"Children coming to school without the basics such as food or shoes is something I've been dealing with for the last 15 years as principal."
Mr Rasmussen said he wasn't surprised more than half the children attending a decile one school were living in overcrowded homes.
"It's what people have to do to make ends meet. Many homes in my area have two or three mums and their children all living under the one roof just so they can afford the rent."
He said he was grateful for the external help Sunset Primary School got but he was still "getting into school at 6.30am every morning to make sure everything gets done".
Last year Mr Rasmussen talked about building a respite house on school grounds for children to use when their home life became "a little chaotic".
However he said his stretched schedule has meant plans for the house have gone on the back burner.
"I've had to put plans for the respite house on hold because as much as I think the community would benefit from it, I am already stretched as far as I can be."
Western Heights Primary School dropped to a decile one in last year's review and principal Brent Griffin said it did appear more families were struggling.
"We are in a low socio-economic area so we've always seen poverty but I do think times are getting harder for many of our families. It's not that families aren't doing everything they can to provide for their children, it's just sometimes they can't make ends meet."
Mr Griffin said poverty was a hard hurdle to overcome for young learners.
"Parents who don't have suitable food for their child's lunch have been known to keep them at home so poverty does create a real barrier between children and their education."
Ministry of Education head of evidence, data and knowledge Lisa Rodgers said the Government was determined to raise achievement for all students, regardless of socio-economic background.