All About Reading review — the program that rescues reading

All About Reading is the program parents land on after something else didn’t work — and often the one they wish they’d started with. (It earned a spot on our 2026 curriculum shortlist.) It’s a fully scripted phonics curriculum built on Orton-Gillingham principles: explicit, sequential, multisensory instruction that takes nothing for granted. There’s a pre-reading level for little ones, then four levels that carry a child from first sounds to fluent reading.

What it is

Every lesson is scripted word for word. You open the teacher’s manual, read what’s on the page, and move through a predictable rhythm: review with letter tiles, learn a new concept, blend words, read a story from the matching reader. The “multisensory” part is real — kids slide magnetic tiles, build words with their hands, and say sounds aloud rather than just looking at a page. Lessons are mastery-based: you move on when your child is ready, not when the calendar says so.

Strengths

• Truly open-and-go. Zero prep beyond the initial setup of tiles and cards. If you can read the script, you can teach reading — including parents who feel unqualified to teach phonics.
• Built for the kids who struggle. The Orton-Gillingham approach is the gold standard for dyslexic and struggling readers, and this is its most parent-friendly packaging. The small steps and constant review are exactly what these learners need.
• Multisensory by design. Wiggly five-year-olds get to move and touch, not just sit and stare.
• A company that stands behind it. All About Learning Press has a strong reputation for customer support and a generous guarantee, which takes the sting out of trying it.

Weaknesses

• It’s expensive relative to alternatives. You can teach phonics for far less with simpler programs. You’re paying for the scripting, the materials, and the readers. The non-consumable parts do resell well and reuse across kids.
• It’s teacher-intensive. Every lesson is one-on-one, sitting beside your child for twenty to thirty minutes. There is no independent work. With multiple kids, that time adds up fast.
• Some kids outpace it. Natural readers can find the careful, incremental pacing tedious. If your child is already blending words easily, you may find yourself skipping large chunks — and wondering why you paid for them.

Who it’s for

Parents of struggling readers, kids with dyslexia or suspected dyslexia, and anyone who wants a no-guesswork, sit-down-together reading program with everything decided for you. It’s also a calming choice for first-time homeschoolers terrified of getting reading wrong.

Who should skip it

Families with a child who’s picking up reading easily on a lighter program — don’t fix what isn’t broken. Parents who can’t carve out daily one-on-one time, or who are confident teaching phonics themselves with a simple manual and a library card. For those families, the money is better spent elsewhere.