A Papakura teacher was injured when two people tried to take a student from Kelvin Road School, triggering a school-wide lockdown on Wednesday afternoon.
Emergency services were called when two people, known to one of the pupils, "attempted to take the student out of the school grounds", a police spokeswoman said.
A staff member received minor injuries trying to stop the pair, she said.
Police were called to the South Auckland school shortly after 1.15pm.
School management posted on Facebook that the lockdown lasted only a short time.