Team Leader, Year 0–3 (Raparapa)

Wairakei School; Waikato; On-site; NZD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Wairakei Primary School seeks a capable leader to head Raparapa, the Year 0-3 team, shaping early-years teaching with explicit instruction, purposeful play, and strong oral language development.

You will drive assessment for learning, turn data into next steps, and model manaakitanga and high behavioural standards in everyday practice. A Tūturu FTP and prior leadership experience are essential.

Qualifications

• Lead and develop the Year 0-3 teaching team with explicit teaching and purposeful play.
• Strong assessment for learning and data-informed next steps for learners.
• Experience applying te reo Māori and tikanga Māori in everyday classroom practice.
• Manaakitanga and effective behaviour management as core leadership traits.

Responsibilities

• Lead Raparapa, the Year 0-3 teaching team, and translate school priorities into classroom practice.
• Manage your team's budget and make timely decisions without constant approvals.
• Collaborate with the leadership team to drive school-wide priorities and improvements.
• Report to the Deputy Principal and contribute to the Primary Teachers' Collective Agreement processes.

Skills

Team leadership

Budget management

Assessment for learning

Data-driven decisions

Te reo Māori in practice

Behaviour management

Education

Tūturu (Full Practising Certificate)

Tools

BSLA structured literacy

Oxford Maths

Maths No Problem

Job description

Primary and intermediate (Years 1-8) / kura tuatahi, Certificated teacher
English, Health and physical education, Learning languages, Mathematics and statistics, Science, Social sciences, Technology, Te reo Māori, The arts

If your next step is AP or DP, this is the role that gets you there - with a team worth leading on the way.

You will lead Raparapa, the Year 0-3 team, where everything starts. Wairakei Primary School wants a leader who knows what strong early-years teaching looks like and can get a team humming around it: explicit teaching, purposeful play, oral language, and assessment that changes what happens on Monday morning.

There is room to move. You will manage your team's budget, decide without seeking approval for each call, back your own opinion, and turn school-wide priorities into something workable in a classroom. Recent leadership PLD gets used, not filed away.

You will be the first face many whānau meet, and often the reason families stay. Warm welcomes and hard conversations both land with you - manaakitanga and accountability in the same person.

The POWER values - Pride, Opportunity, Whānau, Excellence, Respect - are how the mahi gets done, not a poster in the foyer.

You will bring a Tūturu (Full Practising Certificate), experience leading a team, strength in assessment for learning and turning data into next steps with others, te reo me ngā tikanga Māori in everyday practice, and settled behaviour management. BSLA structured literacy, Oxford Maths or Maths No Problem also valued.

Two permanent management units and one fixed-term unit. Reports to the Deputy Principal. Primary Teachers' Collective Agreement 2026-2028.