Shurley English Instructional Material Review

June 12, 2026

Shurley English Instructional Material Review

The review of Shurley English Instructional Materials highlights its effectiveness for teaching English language arts to special needs children. The structured curriculum emphasizes multi-sensory learning and requires minimal preparation, making it suitable for homeschooling. Despite some limitations in independent work and writing instruction, it fosters confidence and skill retention in students.

My review of Shurley English Instructional Material and Homeschool Curriculum.

This review was prompted by my use of Shurley English. As a Speech-Language Pathologist serving special needs children with Attention-Deficit and Hyeractivivity Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Receptive and Expressive Language Disorders and Auditory Processing Disorders. I found it useful for my students. However, I have consulted my long-time friend and colleague for valuable input. Her use of this curriculum in her private practice spans 3 decades.

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Caveat

Neither one of us has used the Digital material.
Neither of us receive any remuneration for this review.

Audience for this Shirley English:

Parent(s) homeschooling their special needs child.
Special needs child(ren) who thrive on structure and repetition.
Your special needs child require support for struggling English Language Arts or auditory comprehension.

If you are any of the above, consider this material for your use with your child(ren).

Shirley English Summary:

Shurley English Instructional Materials is a English language arts program for students in grades 1-7 covering grammar, skills, writing and reading. A teacher’s manual, student workbook, and CD are available for each grade level. This program is highly structured with teacher-student interaction for each lesson. Daily lessons take about 30-60 minutes to complete. Both Print and Digital materials are available. The company offers documented research and efficacy studies as the basis for the teaching models and methods employed in the curriculum. My colleague and I have found this curriculum requires minimal preparation, is easy to implement, and adaptable to use with students requiring support for developing language arts.

Our opinion about Shurley English Instructional material (not all features reviewed):

It uses concrete steps to build reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills through defining a concept, daily skill practice for the concept, progressing from reading to writing, and finally speaking effectively.

Early Reading

Feature	Comment
Early reading	Uses a logical, systematic, and multi-sensory approach well suited for students struggling with making a connection between letters and words. User-friendly to parents with no formal education background.
Sound Jingles	Uses a multi-sensory modality through rhyme, rhythm, and movement helps to input the target skill.
Sound Cards	Uses auditory and visual inputs along with daily practice to teach phonemic awareness and decoding (foundational for proficient reading).
Multi-sensory techniques	Uses visual, auditory, and kinesthetic modalities that are invaluable for building brain pathways to master foundational skills of language and reading, especially for children with special needs.
Word Analysis	Uses all modes of sensory input: kinesthetic, visual, and auditory inputs paired with daily practice turns “invisible decoding strategies into visible hands-on learning”.

Making the Connection: Grammar and Writing

Question and Answer	Uses a question-and-answer teaching mode to fosters the learning of concepts (i.e. “noun”, “verb”) not in isolation, but in the context of a whole sentence/thought. Each concept is reinforced as new concepts are introduced (“adjective”, “adverb”).
Sentence Blueprints	Uses sentence blueprints for writing gives structure for children struggling to know where to begin writing sentences.
Skills	Uses multiple opportunities to practice solidifies the targeted skill including vocabulary, mechanics, usage, and editing. All skills necessary for understanding and application in independent work.
Writing	Uses a logical sequence of skills taught for the end skill of writing essays includes paragraph organization for the given purpose of the essay. Supports for teaching and weaker language skill include writing check lists.
Speaking and Listening	Uses discussion guidelines for speaking and active listening, critical thinking strategies are explicitly taught bridging the gap between learned reading and writing skills for informal and formal speaking situations.

Additional Comments:

Builds English and grammar early on boosting confidence for learning to read.
The curriculum is a “cookbook” beneficial for parents with no formal educational in teaching 1english grammar background.
Little preparation required for Question-and-Answer technique of teaching the concepts.
Little preparation required for of the student material.
Builds vocabulary that helps shift attention from simply understanding language to thinking about, discussing, and analyzing language itself.
The teaching and learning process easily generalizes to other subject matter in the upper grades such as literature, history, science, math.
Easily adaptable to leveling up or down in accordance with the child’s strengths or weaknesses.
Provides repeated opportunities to practice receptive language skills such as answering questions or paragraph retention.
Teaches essential vocabulary for learning to read, write, and speak.
Fills in the “potholes” for learning to read. “Smooths” and “repairs” weak skills for “onward and upward” reading progress.

Highly structured using multi-sensory modalities and skill repetition helpful for children struggling with reading.
Children like the jingles designed to facilitate learning of the concepts and still use them after graduation.
Good retention of grammar skills.
Parent resources for helping your child complete the homework.
Competitive pricing.

Some parents reported that the teacher’s guide is difficult to use.
Much effort in teaching in the beginning.
Not suitable for independent work.
Weak in teaching the process for the writing component.
More color needed in the materials.

Parent reviews from personal use of Shurley Instructional material:

Parent: “I have learned more about English from this than I ever did in school.”

Student: “It (English) makes it so much easier.”

The parents and students served by my colleague in private therapy reported that the kids went to school telling them what they learned. The teacher responded with “We haven’t gotten there yet, but we will.”

Suggestions for use of the material:

Start on a level lower than your child is currently functioning. This builds early success and confidence for learning new skills.

Progress through the material as quickly or slowly based on the needs of your child(ren). The number of practice sheets can be reduced if the target skill is mastered.

The practice sheets can be completed slowly when the concept or task is particularly challenging for your child.

Pricing info:

Levels 1-6 Complete set of materials includes Teacher’s Manual, Student Book,
Jingle Time Audio Subscription, Sentence Booklet, Sentence Booklet key for $181.00.

Levels 7-8 Complete set of materials includes Teacher’s Manual, Student Book,
Jingle Time Audio Subscription key for $157.00.

Levels 1-8 Complete Digital material includes Digital Classroom: Annual Subscription and Add-on Digital Student Book:
Annual Subscription for $363.00