Is All About Reading Worth It? My Honest Review

Teach your child to read with an open-and-go program that is fun and actually works! In this review of All About Reading, I’ll cover our personal experience, discuss the cost, and offer tips and tricks for using the curriculum.

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If you are tackling the exciting journey of teaching your child to read, you may have already discovered that it can be harder than it looks. My review will help you decide if All About Reading is right for you and your child!

A quick mini-bio: Hi, I’m Ellen! I’m a 2nd generation homeschooler beginning the journey of homeschooling my own kids. I’ve discovered that I am a nerd and actually enjoy researching curriculum, learning styles and all things homeschool. Helping my eldest learn how to read this year was so rewarding–and we can’t wait to keep going!

So, let’s start with a quick overview of the curricula I tried before we tried All About Reading.

We kicked off our learning-to-read journey doing the simple phonics exercises found in the kindergarten level of My Father’s World. I found the activities cumbersome and realized we could progress faster with a dedicated phonics program that was open-and-go.

So, we switched to 100 Easy Lessons. This is how I learned to read when I was little and I had good memories of slowly working through the stories. However, after teaching several lessons as an adult, I was not as enthusiastic.

We made it to around lesson 55 before I called it quits. The book had typos, added new phonograms without warning, and lacked interesting stories with fun pictures.

However, I do think it was an okay start for our reading journey. It is good at teaching blending, encourages lots of rhyming practice, and is open-and-go. A bit of a mixed bag I suppose!

Why We Chose All About Reading

When I started looking for a solid, phonics-based reading program, All About Reading kept coming up in homeschool groups and forums. A few trusted friends recommended it too, but at first, I dismissed it. It just seemed like a lot (flashcards, activities, letter tiles… ack!).

Still, I kept researching and watching YouTube reviews. I realized that once the activities are prepped, the program is open-and-go. The short, 20-minute lessons were also a big plus.

I was also drawn to the multisensory activities, phonics-based approach, and the clean visual design of the program. So, finally I ordered it.

Because we had made it so far in 100 Easy Lessons program, we jumped right into Level 1. If you aren’t sure where to start, take the handy placement test before ordering.

How We Used It

Before we dive into the details, here’s quick overview of how we used the program:

We used Level 1 from start-to-finish with my kindergarten-age child. Generally we finished 1 lesson per day to start and slowed down as the lessons and stories became longer.

We stuck to the suggested 20 minute time limit and finished the level with plenty of time before the end of the school year.

What’s Included?

If you are just getting started with All About Reading, if you select a package to purchase and you will get everything you need to begin:

For Level 1, the “All About Reading Level Materials” package includes:

• Teacher’s manual with scripted lessons
• Student activity book (with all the practice materials)
• Three hardcover readers
• Flashcards for phonograms and new words
• Progress chart and sticker set

You should also purchase the following:

• Reading review box (this is an optional organizer, but it fits the cards perfectly)
• Letter tiles (a one-time purchase; you can also use the app instead with a tablet!)

What We Loved:

We loved working through the first level of All About Reading. Here is why it worked for our homeschool:

It works!

This is an effective program that is easy to teach and is designed for reading success. My child enjoyed learning from this curriculum and I enjoyed teaching it.

We both loved the variety of learning methods. It made the 20-minute lessons fly by.

The variety includes: flashcards, games, activities, readers, and building words with the letter tiles. The back of the teacher’s manual is full of even more game ideas. You can get tons of practice in without your student even noticing that they are practicing!

The lessons alternate between learning new phonograms (letter sounds) and practicing with the stories in the readers.

Note: All About Reading has been designed to be an effective reading & phonics program for anyone, but it is particularly helpful for struggling readers or those with dyslexia. Note that while it’s super popular among homeschoolers, you can absolutely use it with students enrolled in public or private school too!

All About Reading uses a multisensory approach:

The curriculum is based on the Orton-Gillingham method which you can research (and it’s rather interesting!). But if you want a quick overview, I like to focus on the multisensory approach part. Your student will see, hear, and do.

This involves all three learning pathways: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic.

When learning occurs in all three of these areas it makes total sense that it will stick! It becomes part of a person–not just rote memory muscled through and soon forgotten.

The magnetic letter tiles are one of the hands-on ways of practicing new lessons and we loved the “Change the Word” game (see below). It’s fun moving the tiles around and it makes so much sense to a new reader when they see the small changes that form new words.

There are other elements that make this approach effective, especially in the way the curriculum as a whole is designed, beyond the individual lessons.

More about Orton-Gillingham: If this is intriguing to you, you can read more in a free eBook from All About Learning Press here: The Power of the Orton-Gillingham Approach.

It’s open-and-go!

When I first started homeschooling my own child, I didn’t realize what these magical words meant. Then I found myself saying, I wish I could find curriculum that I could just open and go“. Ahhh, got it.

Now, All About Reading is open-and-go, but it NEEDS to be properly prepped so the activities are ready for you. However, once you’ve done some cutting and organizing of activity pages, you are set.

It’s actually fun to do while watching a show or something like that–I’m looking forward to prepping Level 2 in fact. Do all the prep before you even start the curriculum. Cutting out pieces as you are trying to teach a lesson will be frustrating for everyone!

Pro Tip: SAVE your student materials neatly and you can use them again with future children. No need to purchase additional student sets.

The lessons are also scripted. Simply read along as you work with your student. The lessons are also concise, which isn’t true of every scripted curriculum!

The stuff you’ll need to prep: If you are wondering what requires prep, here’s the scoop. Punch flashcards and file them in the box. Add magnets to the letter tiles (this is fun–don’t let your kids steal this one from you). Then go through the student manual and cut out the activities that require it. Note: I left all the fluency sheets and warm-up sheets in my student book.

