UC.  Last year I followed my passion in Magic: The Gathering, a card game that I played a lot at Tamariki.  I made 6^th place at a tournament in Auckland, winning me flights to compete against the best in Canada – the above picture shows me, my dad, and the #1 player in the World (the guy with the cap in the background).

What would I be like if I went to another school?  I do not know.  But I would not have had the freedom to play Magic.  I would not have enjoyed learning as much as I do now.  Tamariki School gave me the freedom to be myself, and I am the better for it.                                                                                        

By Dylan April 2016