Why Listen to Me: I’m a Teacher Who’s Done It

The Backstory

When I was hired in Abu Dhabi, I was told I would be joining the Grade 3 learning community team.

On paper, it sounded exciting because I've done this before. In reality, it was daunting because the school was just beginning to embrace the learning community hive model as a way of teaching and learning.

Our team make-up demonstrated this newness: we were four classroom teachers, supported by two learning support teachers, two instructional assistants, and a counselor who had never worked together. Many of us were new to the school. Some of us were new to the country. And only two of us had previous experience working in a true learning community model.

To make matters more interesting, our team lead, the only non-newbie among us, was in New Zealand at her sister’s wedding during our first weeks together.

So there we were. A small band of well-intentioned educators. Eager, capable, and standing at the edge of something unfamiliar, with no safety net and no roadmap in hand.

During our first meeting, as we shared our professional stories, something became clear very quickly. Everyone on the team brought deep experience and strong practice; I was the only one who had previously co-created, co-taught, co-assessed, and co-supported students within a hive-like model.

That realization mattered.

Because it meant we had two choices. We could retreat into the silos that felt safe and familiar (for some), or we could give this model an honest try, together, and quickly.

We chose the second.

Starting Small, On Purpose

We began by planning the first week of school, knowing that if we wanted students to experience this as a collective from day one, we needed to model it immediately.

We started with shared systems that would signal to students and families that this was different.

Our classrooms were named after interconnected ecosystems, Savannah, Marine, Arctic, and Rainforest, tied to our first unit of study. We co-created identical morning meeting routines and slide decks so students experienced continuity no matter where they were. We designed a first-day scavenger hunt that moved students through shared spaces together. We planned a name project that resulted in a collaborative art installation outside our classroom doors.

We rotated teachers for daily read-alouds. We hosted low-floor, high-ceiling math games in different spaces so students could interact with familiar friends. We created common behavior agreements. We build relationships. We played together. We ate together. We started learning together.

And perhaps most symbolically, we agreed to randomly assign student locker spaces in the hallway rather than clustering “my class” together. From the moment students arrived on the first day of school, the message was clear. You are all of our students, and this is your shared space.

None of this was complicated. None of it strayed from good practice.

But every decision was intentional with a hive mentality at its core.

Momentum Builds When Trust Comes First

By the end of the first week of school, something had shifted.

Building the learning community while the stakes were still low allowed us to create trust, with one another, with the students, and begin expressing that language to parents. So when week two arrived and it was time to begin pre-assessments and academic routines, the groundwork had already been laid.

It didn’t feel strange to students when they were asked to read with one of two teachers who had volunteered to collect all of the Fountas and Pinnell data. It felt normal. While those assessments were happening, the rest of the team, supported by our instructional assistants, introduced routines for readers’, writers’, and math workshops, and kicking off the academic year.

No one questioned why a student was learning with a different teacher.

Everyone was beginning to understand... This is how we do school in Grade 3.

From there, the work unfolded with an ease that surprised even me at times.

When Language Shifts, Culture Follows

By the time back-to-school night arrived, something subtle but powerful had happened.

Parents no longer referred to “my child’s teacher.” Instead, they spoke about "homebase teachers" and "the team."

One student, Robert*, is a good example. I greeted Robert each morning. He was in Jordan’s literacy group. He worked on word study with Ashton. During Math, April and I were his co-teachers, and during the unit of study periods, he moved between rooms for science experiments and personal inquiry.

When Robert’s mother introduced herself at back-to-school night, she made a point to introduce herself to everyone. She told us how much Robert loved moving between spaces, working with different teachers, and collaborating with old friends and new classmates. What might have felt unsettling in a traditional model felt expansive in this one. And the parents understood too!

Robert wasn’t confused.

Robert wasn’t alone.

He was thriving because all of his needs were held by our 9 person strong team... not just me, his homeroom teacher.

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Why I’m Telling You This

I share this story so you understand where my authority comes from.

This was not an isolated experience. It was the third school where I had worked within a hive-like learning ecosystem. Across those schools, more than 700 students (from grades 1-4) experienced learning in this way, supported by teams of educators who shared responsibility, knowledge, and care.

I have seen this model succeed because I have lived inside it. I have helped create the system and have navigated the uncertainty, the skepticism, the planning, the trust-building, and the payoff. I know where schools hesitate. I know what teachers worry about. And I know what becomes possible when systems are designed to support interdependence rather than isolation.

So when I speak about The HIVE, I am not offering theory or consulting fluff.

I am offering lived experience.

If you are a school ready to give young learners an interdependent ecosystem of support, where every student is seen by many and no teacher carries the work alone, then yes, I am your girl.

Because I’m a teacher who’s done it.

I know what it takes to build what comes next.

I know it is immensely rewarding for all involved.

And I know, without question, this is what education needs next.

Let’s connect! You can reach me at angela.langlands@gmail.com or dig around this site to learn more about my services, workshops, and partnerships.

*Name has been changed.