Our Teachers
Our Montessori unit has two teachers - Ms Dawn Young and Ms Pam Bellard. Our teachers have a true passion for Montessori teaching and are an exceptional team. They attend regular Montessori training and development courses and seminars, as well as all the required State school training programmes. The Trust is very supportive of the teachers undertaking further professional development.
Ms Dawn Young
Dawn currently teaches all students (Years 1 to 6) in the classroom for four full days. She previously worked in the unit for several years as an assistant whilst she completed her Bachelor of Education degree at AUT with a Montessori specialty.
Dawn has also worked in the 9-12 classroom at Eastern Suburbs Montessori. She has experience working with children who have special needs and has attended numerous workshops and conferences in the fields of parenting, special education and Montessori education.
Back in her home country of Zimbabwe, Dawn became passionate about Montessori education when her two older children were babies. What appeals to her about Montessori philosophy is that each child is respected as an individual and allowed to develop at his/her own pace. Each child’s strengths and interests are celebrated as they develop their own unique personality.
“Every day I learn something new from children and this enriches my life and makes me a better person.”
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Ms Pam Bellard
Pam did her initial teacher training at Christian Teachers’ College in Auckland for a Diploma of Teaching and conducted her special studies into Home Schooling. She is passionate about families and school working together with the child. What she really likes about the Montessori class at Howick is the focus on being a learning community where we help one another and see learning from a holistic perspective. It is more about working as a group to support each individual, no matter the age or stage.
Pam continued her studies in Australia, gaining a Bachelor of Education. Recently she has enjoyed learning from Dawn about the way that Montessori cherishes each child to make their learning journey so individual.
As well as being a Mum to three teenagers - Pam teaches in other classes at Howick Primary most days, and is in the Montessori class every Friday. She juggles their busy schedule of morning lessons with the external activities that Fridays bring. She fits in an art activity with them whenever she can and wants to help them to enjoy being an artist and to be proud of what they can make.
