Kia ora my name is Raechel Thompson. I am married to Kerry and we have two grown children, Max and Molly – they are our greatest Taonga and we are truly blessed to be their parents.
I am the second eldest of 5 children, 4 girls and then last, but not least our baby brother. My parents raised us in many rural settings in Aotearoa as my Dad was a fencer and farmer. Right from an early age, my Dad had me out in the bush hunting, fishing, and exploring. Our large whanau had many wonderful experiences gathering kai from the bush, rivers, and sea and growing produce, cooking, preserving, and creating. These rich experiences have shaped me in so many ways, especially the nurturing, caring, and upbringing from my immediate whanau as well as our large extended family of grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. I am not surprised that this led me to my love and passion of early childhood education.
Raechel Thompson
I have had the privilege of working and teaching in varied roles during my career in ECE – Nannying, Playcentre, Education Support for MOE, teaching in ECE settings, and most recently leading/managing an early learning centre. I have been very fortunate in my career to have several mentors who have deeply influenced my practice around shared leadership, play-based and children’s agency over their learning.
My journey with tamariki is morphing once again as I complete my internships for Child Centred Play therapy.
If you would like to know more about play therapy and how I could support the mokopuna in your settings please contact me on - krthompson@xtra.co.nz
Ehara taku toa,i te toa takitahi,engari he toa takitini.
My success should not be bestowed onto me alone, as it was not individual success, but success of a collective. Cooperation of many can bring best results.