Matawai School opened in 1908 in temporary accommodation, in a small room attached to the washhouse of Mr R J Fleming, with 5 pupils. The school room became known as the "Paper Room" because the walls were wallpapered with pages from the Auckland Weekly News, a publication with pictures. Initially the school only opened for 2-3 days per week, with the first teacher Elizabeth REDPATH also teaching at Rakauroa School on alternate days. On 13 June 1910 Matawai School commenced as a full time school with 8 pupils.

Elizabeth REDPATH) aged 17 years when appointed, lived at Rakauroa and rode her horse to Matawai on the days she taught there. The road from Rakauroa to Matawai was merely a mud track then. Elizabeth finished at Matawai School in December 1910.

The second teacher in 1911 was Miss Lillian Brooking (later Mrs H. S. Liddle). The school moved to the super room, a lean-to with a fireplace, behind the newly completed Matawai Public Hall (now the Marae site) in 1911 to accommodate the increasing number of pupils. In 1911 the school inspector reported that "Three new desks and three old ones were brought from Motu. There are no maps or pictures and teaching is carried out under primitive conditions thus making teaching a very arduous job." Miss Brooking boarded with a local family and rode about 2 miles to school in summer, but walked in winter when the roads were muddy, walking inside the fence to keep out of the mud.

On 15 September 1913 the school moved to the present site with completion of two school rooms to accommodate about 100 pupils. The school building completed in 1913 is shown in the photo below. A residence for the headmaster and family was constructed on the hill behind the school. The school population had increased with the arrival of the railway and establishment of sawmills. The lower part of the school site was very wet but was drained. In 1914 the school inspector reported that "The school is now in a healthy working condition."

Two further classrooms and a staff room in an additional building were opened in November 1955. The school required an additional classroom and a prefabricated classroom was added by 1958. Following closure of the Motuhora School, the Motuhora school building with two classrooms was moved to Matawai School. About 1959 a second residence was built for the headmaster and family, on the corner of Kerei and Raumai Streets. The older school residence was used by another teacher.

Several other local schools closed as their rolls fell and children were bused to Matawai: Homebrooke School closed about 1948, Koranga School closed in 1951, Rakauroa School closed at the end of 1945, Keretu School closed in 1938, Otoko School closed in 1997 and Wairata School closed in 2000.

In October 1958 the school had a roll of 203 children. In 2008 the roll was over 70 children and nine staff. In December 2020 the school had 49 Year 1-8 students in three composite classes.

There is a separate page with extracts from the 50 year 1958 School Jubilee Booklet. In 2008 Matawai School celebrated its 100th year, with the centennial booklet Standing Sentinel - Collected memories from 100 years of Matawai School containing more history of the school.

Matawai School in 1926 with the classroom building (right) and headmaster residence (top left).

Matawai School 1958. Prefabricated classroom building (left), original 1913 Matawai classroom building (back center), and 1955 two classroom building (right).

Matawai School 2008. Motuhora classroom building (left), original 1913 Matawai classroom building (back center), and 1955 two classroom building (right).

Sports

Swimming has always been available at Matawai School. Initially swimming in summer was in the Motu River, in a pool under the bridge at the bottom of the hill on the Opotiki side of Matawai. Boys got changed under the gum trees and girls under the willow trees. In about 1960 a swimming pool and changing rooms were built on the school grounds following fund raising. In 1983 a cover was built over the pool, again following local fund raising. Swimming lessons and competitions are held in the pool.

Rugby and netball have been played at the school over the years. More recently hockey, soccer, cricket and tennis were introduced. I remember softball was a regular activity in summer when I attend Matawai School. The annual sports day involved running races, high jump, long jump, etc for the different age groups.

Bullrush was always popular at the school. It was banned about 2000 because it got rough and a boy had his leg broken.

Other Activities

For many years the school has held an annual Pets Day. Children have brought their calves, lambs, dogs, and other pets to school. One judging section involved calling your pet from a distance, to see if the child or the parents had raised the pet. Other judging categories included condition, and handling and care.

An annual concert or fancy dress ball was usually held in the township Hall. Practice involved classes going to the hall to practice their item for the concert or to learn their dances. Parents came to the performances.

Present School

The illustration below shows the present school facility. Previous railway land to the west of the school has been incorporated into the school. Besides the three classrooms for years 1-8, the school has a library, well-resourced computer suite, food technology room, Playcenter for pre-schoolers, and woodwork facilities. The School also uses the Matawai Recreation Ground that has tennis courts, a cricket ground and skateboard area.

Matawai School 2024. (white boundary)
1. Original 2 classroom building (1913). 2. Teacher's Residence. 3. 1955 Classroom building, staff room and toilet block. 4. Motuhora School Building. 5. Dental Clinic. 6. School playing field. 7. Covered Swimming Pool. 8. Netball Court. 9. Playcenter. 10. Head Teacher's Residence.
Matawai Recreation Ground (yellow boundary) 11. Cricket Ground. 12. Tennis Courts. 13. Skate Ramp.
Source: Image from Google Maps, 2022.