Real people building real solutions for today's classrooms
Introducing the Tools4Teachers team.
Tools4Teachers is an educational consultancy led by Andy Butler and Erin McKechnie.
Dedicated in continuing the literacy professional development previously established by Jane van der Zeyden.
Working with leaders, teachers and teacher aides, specialising in oral language, writing and ESOL to directly enhance student learning.
Erin McKechnie
Erin is an experienced teacher and school leader who has taught a range of year levels.
Her passion and expertise lies in the senior school.
She has been a facilitator for Tools4teachers since 2018. More recently, her role has been as Learning Support Coordinator at an Intermediate School in Manurewa, South Auckland.
Erin has completed her Masters in TESOL educational leadership, her thesis focusing on PLD in culturally diverse contexts.
With strong pedagogical knowledge about the ELLP pathway document, Erin loves to help teachers to use this document in their daily practice.
She has recently completed the Literacy Leadership in BSLA Structured Literacy through the University of Canterbury.
Erin’s strengths lie in engaging struggling learners and students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, with a particular focus on literacy.
Andy Butler
Andy joined Tools4Teachers in 2017 and is an experienced teacher and school leader who has taught a range of year levels.
She has a wealth of experience with teaching our newest learners at the New Entrant level and she is focussed on ensuring that these akonga have the best and most successful start to their schooling. Her most recent New Entrant class was in 2025.
Andy is currently studying through the University of Auckland to gain her Postgrad Certificate in Teaching Linguistically Diverse Students.
Supporting Provisionally Certificated teachers is another area that Andy has extensive experience with.
Andy’s strengths lie in building literacy proficiency through a range of approaches where the student is at the heart of the teaching.
Committed to providing schools with the best resources and expertise.
