So I promised myself that this year, I would blog less and vlog more.  Vlogging is video blogging.  Last week I shot a series of videos in my classroom to share the improvements I have made.  I also wanted to show how we organize the many different materials it takes to run a Blended Learning, Montessori-esque  learning environment in 3rd grade.

The heart of my classroom is the library.  I have over 950 chapter books and an additional 200-300 picture books.  I keep these organized with physcial labels and Book Buddy.  I also use the Book Whisper’s 40 book challenge approach.  This mean most of the kids in my class will read at least 40 chapter books independently during the school year.

As a cooperative teacher I believe in TABLES!  Last year, I headed to a storage unit and lugged home tables without legs until I could locate legs.  My husband wood works miracles and fitted mismatched legs to bring those tables back to life.  This year, I outfitted all the stations with color coded, beautifully organized materials.  It is making all the difference with 29 kids in a small space.

My mobile learning cart is a thing of beauty.  Once again, my husband worked his magic to create a way for me to organize the many different stations I do with the kids.  Never again will I create a station only to have it lost in a file cabinet.