Inclusive Learning

“Every child is unique and valued at TCS”

TCS students are encouraged to be true to themselves, to be proud of who they are, of their cultural background and feel a valued member of our school community. TCS students are not afraid to ‘have a go’ and willingly participate and contribute wherever possible. Their openness to take on new challenges and growth mindset for learning, makes TCS a very special place to come to each day.

Tahatai is an inclusive school. This means we celebrate differences and diversity within our school community. We believe students with special learning needs bring a valuable, added dimension to our school community and encourage tolerance and empathy in students.


Learning Support

The school provides support and assistance for children with both remedial and extension needs. Trained teachers work with individuals or small groups. The school supports this through the provision of spaces such as:

  • The Reading Recovery Room
  • Break out learning spaces for small groups - located throughout the school.
  • Special needs facility (known as the Koru space) is equipped with three separate learning spaces, comprehensive storage, laundry, toilet and shower room.


Our students with special learning needs enjoy a nurturing and stimulating environment provided by skilled, in-house teachers and learning support assistants, in collaboration with outside experts.We have access to experienced outside agencies, including Itinerant specialist teachers for ORRS/ Visually Impaired students.
We provide opportunities for our students with special learning needs to participate in a variety of activities, both within and outside of the school environment. Swimming, cooking, music classes, Riding for the Disabled, front row seats for visiting performances at school, and community visits, including shopping, library and visits to the beach.

In addition to individualised education programmes, we aim to fully integrate every student into our mainstream classroom programmes.


In principle, several factors can determine the success of inclusive classrooms:

  • Family-school partnerships
  • Collaboration between general and special educators
  • Well-constructed plans that identify specific accommodations, modifications, and goals for each student
  • Coordinated planning and communication between ‘general’ and ‘special needs’ staff.
  • Integrated service delivery and ongoing training and staff development.