Teacher Planning Week: The Conversations That Move Teams Toward a Learning Community
- Angela Langlands
- Aug 2
- 4 min read
Updated: Sep 25
The first week of school isn’t just about name games and routines—it’s the foundation of your school’s culture. If you're aiming to build a learning community, teacher planning week should be treated as a crucial moment for your team to align, plan, and lay the groundwork for shared ownership.
Here are 6 key conversations your grade level team should be having before and during the first week, so that everyone—students and adults—can move forward as a learning community together.
1. Create Shared Agreements for Shared Spaces
In a learning community, students and teachers will be moving in and out of classrooms, hallways, and breakout spaces. That flexibility only works with a shared set of expectations. Your team should collaborate to define:
Community-wide call and responses: simple, consistent ways to get attention... everywhere!
Agreed-upon routines: for movement, noise levels, and clean-up
Behavior agreements: ones that are co-created and visible to all
These don’t have to be perfect from day one—but there should be a basic framework students can count on. These agreements give structure to a space where collaboration and movement are the norm, not the exception.
Teams should also agree on some shared routines and norms that make all spaces feel like "our space," not "my [teacher] space." For example, suppose you're particular about students not walking on the rug with their shoes. In that case, that expectation needs to become a community norm—or it’s going to create confusion. What feels like a boundary to one teacher might be completely normal in another room.
And if the team doesn’t agree on a routine like that? Then it might be time to let it go.
If we’re asking students to be flexible and adaptable across learning spaces, the adults have to model that ourselves. Shared spaces only work when teachers lead with collaboration—not control.
2. Co-Plan Your First Week: Leave Ego at the Door
Let’s be honest: the first week of school can feel personal. Many teachers have traditions they love—"All About Me" posters, name games, favorite books—and we often plan them with ourselves and ease in mind.
But in a learning community, we have to ask: Are these activities serving the students? Are they helping build community across classrooms, not just within them?
Try this: Have each teacher submit one first-week activity that reflects something they love—but deliver it across the entire team. For example, if you love “All About Me” quilt squares, make them with every class and display them in shared spaces (hallways, common walls), not just the homeroom classroom. Let students start seeing themselves as part of something bigger.
Then... be willing to let go of the rest.
3. Make Every Teacher Known to Every Student
In a learning community, all teachers teach all students. That doesn't mean students need to know every detail about each adult and build the same relationship with each, but they do need to see you all as a team.
Plan an intentional way to introduce all teachers to all students early in the first week.
Some ideas:
A whole-group community meeting where teachers introduce themselves with a short story or a favorite object
A teacher rotation where students stay in their home base while teachers visit, greet them, and share a brief activity
A post-lunch read-aloud series where a different teacher visits classrooms each day, for a short, fun story
These small moments help students feel connected and safe with multiple adults, and reinforce the message: “You are not mine—you are ours.”
4. Rethink Where Belongings Go
This one’s deceptively simple but only works if student's personal materials are kept out in the hallway.
Mix up student cubbies or backpack areas.
Instead of having students line up their items outside their “homebase” classroom, mix things up. Randomize cubby locations across the grade level space. As a bonus, you’ll spark new friendships and give teachers a chance to observe different student groups from day one. Just be sure to accommodate the 2–3 students who need proximity to an adult or doorway for regulation or safety reasons.
This small shift sends a big message: we’re one team, one community.
5. End the Day with Purposeful Community Time
The first week is overwhelming—for kids and adults. Why not end each day with a learning community-based activity that is light, engaging, and shared?
Here’s a simple format: Each classroom hosts a rotating activity that mixes students from all home bases. Some examples include:
Building Room – focus: resilience & collaboration
Math Games – focus: academic confidence & number sense
Creative Challenge – focus: problem-solving & imagination
Board Games – focus: teamwork & strategic thinking
Before releasing kids into the activity, give a short mini-lesson with clear expectations. Then observe. Take notes. Reflect on focus targets. This is your first chance to see how students interact, where their strengths lie, and which partnerships naturally form.
It’s not just fun—it’s formative assessment.
6. Make Time to Reflect as a Team
During the first few weeks of school, carve out meeting time to reflect and adjust. Use this time to:
Celebrate moments of connection
Modify language
Adjust groupings or space use
Revisit agreements or routines
Keep one question at the center of every conversation: Is this about the students, or is this about us?
When every planning conversation centers on students—not personal preferences—you begin to function as a team. And when the team works as one, students thrive in the kind of learning community where everyone belongs and everyone matters.
Final Thoughts
Teacher planning week can set the tone for the entire year. When approached intentionally, it becomes more than introductions and icebreakers—it becomes the launchpad for a school culture grounded in collaboration, equity, and shared vision.
Let’s stop planning in silos. Let’s start planning for us!
Do you need support leading teacher planning week conversations or creating a professional learning arc for your team? Let’s connect: angelalanglands.com
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