Connection Starts With You.

This is the 37th (and final) edition of The Connection Curriculum newsletter. The number happens to match the age I turn this year, and it feels like a natural point to pause and reflect. In two weeks, my new book will be released. And while I didn’t plan it this way, it feels like a full-circle moment.

When I started this newsletter, my goal was to continue the conversation from my first book. I wanted to broaden the message and speak directly to educators and leaders about the power of connection in schools. I hoped I could make it a regular thing. One year and 37 editions later, with over 2,000 of you reading along, sharing, replying, and discussing, I feel like in some way, I’ve done that.

This newsletter may be ending, but it’s not the end of the conversation. I’m still writing for Edutopia, for my doctorate, and, of course, the next book. There’ll be more, just in a different form. But before I go, I want to leave you with something practical and close to the heart of this work.

Connection doesn’t care about the calendar.

We often tie connection to the start of the school year. A time when relationship-building is expected and encouraged. But what if you’re not in Week 1? What if you’re halfway through Term 3, wrapping up a reporting period, or somewhere else entirely?

Here’s the truth: connection isn’t about the timing. It’s about the intention.

Whether you're just starting, halfway through, or close to the finish line, the most important thing to remember is this: you can choose to connect, or reconnect, at any point. Relationships aren’t fixed. They can grow, shift, deepen, whenever we decide to show up and try.

Too often, we build relationships early on and then settle into maintenance mode. We focus on keeping things stable. But stability isn’t the same as belonging. It’s not the same as meaning.

Belonging requires us to go further, to keep noticing, to keep inviting, to keep investing. When students, staff, and families feel they genuinely belong, schools become more than just places of learning. They become communities with purpose.

So instead of thinking “It’s too late to reconnect” or “We’ve already done that work this year” - flip the script. There’s always more connection to be made.

Here are five actions you can take this week, no matter where you are in the school calendar, to build connection that lasts:

1. Reconnect with Intent

Choose one student, colleague or parent who’s drifted to the margins. Ask a follow-up question. Check in. Reopen a conversation. Even a small moment can reopen a big door.

2. Notice Who's Not Yet In

There are always those who sit at the edge. Whether that is of the group, the conversation, the experience. Seek them out. Connection is often built one quiet invitation at a time.

3. Use the Micro-Moments

The moments between the moments; at the gate, in the corridor, before class, are fertile ground for connection. Don’t underestimate the impact of being present and noticing.

4. Strengthen Staff Connection

Connection among adults shapes the culture students experience. Take five minutes at a staff meeting to share something personal, celebrate a win, or simply listen. It matters.

5. Talk About Why

Connection is foundational to belonging, engagement and wellbeing. Remind your community why this work matters. Say it, model it, believe it.

Thank you for coming along on this journey. Your time, your reflections, and your generosity in sharing these ideas in your own contexts, all of it has meant more than I can say.

There will be more, in time. But for now, let’s keep building connection wherever we are, however we can, with the time we’ve got.

With gratitude,

Matt.

www.mattpitman.com.au