Jenny Moss has spent 40 years of her life teaching others but in preparation for her retirement this week she has become a pupil herself, attending a "life after teaching course''.
The course had enabled the early childhood teacher, who began teaching in 1970, to "think about the next chapter''.
"After turning 65, I got this idea locked in my head.
"I've been working in institutional education for more than 40 years now and I think that's enough. There are other things I want to do.
"I'm not sure what they are, but they'll probably be connected to education somehow because I think the whole education children learning thing is in my blood.''
Mrs Moss began teaching as a 19-year-old at Te Poi School in the Waikato before teaching mainly years 1-3 in Pukekohe, Wairoa, Mosgiel, Wanaka and Auckland.
In 2008, she returned to Wanaka to join "the cutting edge of learning'' as an early childhood teacher.
While "all the ways of teaching'' had changed, children had not, she said.
"I don't think the kids have changed at all.
"Children still learn when it is meaningful for them.''
The job had been as much about learning from the children as it had been about teaching them, she said.
"We have to give young children the respect that's due because they are people like us.
"They might be little people, but they know stuff and it comes from unfiltered and imaginative minds,'' she said.
Former pupil Dean Rankin who was taught by Mrs Moss at Wanaka Area School in 1983, said he had fond memories of Mrs Moss incorporating Maori into lessons.
Mr Rankin said it had been "great'' to discover Mrs Moss would be teaching his 4-year-old at Wanaka Montessori this year.
Mrs Moss said it was a privilege to have been able to teach the children of former pupils.
"I had never envisioned I would be doing that though, which is probably a good thing.''
She said it had become common for the parents of her children's friends to now come into her life as the grandparents of her pupils.
"They say 'hi granny' and I say 'hi granny yourself'.''
Sue Aspinall, whose children and grandchildren were taught by Mrs Moss, said Wanaka had been lucky to have the retiree educate so many local children.
Mrs Moss was farewelled by young and old former pupils at an afternoon tea at Wanaka Montessori yesterday.
She would go on a six-month road trip around Australia to have space, and to plan what she would do next.
