Hallway Moments

Working from home is distinctly different when you are used to working in school buildings. If you work in an office, yes, you see your co-workers, you have small talk before meetings, maybe you talk with certain colleagues regularly, but none of that comes even close to how many tiny interactions you get in a school building/campus. Let me give you a personal tour of what this looks like for me at one of the schools I work in:

Image shows a front office of a school, with a counter top for talking to the administrative assistant and offices behind it. You have to imagine all the smiling faced people, as there is only one person visible, back in the office.

I walk in the front door and I get a nod from the administrative assistant at the front, curious looks from children waiting to be picked up, a glance from parent standing with a child, a smile from the principal as she goes into her office, the nurse looks up as he stands with a student and the ubiquitous ice pack, the playground coach waves, coming in with a ball tucked under their arm heading to the equipment room...all of this interaction before I’ve even said hello.

Image shows elementary students in line, most are wearing coats, one child has his hood on his head and his coat hanging like a cape. Lots of curly haired children in the photo. Mixed gender and race/ethnicity.

Once I get my schedule from the administrative assistant, who offers me a tasty treat, I talk for a moment with the substitute who will be with me that day, releasing teachers. We walk out onto the yard and there are dozens of children, walking in lines at this time of day, and once one child waves or says good morning, you can count on more than half to follow suit. When we arrive in the classroom, we’re greeted by the teacher and the whole class.

Image description: Classroom from behind student desks, teacher is at the blackboard, one student has their hand up, other students and teacher are looking at that student. Students are about 10/11 years old and mixed gender and race/ethnicity. Front of classroom shows student work displayed, a large map, other info on bulletin boards.

Kids come over during my time in the classroom, ask if I’m a boy or girl, ask about my pen, what I’m writing, why I’m wearing a scarf, or how to spell a word. And this goes on all day long. I might interact with 100 people (in a small school) in just one day. I know it’s a little different for a classroom teacher, who might only see other staff/teachers and their own cohort of students in one day, but that still might be as many as 50 different people and hundreds of interactions.

Image shows children from Kelston Elementary on playground equipment, mixed gender and race/ethnicity. They are climbing and one child is swinging from one hand hold to the next. Some children are obviously posing, grinning at the camera.

All day long, we get these tiny interactions, nods, smiles, even a grimace can let us know that we are not alone, can strengthen our resolve, can have us feeling empathetic for others (oh, that looks like a tough time over there). We witness children laughing, singing, crying, responding to teacher questions. We might get a consoling pat on the shoulder from a colleague or an unannounced hug from a little one. We might help kids put on coats, tie shoes, write sentences or explain their math thinking.

Each of these moments helps keep us aligned with our purpose. They sometimes help us to feel hopeful. They often help us to feel like part of a larger whole. They can help us feel seen and heard. They provide us with much needed co-regulation. We are hard wired to connect with others, and these little hallway moments count.

Image shows a school hallway, empty. Windows to outside on the left hand side, classroom doors down the right. Backpack and coats are hung up one both sides.

I’m calling them hallway moments because I’ve seen so many educators pass in the hallway with just a look or a phrase that communicates how their entire day is going, after which they both smile or laugh. Connection. I’ve seen so many adults smile at a student in hallways, call out their name, or ask about a parent and then seen that student light up. Connection.

We need these hallway moments. As I talk with educators who are still doing virtual classes, we are talking about the ways they are re-creating these hallway moments. Some schools are doing it with virtual “coffee hours” that don’t have any kind of work agenda. Some teachers are doing it with time at the end of class periods for students to chat in the chat box. I know teachers who are popping into other teachers’ classrooms just to do a quick hello to everyone. I’ve heard of teachers hosting lunch hour on Zoom so students can hang out with each other.

I’m always looking for new ideas. What are you doing to increase your points of connection? How can we fill our hallways?

Image shows a school hallway, no people in sight, but a few empty desks. It looks a bit sad, although the walls are brightly colored and there are windows letting in natural light. There’s a mural at the end of the hall that looks like a lake with lily pads.