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Using Unique Learning Systems: Part 2 Reading

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 I have finally fallen in love with Unique Learning Systems. I always thought that there was value in this curriculum and I was the one on my team that brought it to them and said we HAVE to get this. For so many years there was nothing and teachers were creating materials for everything that they did in their classroom because nothing was adapted for them.
Image result for unique learning system
Image result for unique learning system

Why I  love Unique Learning Systems?

This curriculum is amazing and I know that some people have said that they can’t handle it because it has a lot of materials and I get that, but I’m not going to complain about having TOO MANY materials. I mean when as a special education teacher have you been able to say that??? So, yes there are over 500+ pages of materials every month for students just in my grade level (which is middle school) but, I just use what I need, and I print what I need.

How I  make unique learning systems work?

This blog post is meant to show you what pieces I have found work for my classroom and how I organize them. I do not use everything but, I have the mindset that if I can master using this piece by piece then maybe I can find a purpose for it all at some point and get the best out of this amazing curriculum.

Chapters for Reading 

At the middle school level, there are books that are considered chapters that feed off of one another whereas from what I understand of the elementary curriculum the books follow the theme but aren’t connected like chapters. This really doesn’t matter in my opinion for organizing it but, wanted to reference that. So, the first thing I do is look through the next month’s curriculum. I download the entire PDF onto my computer. It looks like this:

Don’t print everything in unique learning systems

Then I go through the file on my computer (I DO NOT PRINT EVERYTHING!). II write down the page numbers of the books and comprehension sheets that I use onto a sticky note. Then I print ONLY one set of the chapter books and the worksheets that go with each chapter.

After I print I sort it by the books in one pile and I staple the books together so they are ready to use. I only use one set of the books (at each of the different reading levels). Since I only teach students one at a time I only need one copy.  I make a copy of each set for each chapter for each student. That way I have many materials ready to go for the students. In my case, I have 5 students so I make 5 copies of the worksheets for each book.

Organizing Unique Learning Systems

In order to organize this, I use the following materials: Available here: Amazon Affiliate

– (1) 2″ binder or larger

– Dividers with Pockets
– Post it Tabs

In the middle school version, there are 7 books for the month that can be read. So I take the first book which is small and I stick it in the front pocket of the binder.

 I also place the worksheets for that book in the very front and label each students’ worksheets by using a Post-It tab with the students’ initials on it.
Then every other chapter, I take a divider with pockets and I stick the books in the pocket and label the corresponding chapter. 
 Then I put the worksheets for that chapter with the tabs separating the students after the divider so it’s right with the book.

I continue this process for each and every chapter.

It has taken me quite a while to figure all this out and it has been a labor of love. It is what works for me. Hopefully, for anyone that is overwhelmed with all the materials of Unique Learning Systems, this was helpful. As always feel free to contact me at any time!