All About Learning Press

All About Learning Press is a specialist publisher of two deeply-regarded programs: All About Reading and All About Spelling. These are not full curricula; they are the best multisensory Orton-Gillingham-derived programs in the homeschool market, and they are the default recommendation for any family with a dyslexic child or a reluctant reader.

Last updated: 2026-04-20 · Every Homeschool Editorial Team

At a glance

Method	Orton-Gillingham-derived / multisensory / structured literacy
Worldview	Secular (curriculum itself); publisher is family-owned, non-religious in content
Grades	PreK-6 (All About Reading); K-adult (All About Spelling)
Formats	Print materials + manipulatives + teacher's manual
Cost tier	Premium (per-level basis)
Parent intensity	4
ESA-common	Yes, widely accepted
Accredited	No (publisher only)
Established	2008
Website	allaboutlearningpress.com

Our scoreboard (1-5)

Criterion	Score	One-line reason
Academic rigor	5	Structured literacy gold-standard in homeschool
Ease of teaching	4	Scripted lessons; minimal prep once materials are organized
Content quality	5	Exceptional; research-grounded and well-sequenced
Flexibility	4	Works within any other curriculum; modular by design
Value for money	3	Expensive per level; multiple levels are required
Worldview scope	5	Secular; culturally neutral reading selections
Visual/design	4	Clean, professional; letter tiles are excellent manipulatives
Support resources	4	Strong user community, teacher support, YouTube tutorials

Who the publisher is

All About Learning Press was founded in 2008 by Marie Rippel, a homeschool parent and certified Orton-Gillingham instructor who found existing reading and spelling programs unsuitable for her own dyslexic child. She developed All About Spelling first, initially as materials for her family, and expanded to All About Reading as demand grew. The company remains family-owned.

The distinctive feature of AALP is that it publishes two programs only, no math, no science, no literature, no language arts beyond reading and spelling. This focus has allowed the publisher to do one thing extraordinarily well. In our editorial view, All About Reading is the single best homeschool-accessible structured-literacy reading program currently available, and All About Spelling is the single best homeschool-accessible structured-spelling program. This is not hyperbole; it reflects the professional reception of the programs among reading specialists and the homeschool dyslexia community.

The programs are based on Orton-Gillingham, a structured-literacy methodology originally developed in the 1930s-1940s for dyslexic students but now widely recognized as the gold-standard for all beginning readers. Orton-Gillingham is multisensory (visual, auditory, kinesthetic), systematic (skills build on skills in explicit sequence), explicit (every rule is taught, not inferred), and phonics-first (sounds before sight words).

Scale is hard to estimate because families use AALP alongside other primary curricula rather than as a stand-alone program. Our editorial view is that AALP is among the most-recommended supplements in the homeschool market and is the most-commonly-chosen reading program for families with dyslexic or struggling readers.

The core pedagogy

All About Learning Press's pedagogy is Orton-Gillingham applied consistently. The programs use a multisensory approach: children see letters, say sounds, and move letter tiles or write the letters simultaneously. Each lesson is explicit, the parent teaches one specific rule or pattern, and the child practices it before moving on. Lessons are cumulative; each lesson reinforces and extends previous lessons.

All About Reading runs from pre-reading (letter-sound foundations) through Level 4, covering essentially all the phonics patterns of English and taking a child from non-reader to strong grade-4 reader. All About Spelling runs from Level 1 through Level 7, covering the full English spelling system including morphology, etymology, and advanced patterns that most programs never teach.

Signature mechanics: (1) Letter tiles, magnetic letter tiles that children physically move to build and rearrange words. This is the Orton-Gillingham multisensory component made tangible. (2) Explicit rule teaching, every spelling and reading pattern is taught as a specific, named rule. The child doesn't infer that "i before e except after c"; the parent teaches it explicitly, and the child practices applying it. (3) Review with cumulative reinforcement, every lesson begins with review of previous content. This catches gaps before they become problems. (4) Scripted parent lessons, the teacher's manual tells the parent what to say and do. This makes the programs usable by parents with no structured-literacy training. (5) Reading selections aligned to phonics progress. All About Reading's storybooks use only phonics patterns the child has already learned, so reading practice reinforces rather than frustrates.

A day in the life

A second-grader using All About Reading Level 2 and All About Spelling Level 1 starts their reading block with a 20-25 minute All About Reading lesson: review previous lesson (3-5 minutes, letter tile work), new concept presentation from the teacher's manual (5-10 minutes), fluency practice with words and sentences (5-8 minutes), and reading practice from the storybook (5-10 minutes). Then a separate 15-20 minute All About Spelling lesson: review previous lesson, new rule from the teacher's manual, tile practice building new words, and dictation of sentences using previous patterns. Total parent-involved time for reading and spelling: 35-45 minutes daily.

