Ready to turn your school’s hallways into a vibrant showcase of creativity and school spirit? A hallway decorating contest brings students together, sparks imagination, and transforms ordinary corridors into extraordinary displays of talent and teamwork. This guide will help you plan an unforgettable event that gets everyone excited about showing their school pride.
A successful hallway decorating contest requires thoughtful planning, clear guidelines, and plenty of creative supplies. From choosing the right spaces to celebrating your winners, every detail matters when you want to create lasting memories and build stronger school community bonds.
The best part? These contests work perfectly for Spirit Week, seasonal celebrations, Homecoming festivities, or any time you want to inject some energy into your school environment. Students love the chance to work together on something fun and visual, while teachers appreciate activities that encourage collaboration and school engagement.
Set Up Your Teams
Creating balanced, enthusiastic teams sets the foundation for your hallway decorating contest success.
- Think about your groups
Try grouping students by grade level to encourage class unity, or mix grades together for diverse perspectives and skills. Homeroom classes work well as natural team units, while clubs and sports teams bring existing camaraderie to their decorating projects. - Consider team size and available hallway space
Each team needs enough members to handle the decorating workload but not so many that coordination becomes difficult. Teams of 15-20 students typically work well, giving everyone meaningful roles while keeping the group manageable. - Involve teachers or staff members
Adult guidance helps with organization, ensures safety protocols are followed, and provides valuable support when creative challenges arise. Plus, seeing teachers get excited about hallway decorating ideas often motivates students to put in extra effort.
Pick the Perfect Hallway Spaces
Location makes all the difference in your decorating contest impact. Choose high-visibility areas where students, teachers, and visitors will see the finished displays. Long corridors near the main entrance, cafeteria hallways, and routes to popular gathering spaces offer maximum exposure for your teams’ hard work.
Avoid areas with permanent fixtures that limit decorating options. Hallways lined with lockers, existing bulletin boards, or fire safety equipment create obstacles and uneven playing fields between teams. Look for spaces with plenty of blank wall surface that teams can transform completely.
Measure each designated area to ensure fairness. Teams should receive roughly equal square footage to decorate, whether that means identical hallway sections or different spaces with comparable decorating potential. Clear boundaries prevent disputes and help teams plan their classroom hallway decorations effectively.
Choose a Theme (or Let Teams Get Creative)
Deciding on themes shapes your entire contest experience. A unified school-wide theme creates cohesive hallway decorating ideas while still allowing individual team interpretation. Popular options include:
- School mascot and colors
- Favorite movies or books
- Seasonal or holiday
- Around the World (let teams showcase different countries and cultures)
- Community Pride (connect your school to local landmarks, businesses, and traditions)
Alternatively, let each team choose their own theme for maximum creativity and ownership. This approach often produces the most surprising and innovative results. Just establish guidelines ensuring all themes remain appropriate and inclusive for your school community.
Gather Your Decorating Materials
Smart supply planning ensures every team has what they need to bring their vision to life. Partner with your art department to access basic materials like butcher paper, poster board, and standard craft supplies. Many schools successfully fund contests through small budget allocations, fundraising efforts, or supply donations from local businesses and parents.
Have these essentials on hand:
- large background paper rolls
- various paints and markers
- scissors and cutting tools
- tape and adhesives
- basic craft supplies like glitter, feathers, and fabric pieces
Consider providing foam board for dimensional elements, LED string lights for visual impact, and stencils for teams that want professional-looking lettering. Encourage eco-friendly decorating by promoting reusable materials and recyclable options.
Set the Ground Rules
Clear expectations prevent problems and ensure everyone enjoys the contest experience. Establish guidelines covering respectful, inclusive decorating that celebrates school spirit without targeting other teams or groups. All decorations should reflect positive messages that make every student feel welcome in your school hallways.
Safety rules are non-negotiable. Specify which surfaces teams can use, prohibit decorations that could create hazards, and require adult supervision for any elevated work or electrical elements. Make sure all team members participate meaningfully, preventing situations where one or two students do all the work.
Sample rules might include:
- No offensive imagery or language
- Use only approved surfaces and materials
- Ensure all decorations are securely attached
- Maintain clear pathways for normal hallway traffic
Let the Decorating Begin!
Schedule decorating time that works for your school’s rhythm. Some schools dedicate class periods to contest work. Others use after-school sessions or weekend decorating marathons. Consider your teams’ availability, adult supervision needs, and how decorating activities fit with regular academic schedules.
Create an exciting atmosphere that motivates teams to do their best work. Play upbeat music, encourage teams to chant or sing while decorating, and have administrators visit to show support and take photos. Document the process with behind-the-scenes pictures and videos that showcase the teamwork and creativity happening throughout your school.
Provide fair access to supplies and work areas. Either distribute materials equally to each team or maintain central supply stations. Consider rotating team access to prime decorating times if scheduling conflicts arise.
Judge and Celebrate the Winners
Thoughtful judging recognizes different types of excellence while maintaining fairness. Student voting creates high engagement and democratic participation. Faculty panels bring adult perspective and can focus on specific criteria like creativity, theme interpretation, and teamwork evidence.
Social media polls extend contest excitement to families and community members while showcasing your school’s creative energy. Guest judges like alumni, school board members, or community leaders add prestige and outside perspective to your contest.
Present awards in multiple categories to recognize diverse strengths:
- Most Creative
- Best Theme Interpretation
- Outstanding Teamwork
- People’s Choice Award
Prizes might include trophy recognition, pizza parties for winning teams, certificates for all participants, or special privileges like preferred lunch seating or casual dress days.
Showcase the Creativity
The big reveal creates memorable excitement for your entire school community. Host a hallway walkthrough event where teams present their work and explain their creative choices.
- Include guided tours
Invite parents, community members, and younger students who can get inspired for future contests. Document everything with high-quality photos and videos. - Share highlights
Post on school social media, include features in newsletters and announcements, and create displays showcasing the décor to keep the festive spirit alive! - Host an awards ceremony
Celebrate the participants with an awards ceremony featuring fun categories like “Most Innovative Design,” “Best Team Spirit,” or “Crowd Favorite”
A hallway decorating contest is more than just a fun event; it’s a chance to bring your school community together, spark creativity, and showcase student talent. With the right planning and spirit, your contest can become a beloved school tradition. Start brainstorming themes, rally your teams, and get decorating!
Ready to bring the fun to your school halls? Stock up on decorations and supplies for your next hallway decorating contest at andersons.com!