First Town Hall of the year. The guide leads, narrating every move out loud so the studio learns the choreography. By Week 2, a learner will lead. By Week 6, learners will be designing the format for the rest of the year.
By 3:30 today, the studio knows what a Town Hall is, why we have them, and how to participate well - and we've started writing the Studio Contract together.
A demo Town Hall where four confident learners talk and everyone else watches has demonstrated the wrong thing.
You said why you were calling on people in that order, and why you waited. Silent modelling teaches nothing on day two.
Whatever the studio agreed is up on the wall in their words before pickup - not typed up tonight.
Standard rhythm.
Bell, tidy, walk to the launch space. In Week 1 this still gets narrated - name what you're doing and why, because the studio is learning the shape of a transition, not just doing one.
Talking points, not a script. Hit these in your own words - the studio can tell the difference, and the ones that land are the ones you actually mean.
The opener (3 min): "Today at 11:20 we have our first Town Hall. Before we get there, let's talk about what one is and why we have them."
The Town Hall framing (10 min):
The expectations (5 min):
The close (2 min): "Today I'll lead. I'll narrate what I'm doing out loud so you can see how it works. Next week, one of you leads. By Week 6 you've decided as a tribe what Town Halls look like for the rest of the year. Heads up - I might pause and say 'notice what I just did' a lot today. That's on purpose."
Standard rhythm - open notebook, set today's tiny action.
Today is real practice. Open IXL, focused work. The guide does math alongside the studio - open the screen, do a problem, model what focus looks like.
Standard rhythm.
Standard rhythm.
Agenda (posted on the board):
The Studio Contract brainstorm:
"A Studio Contract is the promises we make to each other about how this place works. Today we start writing it. By Week 6, every one of us will sign it. So this matters."
Ask: "What promises do we want to make to each other so this studio is the kind of place you want to be every day?"
Capture every idea on the running list. Don't edit, don't vote - just capture. Sample categories that might emerge:
"Notice I just paused for 5 seconds - that's intentional, to let people think." · "Notice I'm writing every idea down without judging it - that's because every voice matters." · "Notice I'm calling on the person who hasn't spoken yet - that's part of the leader's job." · "Notice I just said 'building on what [learner] said' - that's how we keep the conversation moving forward."
Standard.
Today: introduce the first book of the year. Walk through the choice process - for now, the guide picks (short, accessible, a hero story). Future weeks: studio votes.
(25 min) Continue the Studio Contract list from this morning. Now the studio works in small groups - each group takes a category and proposes 2–3 concrete promises in that area. Reconvene and share.
(25 min) Open the conversation about Rules of Engagement: "When we're in a learning moment - discussion, focused work, Town Hall - what 3 to 5 rules will we hold each other to?"
Brainstorm together. Don't finalize today - let the list breathe until tomorrow's check-in.
Standard rhythm. Tomorrow's heads-up: "Tomorrow is the boundaries, consent, and role-models conversation. It's a big one. And it's our first school-wide Town Hall."
After Town Hall, pull aside any returner who participated thoughtfully. "I noticed how you built on [other learner's] idea. That's leadership. Next week one of you leads - would you be ready?"
Some learners won't speak Day 1 of Town Hall. That's fine. Do not call on them publicly to force participation. Check in privately tomorrow: "Anything you wanted to say at Town Hall that you didn't get to? I'd love to hear it."
Talking points for this week's email. Drop these into an AI assistant along with two or three live notes from your actual week - a name, a moment, something that surprised you - and it'll give you a draft in your own voice. The specifics are what make it land; the structure below is just the scaffolding.
The draft underneath is an example of the shape and the tone, not a template to send as-is. A parent who gets the same email as every other parent can tell.
Subject: Our first Town Hall
Hi families,
Today the studio held its first Town Hall. I ran this one deliberately - and narrated every move out loud while I did it, because it's a demonstration rather than a meeting. Why I'm calling on people in this order. Why I'm waiting after a question instead of filling the silence. Why nobody talks over anybody.
The reason for all that narration: a learner runs the next one. By Week 6 the studio proposes its own Town Hall structure for the rest of the year. Today was the first rung of that ladder.
We also started the Studio Contract - the promises this studio makes to itself. It gets drafted in pieces across the whole quest, and they sign it in front of you at Exhibition.
Worth asking tonight: what's a Town Hall for, and what happens if two people disagree in one? The answers are more interesting than you'd expect on day two.
- [your name]