For a child with reading struggles or dyslexia, the daily block is the same length but progresses more slowly, the programs do not push faster than the child's mastery. A parent may spend several weeks on a single concept until the child reaches mastery, and this is explicitly supported by the program's structure.

What they do exceptionally well

Structured literacy execution. All About Reading and All About Spelling are, in our editorial view, the clearest and most teacher-friendly implementations of Orton-Gillingham currently available to homeschool families. Families without structured-literacy training can teach these programs faithfully and produce the outcomes the method promises. This is rare and genuinely valuable.

Results with struggling readers and dyslexia. The programs have a strong track record with dyslexic children and struggling readers. Pediatric reading specialists and educational therapists frequently recommend All About Reading to families whose children are not progressing with whole-language or rushed-phonics programs. The results, anecdotally and in case studies, are substantial.

Lifetime value. Families who buy a level of All About Spelling or All About Reading often use it across multiple children. The manipulatives (letter tiles, letter card) and teacher's manuals are fully reusable. A family with three children sequentially passes the same materials through each child.

What they do poorly

Cost per level compounds. Each level of All About Reading runs approximately $100-$130 per level, and there are four levels plus pre-reading. All About Spelling runs approximately $30-$40 per level, with seven levels. For a family of three children completing the full sequence, the total AALP investment is $500-$1,000 across several years. Materials are reusable but the per-level sticker shock is real.

Not a full curriculum. AALP is intentionally reading-and-spelling only. Families still need to choose a grammar program, a writing program, a math program, a science program, and a history/literature program. The integration into the larger school day is the family's responsibility.

Pacing may feel slow for strong readers. All About Reading is paced for structured-literacy mastery, which is deliberate and valuable for struggling readers but sometimes slow for children who are already confident readers by kindergarten. Strong readers may need only the early levels and can transition to independent reading earlier than the program's progression suggests.

Who it fits / who it doesn't

• Pick All About Learning Press if: you have a child with dyslexia, reading struggles, or a history of phonics difficulty; you want structured-literacy methodology done well; you value multisensory and explicit teaching; you want a supplement that works with any other curriculum you're using; you want to use the materials across multiple children.

• Skip All About Learning Press if: you have a strong natural reader who progresses well with simpler phonics; you need a full integrated curriculum (AALP is supplement only); you need the absolute cheapest option; you are teaching a child who has already passed the reading-fluency stage.

Cost honest assessment

All About Reading Level 1 through Level 4 runs approximately $100-$130 per level; pre-reading adds another $100-$125. The full sequence: approximately $500-$750 for the core. Letter tiles, letter cards, and other manipulatives (bought once, reused) add approximately $50-$75.

All About Spelling Levels 1-7 run approximately $30-$40 per level. Full sequence: approximately $200-$300.

For a single child using both programs across their elementary years: approximately $800-$1,100 all-in, amortized across 6-8 years. For three children sharing materials, the per-child cost drops substantially, closer to $300-$400 per child, since tiles and manipulatives are reusable.

Compared to a generic phonics program ($20-$50) or to the phonics component of a full curriculum like Abeka ($80-$150), AALP is more expensive upfront. For a family with reading struggles, the differential is usually worth it many times over.

ESA eligibility notes

All About Learning Press is approved on most state ESA marketplaces including Arizona ClassWallet, Florida Step Up For Students, Iowa Student First, Utah Fits All, and Arkansas LEARNS. The publisher has a dedicated ESA ordering workflow. Because AALP is frequently recommended by reading specialists for dyslexic students, ESA programs that include special-needs allocations frequently approve AALP materials for students with reading diagnoses. Letter tiles and manipulatives (the physical components) are ESA-eligible in most marketplaces.

Alternatives

• Logic of English, a family would choose Logic of English over AALP because LoE covers grammar, spelling, and reading in a single integrated program rather than requiring two separate purchases.
• Explode the Code, a family would choose Explode the Code over AALP because Explode the Code is substantially cheaper and adequate for children without reading struggles.
• Orton-Gillingham-trained tutor, a family would choose a private tutor over AALP if the child needs clinical-level intervention and the parent cannot implement AALP at home with the needed fidelity.

How we verified this

Our editorial team reviewed All About Learning Press's catalog at allaboutlearningpress.com, sample lessons from All About Reading Level 2 and All About Spelling Level 1, and the company's methodology documentation. We cross-referenced against reading specialist recommendations, Cathy Duffy's review, and extensive community feedback from families of dyslexic and struggling readers.