All About Spelling

"All About Spelling," part of the suite of tools from All About Learning Press, was founded by Marie Rippel after a personal journey with her son's severe dyslexia. Disappointed by the inadequate resources available, Marie, leveraging her background in language arts education, developed this curriculum based on the Orton-Gillingham approach. This method is revered for its multisensory and structured techniques, designed to assist learners of all types, not just those with learning difficulties. Her initiative has grown into a well-regarded resource helping thousands of families, facilitating easier learning processes in reading and spelling​.

Differentiation: What Makes It Special

What sets "All About Spelling" apart is its foundation in the Orton-Gillingham approach, which is specifically advantageous for children with dyslexia and other learning challenges. This curriculum is meticulously structured to ensure there are no gaps in a student's understanding, fostering a thorough comprehension of spelling rules through multisensory techniques. These methods support various learning needs, making it a versatile tool for a broad range of learners​ (All About Learning Press)​.

How to Get Started

To begin with "All About Spelling," parents can purchase the curriculum directly from the All About Learning Press website. It's recommended to start with the level that matches the child's current spelling proficiency, which might involve some initial assessments available through the curriculum itself.

How It Works

"All About Spelling" is designed as an easy-to-follow program that parents can implement with their children. It requires about 15-20 minutes per day, emphasizing consistent, short sessions to build and reinforce spelling skills. The program includes interactive activities and uses letter tiles to engage students in a hands-on learning experience. It is predominantly parent-led, requiring active participation from the adult to guide the child through the learning process​ (All About Learning Press)​.

What Educational Concepts It Teaches

  • Basic and advanced phonograms

  • Spelling rules and generalizations

  • Word segmentation and syllable division

  • Morphology, including prefixes, suffixes, and roots

  • Strategies for choosing the correct homophones in context

  • Techniques for mastering tricky words and irregular spellings

What’s Good About It

Users often praise "All About Spelling" for its systematic approach that builds a strong spelling foundation from the ground up. Parents appreciate the curriculum's ease of use and its effectiveness in improving their children’s spelling skills, particularly for those who struggle with traditional learning methods. The program's incremental and cumulative nature ensures that each new concept is firmly understood before moving on to more complex topics​ (All About Learning Press)​.

What Could Be Improved

While "All About Spelling" receives high marks for its structured approach, some users feel that its rigid format might not be as engaging for children who prefer more variety and creativity in their learning. Additionally, the necessity for significant parental involvement might be challenging for families looking for more autonomous learning options for their children​ (All About Learning Press)​.

Advice from Parents

Parents who have used "All About Spelling" suggest supplementing the curriculum with real-world writing tasks to enhance practical application of the spelling rules learned. They also recommend maintaining a regular schedule to fully benefit from the program’s cumulative learning structure, which helps solidify the spelling concepts over time​ (All About Learning Press)​.

Who It’s an Ideal Fit For

"All About Spelling" is particularly suited for children who thrive with structured, step-by-step learning processes. It is ideal for students who struggle with dyslexia or other learning disorders that affect their spelling and reading abilities. The program’s systematic approach and emphasis on understanding the logic behind spelling rules make it a powerful tool for these learners​ (All About Learning Press)​.

Who It’s Probably Not a Fit For

This program may not be the best fit for students who prefer a more exploratory or flexible approach to learning. Children who thrive on more interactive, technology-based learning might find the traditional, tactile method of letter tiles less engaging. Additionally, families seeking a less hands-on role in daily education might find the program’s parent-led nature too demanding​ (All About Learning Press)​.

Grades

The curriculum is designed for children from kindergarten through seventh grade, providing multiple levels to cater to various spelling abilities.

Cost

The program is priced per level, with each level costing approximately $40, making the full set of materials available for around $280 if all levels are purchased together.

Ways to Get It

"All About Spelling" can be purchased directly from the All About Learning Press website. This includes all necessary materials such as teacher’s manuals, student packets, and interactive kits for hands-on learning​ (All About Learning Press)​.

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Explore More Programs and Curriculum We Recommend

Manisha Snoyer (co-founder of Modulo)

For the last 20 years, I’ve taught over 2000 children in 3 countries (of all socio-economic backgrounds). I pioneered an English language program in a conflict region in the Middle East. I’ve worked as a bilingual public school teacher at some of the highest and lowest performing public schools and in all five boroughs of NYC. I’ve tutored 18 subjects in three languages to some of the wealthiest families in NYC, San Francisco and Paris to make up for shortcomings in private schools they were paying up to $60,000 a year to attend.

Since 2015, I’ve helped hundreds of parents start microschools (way before this was a household buzzword). I founded CottageClass, the first marketplace for microschools and learning pods that was part of the Techstars 2018 class. In 2019, I created a virtual learning program to help families through the pandemic, a free online math tutoring program (masteryhour.org), and schoolclosures.org, a hotline developed in collaboration with Twilio and 80 other partners including Khan Academy, Revolution Foods and the Crisis Text Line, that served 100,000 families impacted by school closures.

I’ve climbed trees with children in forest schools in San Francisco, and tested new digital apps with kids in seven countries.

I’ve also coached dozens of families at different stages in their homeschooling journey. Most recently, I founded Modulo with homeschooling dad, best-selling author and tech entrepreneur Eric Ries, to help families curate their children’s education, social and childcare experiences drawing from a diverse array of in-person and online resources.


During the last three years, I’ve devoted much of my time to reviewing and testing secular homeschooling curriculum and other resource. I’ve spent the last three years talking to thousands of secular homeschooling families, and poring over tens of thousands of secular curriculum reviews and testing physical curriculum and digital apps for with hundreds of students to find the highest quality, most engaging, personalized learning materials for every type of learner.

I’ve spoken about homeschooling and modular learning at multiple venues including SXSW EDU, NY Tech Meetup, and on the LiberatedEd podcast.

In 2022, Modulo was one of 8 organizations who were awarded the Bridge Grant from the Vela Education Fund to expand access to homeschooling and modular learning to under-resourced communities.

My experience in education and homeschooling has led me to believe that there is no perfect education for every child, but families have an extraordinary amount of wisdom they can apply to building the perfect education for their individual child.

My goal with Modulo is to make it possible for any family to easily build a customized education that their child will love, and that will empower the whole family to thrive, taking into account, social, emotional and academic needs.

I love to answer questions from parents and receive feedback on how we can improve Modulo, so feel free to reach out anytime! I personally answer all the questions and comments readers leave on my blogs.

In my free time, I like hiking, traveling the world, tasting ceremonial grade matcha, enjoying dark chocolate.

I graduated Summa Cum Laude from Brandeis University with highest honors, with a double degree in French Literature and American Studies and minors in Environmental Studies and Peace & Conflict Studies.

And I love to learn!

https://www.linkedin.com/in/manisha-snoyer-5042298/
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