School & District Management Download

Shhhh!!! It’s Underground Spirit Week, Don’t Tell the Students

By Lesli A. Maxwell & Francis Sheehan — November 21, 2024 1 min read
Illustration of shushing emoji.
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

OFFICIAL MEMORANDUM

To: Principals, teachers, and school-based staff

From: The EdWeek Fun Committee (yes, it's a real thing)

Subject: School Spirit Week


Dear principals, teachers, and school-based staff:

We are writing to inform you about a new (OK, maybe not that new) and lively twist on the tired old tradition of School Spirit Week. Sorry, no disrespect, but it's a tradition in need of a reform, reboot, refresh—a re-something.

That's why we are writing to you with a call to action for this school year that's now officially hit the blah phase: Host an #UndergroundSpiritWeek. What the heck is that, you ask?

It's the spirit week we all wish we had when we were students. It's one that only the grown-ups are in on at first. One that will confuse, delight, and energize the kids as they try to figure out what the heck is going on.

And it's easy to pull off. No PD required! Just a tiny bit of planning and coordination—no robocalls, text messages to parents, anything extra. Plan it on a Friday, launch it the next Monday.

To inspire you, we have curated some of our favorite #undergroundspiritweek posts from social media. We also spun up a handy dandy downloadable guide you can follow and/or adapt for your schools. (scroll to bottom of the memo!)

Oh, but there is one preferred option from the EdWeek Fun Committee: Include the theme of "Anything But a Cup Day." (You'll see why in these posts.)

Have fun and tag us @educationweek in any of your #undergroundspiritweek social posts!

DOWNLOAD THE PDF

Related Tags:

Edér Del Prado, Social Media Producer contributed to this article.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Artificial Intelligence Webinar
Managing AI in Schools: Practical Strategies for Districts
How should districts govern AI in schools? Learn practical strategies for policies, safety, transparency, and responsible adoption.
Content provided by Lightspeed Systems
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
Two Jobs, One Classroom: Strengthening Decoding While Teaching Grade-Level Text
Discover practical, research-informed practices that drive real reading growth without sacrificing grade-level learning.
Content provided by EPS Learning
Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and K-12 education jubs at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

School & District Management Q&A Meet the National Principals Association: Why the 110-Year-Old Org. Rebranded
Elementary school leaders will add new priorities for the national organization.
6 min read
President Ronald Reagan addresses the National Association of Secondary School Principals convention in front of an old fashion red school house, background, Feb. 7, 1984 in Las Vegas, Nev. Standing behind Reagan are NASSP officials.
President Ronald Reagan addresses the National Association of Secondary School Principals convention in front of an old fashion red school house, background, Feb. 7, 1984 in Las Vegas, Nev. Standing behind Reagan are NASSP officials.
Doug Pizac/AP
School & District Management How Top Principals Are Improving Schools Across the Country
Principals must empower student and teacher voices.
7 min read
Successful male and female in leadership achieve target. Embracing success confidence holding winner flag on top of mountain peak.
Education Week + iStock/Getty
School & District Management Opinion 6 Years Ago, Schools Closed for COVID. Have We Learned the Right Lessons?
A school administrator outlines four priorities to guide true recovery from the pandemic.
Robert Sokolowski
5 min read
FILE - In this Aug. 26, 2020, file photo, Los Angeles Unified School District students stand in a hallway socially distance during a lunch break at Boys & Girls Club of Hollywood in Los Angeles. California Gov. Gavin Newsom is encouraging schools to resume in-person education next year. He wants to start with the youngest students, and is promising $2 billion in state aid to promote coronavirus testing, increased ventilation of classrooms and personal protective equipment.
Los Angeles public school students maintain social distance in a hallway during a lunch break in 2020.
Jae C. Hong/AP
School & District Management How Assistant Principals Build Stronger School Communities
From middle to high school, assistant principals share what they've done to increase engagement and better student behavior.
7 min read
Image of a school hallway with students moving.
iStock/Getty