Beautiful art and layout

I also love the layout. It is easy to skim the lessons and find answers to questions. The illustrations are compelling and my child was eager to keep decoding the short stories in the readers. From the teacher’s manual (easy to skim and plenty of white space) to the readers (cute illustrations), everything is beautifully designed.

Short lessons

You are directed to spend 20 minutes per lesson. Work at your student’s pace for 20 minutes and then mark your place and finish. I loved this! The focus is on learning the material, not racing to finish “the whole lesson”.

All About Reading is mastery-based, so if you have to hang out on a lesson a little longer than you expected, it’s no big deal. Just practice consistently until things are solid.

Plenty of practice material

This program is considered a “mastery” program which means a student should master material before moving on. Some homeschoolers push through programs like this too quickly and then hit roadblocks later on. It’s totally okay and actually better for the student to have a little extra time to soak things in if needed!

The book has ample resources for practicing before moving on. These ideas can be used as needed.

If you need more practice, try one of these options:

• re-read the stories in the readers
• play games again
• visit Appendix F and play the games suggested for the Practice Sheets
• play the games in Appendix G & H
• practice building and changing words with the letter tiles

On the flip side, if you have a student who is confident with the new material, you can tailor the lessons to suit them as well–sometimes this might mean skipping an activity or reducing the practice of fluency words. It’s up to you–but don’t skip things for the sole purpose of moving ahead more quickly. We didn’t skip much in Level 1, but would occasionally skip an activity or omit the daily flashcard review and spend more time on reading a story.

You can make it work for you! But all the materials are there and ready no matter the situation you encounter.

Uses “levels” not “grades”

The levels of the program are referred to as “levels” not “grades”. This encourages students to progress at their own pace without concerns they are in the “wrong” grade for their age.

No matter where you are starting in your reading journey, you can jump into All About Reading. Take the placement test offered on their website and choose the appropriate level.

This is a reading-only program

This program is reading-only. “All-in-one” language arts programs can be difficult to teach when a student progresses in one area and struggles in another. I found it much easier to keep spelling, grammar, handwriting, etc. separate.

Once you are ready to add in more language arts, of course you will have to figure what curriculum to add. All About Spelling is a beautiful complement to AAR, but you’ll still need to choose a core program(s) for things like grammar, writing, and handwriting.

Note: The student will do not any writing/handwriting with All About Reading. Instead, letter tiles are used to build and practice forming words.

Some options to investigate as you plan your language arts curriculum around All About Reading might include the following:

• All About Spelling (begin after AAR Level 1 is complete)
• First Language Lessons (Well-Trained Mind Press)
• Writing with Ease (Well-Trained Mind Press)
• Zaner Bloser, D’Nealian, or Handwriting without Tears
• Christian Light Language Arts

I loved being able to progress through reading with our focused attention. For kindergarten we tackled the other age-appropriate elements of language arts separately in our school day and it worked great.

What We Didn’t Like, Or Downsides

Aren’t sure yet? Here’s a few downsides you should consider too:

It’s expensive!

Especially if you plan to purchase all four levels, it’s an investment for sure. However, you need only purchase one level at a time. You can even resell your prior levels prior to purchasing the next level, or sell them when all your kids are finished

Also, remember that reading fluently is crucial to every other subject in school. It’s also great for gaining that student independence we love to see in our homeschools. So, if you are going to invest, investing in reading (and math too I would argue!) makes sense.

Pro tip: All About Reading and All About Spelling tend to hold their value for resale. There’s also a time-saving benefit for anyone purchasing used curriculum that the original owner has already prepped all the activities. So don’t lose anything and plan to resell if you wish.

The teacher’s manual is necessary

There are some programs where you can avoid buying the teacher’s guide and save a little money. This is not one of those programs. All of the teaching instruction is in the guide, so don’t skip it!

Several materials to keep track of

Honestly this scared me at first, so I wanted to mention it, but I’ve had no trouble keeping the program together. I found it easier to use than our Math with Confidence actually (another program with lots of pieces to keep track of)!

Keep your books in one place, keep your flashcards in the box, and prep all the activities in advance and organize in one 3-ring binder. That’s it!

I don’t let my kids use the readers for browsing during non-school time. We have plenty of other easy-read books and picture books for that. It helps to know the books will be where I left them when it’s time to start school!

Prep the activities and organize them in a binder with sheet protectors and you’ll basically be good to go!

Practice sheets can be overwhelming

The practice sheets can be overwhelming (they have a lot of words!). However, the teacher’s guide gives you many fun ways to practice these words. Visit Appendix F and use some of the ideas to switch things up.

I like the practice sheets from a teaching perspective because it’s quick to see if there are any struggle areas in an lesson.

Another thing you can do is bring out other easy readers (we have tons of these around our house) and do extra reading “in the wild” instead of forcing the practice sheets.

What I do: I treat the practice sheets like the flashcards. One of the ways I use the practice sheets is to use a colorful post-it note to keep my place and then I quiz a handful words from a prior practice sheet when we do our daily flashcards. I usually let my kiddo quiz me too–something kids love! Trying to do the whole practice sheet all at once is definitely a no-go for us!

Frequently Asked Questions:

Will this program work for me?

I think this program is best for:

• Families who want an effective reading and phonics curriculum
• Parents who want open-and-go, fully-scripted lessons
• Kids who enjoy hands-on learning and activities
• Struggling readers
• Anyone looking for a curriculum with the Orton-Gillingham approach
• Homeschoolers and non-homeschoolers alike!

On the other hand, it may not be for you if:

• If you are on a very tight budget (look for a used copy instead!)
• You dislike managing physical materials like flashcards and tiles (honestly, this part is not bad, so don’t let it scare you too much!).

Where to Find It

Ready to learn more? Check out the programs and purchase here:

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