👻 The scariest (but funniest later) things teachers have seen at school
Every teacher has that one story — the moment your heart stopped, chaos erupted, and only later could you laugh about it. We asked teachers: “What’s the scariest thing you’ve seen at school (that was funny later)?”
The results did not disappoint. Over 1,500 of you wrote in, and your stories ranged from slapstick mayhem to “haunted” classrooms. Here are some of your best tales…
😂 The Funny (and Utterly Chaotic)
Sometimes the “scariest” things at school come with a side of laughter — once the panic passes, of course.
“There was a blood-curdling scream from the playground. I ran outside thinking someone was hurt — but it was just a group of Year 1s who’d found a frog. Then they chased me with it.” 🐸
“I saw a Year 6 boy on the roof of the bike shed. No one knew how he’d got there — including him. He just kept shouting, ‘Miss, I don’t know how to get down!’ The fire service was called, and I aged about ten years.” 🚒
“In a whole-school assembly, a child fainted right onto the cymbals in the percussion section. The bang echoed round the hall, half the school screamed, and the other half thought it was part of the performance.” 🥁
“There was red liquid splattered down the corridor. I thought someone was seriously hurt. I radioed for first aid. It was raspberry slush puppy — from a lunchbox explosion.” 🍓
“During an outdoor lesson, a gust of wind blew my umbrella inside out and I chased it across the field. When I looked back, the class had vanished. They’d calmly followed another teacher indoors, thinking playtime was over. My heart stopped for five minutes.” 🌬️
“It was Halloween and a pupil came to my classroom with fake blood dripping from his face. I didn’t know there was a fancy dress day. I nearly called an ambulance.” 😱
“We’d lit candles for a World Book Day ‘atmosphere’ activity. A pupil leaned too close and their costume sleeve caught fire. I screamed, the kids screamed, and I threw water everywhere. Luckily, everyone was fine — but we’ve never lit candles again.” 🔥
👻 The Supernatural (or So It Seemed…)
Then there are the stories that made even the most rational teachers question their reality — at least for a few seconds.
“In the middle of a quiet story session, a cupboard door creaked open by itself. Every child screamed. I screamed. The caretaker investigated… it was the air conditioning vent behind the cupboard. The children still talk about the ‘ghost of Year 3.’” 👻
“After a late meeting, I walked past a darkened classroom and saw a face at the window. I screamed and dropped my bag. It was a cardboard cut-out of William Shakespeare.” 🎭
“I was working late when the photocopier suddenly started up by itself. Then the lights flickered. I was sure the building was haunted. Turned out the site manager was testing the emergency power system — and found me crouched behind a filing cabinet clutching a stapler like a weapon.” 🖨️
🧠 What These Stories Tell Us
Schools might not appear in horror films (well… not often), but teachers know that real-life scares can strike at any moment — and often from the most ordinary things: frogs, photocopiers, and PE kits.
Yet, what stands out most in these tales is that teachers always recover fast — even if they end up hiding from ghosts made of cardboard or puddles of milkshake.
So next time something goes bump in the corridor, or the lights flicker in the staffroom… maybe it’s not a ghost. Maybe it’s just Tuesday. 😉
What’s the scariest (but funniest later) thing you’ve seen at school?
