"In a larger school, the child who is struggling will get help and the child who is achieving well will get targeted for extension work, but the child who sits in the middle sometimes gets missed. They just cruise through school without ever really standing out or being given that individual attention that every child needs."
Ratapiko School wasn't always so small.
"When my mother was a pupil here, there would have been about 70 children attending," says Lisa, who says it's "pretty special" being the teaching principal at the school her mother attended decades ago.
We have generations of the same family who have attended Ratapiko.
"That's the thing with rural schools. Some families come and go, but many stay the same. We have generations of the same family who have attended Ratapiko, which gives the pupils a real sense of belonging."
Lisa says the youngsters still come across a range of people while at the school.
"It's not as though I am the only adult, as teaching principal. "Yes they are all in the classroom with me generally, but they also spend time with another teacher when I am on principal release. We have a teacher aid and someone in the office as well, the cleaner and of course, all the school parents who come in and help out as needed."
One of the newer families to join the school community is the Collins family. Mum Rebecca says she sees real advantages in the system for her son Blayke (7) and daughter Savannah (5).
"It's obviously a better ratio than you would find in most town schools, but the biggest advantage I see is in how every child knows everyone else in their school community. It's incredibly welcoming when you are new to the area, as we were, and your children gain confidence very quickly, as everyone around them knows their name and is a friend."
Savannah will start at Ratapiko this week, but already has plenty of friends and is confident running around the playground, talking to the others and exploring the school.
"She comes here to pick up her brother with me, and with so few pupils, it didn't take her long to know them all. Starting school won't be a scary experience for her at all."
Savannah and Blayke's older sister Trinity attends a school in New Plymouth, but knows her way around Ratapiko School as well.
"It's home to her as well. Just like Savannah she knows everyone here by name."
The feeling of extended family is further helped by plenty of whole school events, says Lisa.
"We have a school picnic planned for the first term, and there is always something happening which everyone can get involved in."
The school also teams up with other small sole charge rural schools for various activities and learning opportunities.
"They can compete against a larger group for sports and things, and those are also strong friendships which build up over the years. When the children leave for high school, they know plenty of the children from other schools, plus older children who went to Ratapiko know them and look out for them as well. It is just like having lots of older siblings around all the time."
