AVKO Educational Research Foundation is a non-profit organization devoted to helping teachers, parents, and researchers as they teach reading, spelling, and keyboarding to students with mild learning disabilities and dyslexia. Don McCabe began AVKO in 1974, and is the creator of the popular Sequential Spelling curriculum.
AVKO's website offers many free resources on their FREEBIES page (The Complete I Before E Rule, Latin and Greek Roots), but they also have an affordable membership option which provides access to many more materials. The membership options allows you to download many of Don McCabe's e-books for only a $25 annual membership. The following information on membership benefits was taken directly from their website.
Benefits of AVKO Basic Membership ($25 per year):
- 25% discounts on AVKO printed materials
- Hundreds of dollars worth of FREE e-books (PDF)
- The Patterns of English Spelling (All 10 Volumes) with Word Families in Sentence Context
- To Teach a Dyslexic
- Starting at Square One
- The Teaching of Reading & Spelling: a Continuum from Kindergarten through College.
- The Reading Teacher's List of Over 5,500 Basic Spelling Words
- Access to the Member Only section
- AVKO Newsletter with freebies, discounts, resources, and promotions
- Access to Don McCabe's most popular workshop recordings in MP3 format.
- Supplemental Curriculum Materials including word games, worksheets, activities, and more!
- Access to Pretests and Placement Tests
- Access to the Answer Keys for the Unscramblers and Family Reunion exercises of the Engaging Language Kits
Benefits of AVKO Deluxe Membership ($100 per year):
- Access to all of the benefits of AVKO's Basic Membership
- 25% discount off ALL materials ordered
- Read-only access to ALL AVKO curriculum materials (except for Sequential Spelling and Engaging Language Kits)
- Access to AVKO's newest e-books:
- Word Family Supplements 1-7 for Sequential Spelling
- Spelling Remediation Test Kit
What do I think?
I've not used Sequential Spelling, nor do I have a dyslexic student, so I hadn't really looked at AVKO or its e-books before. But if I had a child struggling to learn to read or spell, then buying at least ONE basic membership subscription would be beneficial. To Teach A Dyslexic is sold for $14.95, but for only ten dollars more ($25.00) a member receives that e-book as well as many other helpful resources. The Patterns of English Spelling e-books are sold for $39.95, but members receive all ten e-books free.
If your child struggles with spelling or reading, or you are tutoring children with disabilities or dyslexia, then the AVKO membership is an affordable and helpful resource. Even if you only join once, in order to download and save the e-books, it can be beneficial if your child has a need. The website has a plethora of information, although it isn't always easy to locate.
In our home, this isn't something we need at this time. BUT if I suspected dyslexia in one of my children, I would definitely turn to AVKO for help.
This item was provided free for our review as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew. We received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion. Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner at the top to read more reviews on this product by other Homeschool Crew members.
Trusting In Him,
April
