You’ve probably heard that we make it easy to customize our programs to suit your student’s needs, but did you know that All About Reading can meet your needs too? Watch the video below to see how!
Did you watch the video? Can you relate to Simple Samantha? Or are you more of a Weekly Wendy or Detailed Dorothy? Read on…and then leave us a comment and let us know what your style is!
Simple Samantha believes the entire point of an open-and-go program is, well, just that…opening and going. And she’s pretty open about it.
Um…what? Organize? I just open my Teacher’s Manual and start teaching. If there’s an activity, I cut it out while my kid reads to me. Or better yet, I have her cut it!”
Samantha knows that All About Reading is easy to teach right out of the box. All you have to do is take a minute or two to preview the lesson and gather the necessary activity pages, flashcards, and letter tiles. Then simply follow the script to teach like a pro! Gently scripted lesson plans ensure that you’ll know exactly how to teach every single lesson with no advanced preparation needed. Yep, you heard that right…none. Zilch. Zero.
If you prefer to keep things simple like Samantha, you’re in good company. This is the way All About Reading was actually designed to be used. We’ve done all the research and prep work so you can devote your time to teaching your child.
Although Weekly Wendy knows she doesn’t have to do major prep, she likes to take it up a notch. She prefers to prep things ahead, but in bite-size chunks, a week at a time.
I prep my lessons a week in advance. I look through the teacher’s manual to see what I’ll need for the week, then I cut out the activities and zip-bag it all. You can never be too prepared.”
If you’re like Wendy, you like to be prepared, but you don’t want to spend all summer doing it! A little bit of planning ahead helps you feel prepared and ready to face the week. And that’s definitely not a bad thing!
Detailed Dorothy loves to get it all done ahead of time…way ahead of time. Her favorite part of teaching is preparing and organizing her curriculum months in advance. It’s incredibly fun and supremely satisfying to know that everything is ready to go when she needs it. And when she’s all done prepping, she lets out a big sigh of satisfaction…
Ahhh…all ready for lesson one!”
As part of her detailed preparations, Dorothy laminates everything—activity pages, fluency practice sheets, and flashcards—and organizes it all in a great big binder. (Dorothy’s laminator is by far her favorite homeschool organizational item!)
By the way, Dorothy is teaching multiple kids and just loves knowing that everything is prepped and organized in a way that makes it easy to juggle all the levels and lessons every day, all year long. And we totally get that!
If you’ve ever spent time over at our All About Reading and All About Spelling Facebook Support Group, you likely discovered a wide range of ways to prep and organize your AAR materials, and a lot of lighthearted discussion about which method is “best.”
But you know what? There is no best way! All the organizing styles above fit perfectly with All About Reading. While AAR is a scripted, open-and-go program that doesn’t need to be prepped in advance, you’re free to be you. And if that means laminating everything, go for it! But if not, that’s fine too.
All About Reading is an adaptable, approachable, and adjustable program…no matter how it’s prepped. So organize (or not!) to your heart’s content. Because no matter how you prepare and organize your lessons, All About Reading will do exactly what it was designed to do…make reading easy to teach and easy to learn. And that’s the most important thing!
Are you a Simple Samantha, a Weekly Wendy, or a Detailed Dorothy? We would love to hear about it in the comments below.
Brooke
says:I am 100% a Detailed Dorothy. With 3 kids close in age, I love that AAR can be open and go with a bit of prepwork ahead. If I don’t have things ready as soon as I have their attention, it is a battle to get them focused again.
Louise
says:I am a bit of a mix. I punch out and organize all of the cards and tiles at the beginning of the level. For the daily activities, I give my kids a minute or two to play while I cut things out. The activities go in individual ziplocs with the level and lesson number on them, and each level is in a larger freezer bag. It works for me! I’m now using it for my second child, and I’m grateful that everything is cut out already this time around so that I don’t have to interrupt the lesson.
Rachel
says:I’m a combination of # 1 and #3. I cut out, laminate, and organize the activities before the beginning of the school year, but I don’t really study the lessons ahead of time each week. I love that this curriculum is so great for my kids without requiring me to spend time studying it beforehand.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceSounds like a great middle-ground approach to organizing, Rachel! Thanks for sharing.
