Kia ora Parents,
As New Zealand’s #1 Kids Coach, we’re always evolving to give your child the strongest foundation in communication, confidence, and leadership.
A Quick Look Back — 2025 Highlights
- We’ve had a big year. Here are the moments we’re celebrating:
- Speech New Zealand National Scholarship winner
- Outstanding first place results at South Auckland & Rotorua Competitions
- Three students completed their Speech NZ Diplomas
- Public Class 45-minute non-exam lessons trialled with excellent engagement
- Debate Team achieved international success
- Debate checklist system successfully trialled (badges coming in 2026)
- 200+ students gained excellent exam results from Year 2–13
- Ten Feet Tall App launched to make booking classes easier for parents
- Holiday Programmes strengthened, including our new senior programme Voices in Action
- Full TFT Curriculum updated and finalised
Excellence Awards
Congratulations to our Ten Feet Tall 2025 Excellence Award Winners:
Senior Public Speaking: Austin Zhang
Senior Speech & Drama: Dora Zhou
Junior Speech & Drama: Lola Matuschka
We’re incredibly proud of each of you. Our award acknowledges the excellence they have achieved over the year and their commitment to their personal growth.
2026 Improvements — What’s Changing and Why
These updates give your child more confidence and more chances to grow. We’re improving your experience, strengthening our coaching, and creating clearer pathways for essential life skills.
Assessment Classes
- Exam classes remain small — 4 students max. Year 3 exam classes are now reduced from 6 to 4 students.
- One simple group assessment fee. Grades 5–8 Assessment group classes now cost less than before.
- Public Speaking – Year 5 classes will be discontinued. These skills already sit within our Speech & Drama syllabus and we feel students need longer to develop important foundation skills in our Speech and Drama programme prior to joining our Public Speaking Classes – creating a stronger, more cohesive programme.
- More Trinity College London exam options: We are excited to introduce more opportunities for our students to sit exams with an international exam board.
- Private exam classes are now available at in-school locations or online.
- We are no longer offering make-up classes for Private Classes – all students can book a group make-up.
Non-Assessment Classes
- Classes will be grouped as follows next term: Year 1–2, Year 3-4 and Year 5-6
- We have increased Year 3-6 classes to 45-minutes in duration.
- Classes for Years 7-8 ,9-10 and 11-13 will be extended to to 60 minutes next term.
- We will have some Year 6 Public Speaking classes and some Year 6-8 Public Speaking classes. Please note: Year 6 students will be assessed and if their writing or speaking skills need more support they may be asked to attend our Speech and Drama classes.
In-school classes
- Classes will remain 30 minutes. However we are pleased to advise that fees will be reduced to bring fees more aligned to our Public classes fees.
- We will continue to offer private classes face to face at In-School locations.
Debate Programme
- We will no longer debate classes at the Year 5-6 level for new students. Existing Year 5 Debate students however may continue in our Year 7–8 Debate classes next term.
- We have streamlined the levels of our debate classes to just two levels – Foundation and Advanced (by invitation). We will no longer offer an Emerging Debate level. All existing Emerging Debate level students will now be Foundation Debate level students.
- Students will be working towards badges over the year with a new checklist system.
Payments
- A credit card must be saved in the Parent Portal at registration.
- We will no longer offer bank transfer payments via the Parent Portal
- Families can transfer fees directly to Ten Feet Tall each term: Ten Feet Tall Ltd, 02-0108-0611719-000 (please save our account details and remember to add your child’s name as payment reference).
- If you wish to opt-out of the direct debit payment please email: accounts@tenfeettall.co.nz – you only need to do this once.
- Ten Feet Tall has negotiated a reduction in credit card fees:
- Visa & Mastercard: 3.20%+0.70 (previously 3.45%)
- AMEX: 4.20%+0.70 (previously 4.6%)
- All 2026 fees have been updated to reflect changes in class length.
Staffing Updates
We’re strengthening our coaching team.
Welcome: Caleb Arkwright
Online-only in 2026: Stephanie Caisley & Erin McCarthy. If you would like an online class with these teachers please contact: admin@tenfeettall.co.nz
2026 Enrolment & Term Dates -Book Now
At the beginning of each year we ask families to actively enrol their child for Term 1. Then for the remainder of the calendar year our students will be automatically re-enrolled.
To secure a place, please log in to your Parent Portal to view available classes and complete your child’s enrolment for a suitable class.
Please note that students will not be automatically re-enrolled for Term 1, and places will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
Our Term 1 classes are also now live on our website. Each term runs for nine weeks and are adjusted for holidays. Dates may differ from school terms — so please do check our term dates. Log into the parent portal here.
Classes in Term 1 begins Saturday, 31 January 2026
Take a look at our timetables: In-school; North Shore and Online
Refer a friend and we will give you a $30 discount on your Term 1 fees. Make sure you let us know who your friend is here.
Terms & Conditions
Key updates include:
- We have discontinued our trial classes. Instead, we will be offering a New Customer Satisfaction Guarantee.
- Updated fees
- Credits in our system must be used within a year
- Holiday programme cancellation & sickness policies
- No make-ups for private classes -group class make-ups only
- Updated photography, social media, IP, and data protection
- New Privacy Policy
- New Child Protection Policy
What This Means for Your Child
Every update has one purpose: to build your child’s confidence, capability, and future advantage.
- Smaller classes: our classes are smaller than all other drama classes, public speaking classes in Auckland.
- Increased opportunities for exam classes in: Speech NZ or Trinity College London.
- Longer non-exam classes to develop skills with audience opportunities.
- More opportunities to shine – take a look at our 2026 Events that includes Speech and Drama Competitions and Recitals.
- We’ve upgraded our holiday programmes with structured, skill-based learning so your child builds confidence and capability while having fun.
If you have any questions, simply reply to this email.
Thank you for the opportunity to work together. We look forward to seeing you back in 2026.
Merry Christmas,
The Ten Feet Tall Team