About TaleTykes

Books checked word by word.

We’re a small US company making daily reading and writing practice for Pre-K to Grade 8. Every book fits the sounds a child knows and is checked before they read it.

Why we built it

“Decodable” should mean every word

Most kids learn to read by learning sounds in an order and then reading books made of those sounds. The order is well studied. The books are the problem: a shelf sorted by level still hands every child the same ten titles, and “decodable” on a cover is a hope, not a promise.

A computer can now write a book for one child, from the sounds they know and the things they like. It can also get a word wrong. So we built two things together: a way to make the book, and a checker, written as ordinary tested code, that reads every word against the child’s sequence and throws the book out if any word fails.

Everything else follows from that. The privacy rules, the three-book shelf, the weekly note, the writing coach that asks instead of answers: they’re all ways of keeping the promise small enough to keep.

What we believe

Six things we hold ourselves to

1
Reading is a sequence, so teach it as one
Sounds, then patterns, then syllables, then meaning. Books should follow that order, not run ahead of it. A child who only reads what they can decode learns that reading works.
2
Made for one child beats chosen for one child
A library sorted by level still hands every child the same books. Writing each book from one child’s own sounds and interests is possible now, and it changes what a book can do.
3
A guarantee has to be code
“Decodable” is a promise about every single word. An AI’s best guess isn’t a promise. Our checker is plain code, tested, and the reason a book can get thrown out.
4
Less to protect
Kids never type to an AI, names never leave the device, there are no ads or trackers, and you say yes to each feature. Privacy is easier when you collect less.
5
No tricks
No streaks to lose, no loot, no feeds, no notifications to kids. A good week is a few books read well, and the shelf closes when it’s done.
6
Plain words for grown-ups
We tell you what happened and what to do next. Reading speed against norms is a check-in, not a diagnosis, and we say so every time we show it.

How we work

Small, open, and careful

We’re a small team and we say so. We don’t publish user counts we haven’t earned, quotes nobody gave us, or research we didn’t do. When we cite a norm or a study, we name it.

Our legal documents are written to be read, and we keep every version we’ve ever published. Our subprocessor list, retention schedule and AI note are public, and we tell families before any of them change.

If something’s wrong, tell us. A book, a word, a sentence on this site. We read every message and we reply.