Sometimes the child living in hardship is hard to spot. At our school there is such a mix of wealth. I've heard one boy talking about how he's moving into a big new house with a room just for gaming. Then you'll have a kid sitting next to them just struggling to get by, with several families crammed into his three-bedroom home.
But that student won't say anything. He'll be working hard to hide the fact he doesn't have much. Teenagers have a desperate need to fit in, and to not stand out. He'll fill his lunch hour with different activities, playing sport to mask the fact he doesn't have anything to eat.
I know because that was my own childhood. My father was a well-educated professional, but he lost his accounts job when I was 14. Suddenly, there was no money coming in for half a year.
The only real staple that we had in the house was a box of Weetbix - that was breakfast and lunch. I remember an overwhelming feeling of shame. I used to sign out of school at lunchtime so I didn't have to see other kids eat or have to eat my dry Weetbix in front of them.
I didn't tell anyone. I was reasonably academic, but hunger became all consuming. I couldn't focus and got stuck in a malaise of just trying to get through, and not really doing anything to any high level.
Covid has thrust some of our students into the same hardship. We've had families who were small business owners and quite well off who in a really short space of time have hit rock bottom. Our students have displayed such resilience. A lot had to go out and work to support their families, and it's been a struggle to get them back to school.
How do we cope with that? First, we want every student to have a significant adult in the school they feel comfortable sharing these issues with. Then it's about kai. We applied for KidsCan support so we could start a Breakfast and a Lunch Club.
Our teachers have no spare time but when I asked, "Who wants to start an hour earlier at 7.30am and help with breakfast?" 28 teachers put their hands up. Now the students run things. They feed as many as 200 students a day with hot meals and it's a pretty awesome thing to see.
We also try to equal the playing field in terms of uniforms. Finally, with KidsCan support we can offer new shoes. We're replacing flimsy jandals and sandals with warm winter shoes, and that's had a really big impact because now those students feel like they have got the same uniform as the student next to them. It's been a huge thing.
I used to work at a decile one school and almost every student lived in hardship, so they were all fighting the same battle. It wasn't hidden. In some ways, low decile schools are these islands where we protect kids from the realities of society and try and get to a point where we can send them out there.
But here at Pukekohe, our students face the real world, with all its inequality, already. I feel for the kids having that inequity is in their face every day. You're really exposing them to the harshness of the world at quite a vulnerable age, and it can really put them on a back foot because they know there's something different about their experience.
That's why I was so passionate about KidsCan coming to Pukekohe. My motivation is finding those kids in need so we can bridge some of that gap and support them. I think people are sick of fighting about the causes or the issues. They just want to deal with the problem.
We want our kids fed, we want them learning, we want them to have full tummies, and we want them to have the same opportunities as everyone else. It's making sure that they can experience success, like any other child, no matter what.
You can ensure Kiwi kids in need are fed, warm and dry for just $30 a month. Support a child today at KidsCan.org.nz