Mystery Walker

Sometimes, no matter what you try, your students still act like tornadoes in the hallway.

They intentionally try to step on the feet of students in front of them.

They bounce from wall to wall like a ping pong ball.

They spin around, bumping into kids, garbage cans, and walls like it’s nothing.

Or they drag their finger on the wall as they walk.

If you are facing this situation, I highly recommend trying the Mystery Walker.

The Mystery Walker is a student you pick at the beginning of the day. You don’t tell the class who you have picked for the day, just that you will be watching for how the Mystery Walker behaves in the hallways throughout the day. If the Mystery Walker is walking in the hallways and following the rules all day, they get a small prize. That’s it!

To use the Mystery Walk in your room follow these steps:

1. Select a different student to be the Mystery Walker each day.
2. Don’t tell your students who it is until the end of the day.
3. Watch that student all day to see how they behave in the hallways.
4. If that student follows hallway rules all day, they get a small prize. (Think something like a name on the Wow board, a sticker, a small piece of candy, a new pencil, etc.)
5. Publicly celebrate that student!

Now if a student fails to follow the hallway rules, I didn’t call that student out by name. My goal is not to shame and embarrass students into submission, it’s to motivate them to do something in a fun way. I would usually just say something like “Our Mystery Walker didn’t follow the rules today, so no one gets a treat. We’ll try again tomorrow.”

You also want to be aware of students who might need accommodations when they are chosen to be the Mystery Walker. For example, if a student stims when they walk by flapping their arms, you wouldn’t penalize them for this behavior. You just watch to make sure they are doing their best to follow hallway rules.

That’s it! The Mystery Walker is so easy to implement and so motivating for students.

Download your set of free Mystery Walker posters here or by clicking on the picture.