Sharnae Howell

Ko Maungatautari te maunga

Ko Waikato te awa

Ko Arabian te waka

Ko Naati Paakehaa te iwi

Noo Waihi ahau

Kei Te Oko Horoi e noho ana au

Ko Howell tooku whaanau

Ko Dave tooku hoa taane

Ko Beverly raatou ko Bonnie ko Blayre ooku tamahine e rua

Ko Sharnae tooku ingoa

Kia ora ki te whaanau me ngaa tamariki o te Cambridge Montessori Preschool!

Hello! My name is Sharnae, but usually I go by ‘Sharn’.

I spent my first 18months of life here in Cambridge and the rest of my childhood on a lifestyle block in rural Waihi. I moved back to Cambridge nearly 20 years ago when I was 18, and have been here ever since. I love animals, exploring nature, and have recently discovered that I quite enjoy gardening. I also love learning new crafts, and I make and sell crystal macramé jewellery in my free time.

I have three amazing daughters, Beverly (12), Bonnie (9) and Blayre (4). They go to different local schools, but each has had the benefit of a foundational Montessori education, here at CMPS (Blayre is still here with me in the Rata room). My girls keep me very busy, as a family we like to go to markets, do bush walks, visit friends, have movie nights/sleepovers, go to the library, and enjoy doing cooking/baking together.

I had a variety of jobs in my younger days, including working in retail and hospitality, while I also studied psychology. My interest in early childhood education was sparked when I had my own children. I had never considered making it a career until I bought my then two-year-old daughter for a visit at Cambridge Montessori Preschool. I was so inspired seeing the Montessori philosophy in action and how confident, capable and independent the children were. After that, I not only enrolled Beverly at the centre, but also went on to gain a Bachelor of Education, and a post-graduate diploma in Teaching. Ten years later, I have now come full-cirlcle and will be teaching here, as a provisionally registered kaiako, in the Rata classroom on Monday’s and Tuesdays. The rest of the week I will be going between the roles of outside teacher, education support worker (ESW), and working with Veronica in the Rata Classroom.

I look forward to getting to know you and your children, and appreciate your trust in us as teachers to support your amazing tamariki in reaching their full potential throughout their time at Cambridge Montessori Preschool.

“Perhaps a great future leader or a great genius is with us and his power will come from the power of the child he is today. This is the vision that we must have” – Maria Montessori