About April McMurtrey
A life devoted to teaching the world to read.
Certified dyslexia specialist, reading educator, author, and creator of the McMurtrey Method — April has spent 25+ years helping struggling readers find their confidence and love of reading.
After years working as a reading specialist, I kept seeing the same pattern: bright, capable children who were convinced they were "just bad readers." They weren't. They had been failed by programs that didn't understand how reading actually works in the brain.
"Every child CAN learn to read. They just need to be taught the right way."
I developed the McMurtrey Method after years of research and practice — combining the best of Orton-Gillingham structured literacy with three proprietary techniques discovered through my own students: Pencil Reading, the Vowel Placement Strategy, and Give a Goal.
The results spoke for themselves. Parents started calling. Educators requested training. And so Learn Reading was born — to make these resources available to every family and classroom that needs them.
01
Pencil Reading
A unique tracking technique that keeps struggling readers focused on the text and eliminates the skipping and re-reading that slows them down.
02
Vowel Placement Strategy
A systematic approach to vowel sounds that finally makes English spelling rules make sense — even for dyslexic learners who've struggled for years.
03
Give a Goal
A comprehension framework that teaches students to read with purpose — transforming passive decoding into active, meaningful understanding.