Julie
says:Love AAR and AAS been using it for a very long time, back to the black and white version! I organized everything in AAR (color edition). Each lesson is in a file folder, the activities are in ziplocs inside the folders (colored folders of course!) Cards are in the file box. Everything is then kept in a large plastic clear “workbox”.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceThank you for sharing how your organize All About Reading, Julie! Sounds like a great system!
Chelsie Ashley
says:I love these ideas, but I agree, whatever works well for each person is best. We just keep each child’s current level in a stack in the living room so we can get to reading on the couch in the mornings. My favorite time!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceI love that reading time is a favorite time for you, Chelsie!
Erica Elliot
says:We love all about reading. We appreciate all the free printables!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceThank you for letting us know you appreciate the printables, Erica!
Nora Mooney
says:I’m a combination of Simple Samantha and Detailed Dorothy ! I think what makes AAR is that there is very little prep and it’s really not necessary to prep at all! However, some activities are so beautiful that they must be laminated!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceThank you, Nora!
Angie Triggs
says:Really appreciate the organization ideas! Thanks!
Robin
says: Customer ServiceYou’re welcome, Angie!
julia v
says:I use binders and page protectors!! I also have a special “Reading Room” where all the books, letter tiles, and binders are kept…its my bedroom!! Makes the kiddos feel extra comfortable while they learn to read.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceI love the idea of a “reading room,” Julia!
Lucinda
says:I like prepping at the beginning of the year and then just open and go from day to day!
Amy D.
says:I love how versatile this program is. Slow down, speed up, prep, don’t prep. As a homeschool parent, I am thriving as much as our kids are.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceSo wonderful to hear you and your students are thriving, Amy! Thank you!
Kim Slease
says:Long ago I put each lesson into a page protector and I reuse the lessons for all my kids. I love how affordable AAR is for large families.
Robin
says: Customer ServiceYes, such a great benefit of organization, Kim!
Kim Freitas
says:I put the whole program in a 3 ring binder with protective sheets and organize each day before each lesson. All I have to do is pull the lesson sheets and cut any activities. Takes under 5 minutes. Usually just 2
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceI like that your method is a blend of preparing the whole year and preparing each day! Thanks for sharing your approach, Kim.
Laura
says:I’m definitely a Simple Samantha. I literally love that AAR is open and go!
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceWonderful, Laura!
Stephanie Rasmussen
says:Prepping is key for me. I have every activity and practice page in sheet protectors, with the lesson number printed on top. It takes a bit to get everything cut and organized, but so worth it. I do 20 lessons one day, then finish the next.
I also only have to do it once, so it’s an easy way to store for future kids and easy to show other parents who might be interested in the program.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceThank you for sharing All About Reading with others, Stephanie!
Rosa
says:I’m a weekly Wendy. I prep 3 weeks at a time to correlate with our 3 weeks on 1 week off school schedule. It helps me to feel prepared without a huge prep ahead.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceSounds like a great approach, Rosa!
Rachel
says:Simple Samantha. :)
Abbie
says:All three depending on the day.
LH
says:A mix of both open & go with a sprinkle of organization!
Beth C.
says:Open and go here and AAR and AAS are so great that for that. Makes it so easy and keeps it fun for all of us.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceKeeping the lessons fun for everyone involved is so important, Beth!
Amy
says:Organization is always great :)
Ellen
says:I try to prepare a few lessons ahead of where we are. Working in batches helps me to not burn out!
Susan McCormick
says:Awesome!
Katie GINDIN
says:This is very reassuring. No one right way.
Natalia Rogers
says:I usually prep the night before. I don’t have a dedicated space, so we use the kitchen/dining table. Everything gets stored back in the tote bag when we’re done. The cut out activities go into a baggie, and the activity sheets into a folder after each lesson.
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceSounds like great organization for small spaces, Natalia!
Barbara Hilton
says:This is wonderful…thank you for the organizational tip!
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceYou’re welcome, Barbara!
Aimee Dempsey
says:I want to be a super organizer but alas, I lack the time.
JAYANN GOODMAN
says:I have been looking for a way to help my Grandson with ADP. I have temporary custody and it would be nice he had gained ground
Robin E.
says: Customer ServiceHave you seen our blog post on Auditory Processing Disorder: 10 Ways to Help Your Child, Jayann? I think you will find it helpful.
If you have questions about placement or anything else, let me know. I’m happy to help!
Cindy
says:I’m definitely the non organized type.
Amanda Kidd
says:Love this! Thank you for the helpful tips!! We’re looking forward to starting this