Kick off your HIVE experience at check-in, where you can grab your badge, collect some conference swag, and meet the team. It’s a welcoming first stop to get oriented, connect with fellow attendees, and ease into the excitement of the three HIVE days ahead.
Start the day with high energy and a strong sense of community at the HIVE Kickoff. Hosted by Dr. Kristopher Childs and powered by our favorite DJ, JSmoov, this dynamic opening will feature keynote moments, uplifting content, and a shared celebration of the learning ahead.
Keynote Address from Lateefah Id-Deen Small Moments, Lasting Impact: Designing for Belonging in the Classroom Belonging lives in the everyday moments of teaching and learning. It shows up in moments we don’t always name, but students feel its impact. In this keynote, we will explore those moments and what they make possible for students in our classrooms, including how students come to see themselves as learners.
Pause, refuel, and connect during our Morning Snack Break. Enjoy a snack, meet fellow attendees, and take a moment to recharge before the next session begins.
When student thinking is visible, instruction becomes more responsive, discussion becomes richer, and learning goes deeper. Explore five practical moves for surfacing student ideas, strengthening engagement, and supporting meaningful learning. Teachers, coaches, and leaders will gain concrete strategies for making thinking more visible in ways that support understanding, engagement, and responsive instructional decisions.
“Be curious, not judgmental” is often treated like a mindset, but in coaching, it’s a discipline. Most leaders enter conversations with answers already in mind and use questions to guide teachers there. In this session, ELA and Math leaders will examine how judgment shapes coaching and how to interrupt it in real time. Participants will learn how to ask questions that actually open thinking and lead to meaningful instructional change.
Most classrooms are filled with activity. The question is whether children are doing the thinking that leads to real learning. When children are not doing the thinking, they are not doing the learning. This session explores practical strategies that shift instruction from compliance to thinking, amplify learner voice, and create classrooms where children analyze, justify, and communicate their ideas. Participants will leave with strategies they can apply immediately.
Translating materials is often a go-to strategy for supporting newcomers or multilingual learners. While translations can be effective at certain times, multilinguals need opportunities to engage with English content to develop language alongside new learning. In this session, we’ll explore cross-linguistic strategies that allow children to use both their home languages and English while reading, writing, and talking about math.
When anchor charts are used well, they become tools for thinking, not just classroom wallpaper. In this session, participants will explore how to design and use anchor charts in ELA and math to make learning visible, reinforce key concepts, and support students as they work independently and together. Expect concrete examples and practical takeaways you can use right away.
Pop culture often portrays learning as effortless genius or heroic teaching. In reality, joyful learning grows from curiosity, collaboration, and student thinking. In this session, we examine common myths about teaching in film and television and contrast them with practices that support meaningful literacy and numeracy learning. Participants will leave with reflection tools and practical strategies to foster joyful, thinking-centered classrooms.
Families and caregivers play an essential role in students’ learning, but too often they are invited in only through one-time events or traditional conferences. In this session, participants will explore practical strategies for building authentic family partnerships around instruction, helping caregivers feel more connected, informed, and equipped to support learning at home. You’ll leave with concrete ideas for strengthening trust, communication, and shared investment in student learning.
Creating strong conditions for multilingual learners starts with intentional leadership. In this session, participants will explore five practical ways leaders can strengthen support for multilingual learners. Leaders will leave with concrete ideas for building more inclusive classrooms, supporting teachers in effective practice, and creating learning environments where multilingual learners can engage deeply with content, language, and identity.
