Ten Feet Tall - Skills that Last a Lifetime
Ten Feet Tall is all about empowering students with a breadth of communication skills that contribute to school and career success. We know that excellent communication skills and qualifications give students an edge over others, making them stand out in the crowd.
To give students the very best experience the Ten Feet Tall Team is carefully selected with teachers who foremost love their students and know how to quickly create rapport and coach students in a way that feels fun and inspiring.
We also offer Holiday Programmes. Holidays are a great time to work on a specific coaching focus. Our school holiday programmes are fun!
Our Team
Sarah
Owner and Teacher
- BA English Literature
- Graduate Diploma of Teaching
- LTCL Speech and Drama Trinity College London
Sarah started Ten Feet Tall with a passion to empower students with a breadth of communication skills that contribute to school and career success.
Having worked in both education and corporate settings Sarah is passionate about her students developing the skills and a range of expreiences that teach them to enjoy an audience.
Sarah designs and oversee's the Ten Feet Tall curriculum. She teaches all classes from Year 1-13. Sarah is President of the West Auckland Performing Arts Comittee and loves to create opportunities for her students to perform.
When Sarah is not teaching she is reading, cooking, walking and planning the next camping adventure with her kids.
Stephanie
Public Speaking Teacher
- ATCL Speech & Drama
- Adv ASB Public Speaking
Having been involved in the North Shore and National Speech and Drama community for over 40 years, Stephanie knows that excellent communication skills and qualifications give students an edge over others, making them stand out in the crowd.
Stephanie teaches Year 6-13 Public Speaking and Speech and Drama. Stephanie is a Competition Adjudicator and Speech NZ Oral Communication Adjudicator. She is the Speech NZ, North Shore Secretary.
When Stephanie is not working she is going for a walk along the beach, followed by coffee at a cafe with family or friends.
Stephanie doesn't have a dog of her own but loves them and helps out Guide Dogs for the Blind and Low Vision, by looking after puppies while their handlers have a holiday.
Kirsty
Speech and Drama Teacher
- Graduate Actor Toi Whakaari
- SGCNZ Globe Artistic Fellow, London Globe Theatre
- Masters in Creative Writing
- Graduate Diploma Teaching
Kirsty is a warm and approachable teacher who aims to motivate students to recognise their strengths, realise their goals and meet their full potential as learners.
Kirsty has played numerous roles in theatre and a significant career in writing and directing short films. She has taught, directed and adjudicated for the Shelia Winn Shakespeare festival.
All of this notable experience she takes into the classroom. Kirsty has designed and led several drama and acting workshops for children and adults in New Zealand, New York and the UK and is an experienced performing arts teacher. She is a knowledgeable, playful and fun teacher.
When she is am working she loves to write, go for long walks listening to audiobooks and watch films with her partner.
Laressa
Speech and Drama / ESL Teacher
- B. Soc. Sc (Double Major in English and Political Science)
- CELTA (Cambridge University, England)
Laressa has taught English as a Second Language to children and adults in language schools and educational institutions, and as a private coach, in New Zealand, Asia and Europe over the last 25 years.
Laressa teaches oral language, public speaking and ESOL to students in years 1 to 10 with a focus on both the accuracy and fluency aspects of oral language in English. She places particular emphasis on developing pronunciation skills and grammatical accuracy while also being passionate about encouraging her students to have the ability and confidence to communicate fluently.
In teaching students to present to and engage with an audience with clarity and ease in English, students are also equipped with language skills that effectively transfer into everyday life.
Laressa’s interests outside of language include nutrition, health and design. She enjoys our beautiful beaches and coffee culture; preferably together!
Angelynn
Speech and Drama Online Teacher
- Associate Diploma of Speech and Drama from Speech NZ
Angelynn Jayasuria has been doing drama since childhood and loves teaching and developing children's existing talents.
Angelynn was a Kristin School prefect and was awarded the Speech NZ Speech & Drama scholarship twice for Grades 7 & 8.
Currently a law student at Victoria University in Wellington, Angelynn is a great asset to the Ten Feet Tall team as an online Speech & Drama teacher.
When she is not studying Angelynn is reading, singing, baking and spending quality time with her family and pets.
Tracy
Speech and Drama Teacher
- Bachelor of Social Science Psychology, Marketing and Advertising
- Post Graduate Certificate in Teaching
Tracy studied Psychology and Advertising because she is passionate about the art of effective communication. She worked in the fashion industry for a while and adored the opportunity to be creative and learn about the art of what message you portray through your presentation.
Tracy made a career change when I became a mother. As an educator, she has enjoyed mentoring learners to become influential, relevant, resilient leaders who can serve an ever-changing world with courage and compassion.
She has taught in the UK, South Africa, Namibia and now New Zealand.
When Tracy is not teaching she loves walking, fashion, interior design, reading, drinking tea in a tea cup and watching her children play netball and cricket.
Mandy
Speech and Drama Online Teacher
- Bsc in Psychology with History of Ideas
- Post Graduate Certificate in Education
Originally from the UK, Mandy has taught in both London and Auckland and has 13 years teaching experience in the classroom as well mentoring and supervising Beginning Teachers.
She is a friendly, fun teacher and believes in creating strong, positive relationships with her students to help them achieve their full potential.
Mandy understands the importance of students feeling confident in their Oral and Written language skills and incorporates a range of short fun activities to help students build up their confidence and fluency. She loves acting and tries to include drama in her teaching whenever possible.
When she is not teaching Mandy enjoys spending time with her children, baking, being in the great outdoors and travelling to far flung places.
Meghana
Debate Teacher
- ATCL Diploma in Communication Skills from Trinity College London
Meghana was Head Girl at St Peters School Cambridge and has taught refugee youth for the past three years.
After school, she has worked for the Waikato District Council, and acting as Youth MP for the Waikato Constituency this year. Meghana strongly believes that when youth, of any age of background, have the confidence and clarity to share their voice: their goals, and their wider communities flourish. In this, she champions the role of communication, collaboration and open mindedness (and having a lot of fun).
Luckily, Debate teaches all the above, and Meghana's experience as debate captain, adjudicating junior league Waikato debates and winning the premier secondary school Waikato league - means teaching these skills to the next generation is exactly where she wants to be.
When not teaching, you'll find Meghana hiking up a mountain, having fun with friends and family, or studying for her conjoint commerce/property degree at Auckland.
Natalie
Administration Wizz
Natalie is an experienced administrator with strong project management and organisational skills. She works behind the scenes of Ten Feet Tall making sure everything runs smoothly.
Natalie has over 10 years experience in the corporate sector as an Executive Assistant working for a broad range of companies like Mitre 10 (NZ) Ltd and Crombie Lockwood Insurance.
Outside of work, Natalie enjoys spending time with her family, cooking and socialising with friends.