Staff at W.C. Miller Collegiate in Altona had a pleasant surprise from students outside their front doors after returning from spring break.

"There were great things happening around Altona with people putting positive chalk messages around on the path, and different messages on their windows and such, but I was quite surprised when I arrived back at the building here Monday morning," says Principal Angela Pilkington.

Students had left their own chalk messages for teachers, telling them how much they miss them and their appreciation.

"My initial thought was that it was a continuation of the messages that were happening around town, but when I looked a little bit closer I could actually see they were messages personalized here for the staff at our school."

Pilkington says it was a pleasant surprise, and it shows that teachers and students are missing each other equally.

"Our numbers aren't big here in the building right now. A lot of teachers are making an effort to work from home, but for the consistent group of ten or so of us that are reporting here to the building every day... it was just a great way to know that students were thinking about us as we are of them."

Her message in return is that she hopes students are taking care of their well-being, keeping active, and staying connected online with their friends.

Supplied photos