Hooked on Phonics and TaleTykes
Hooked on Phonics describes itself as a step-by-step phonics method, with an app and printed materials. TaleTykes writes new books to the sounds your child already knows.
How the two differ
The right-hand column is limited to what Hooked on Phonics says about itself on its own site, and each line is sourced and dated at the foot of this page.
| What | TaleTykes | Hooked on Phonics, in its own words |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | New books, written and illustrated for your child when they ask for one. | A step-by-step phonics method: app lessons, plus books and workbooks sent each month. |
| How the sounds are handled | Each book is written to the phonics phase your child is on, and the words are checked against it before a picture is drawn. | One sound at a time, with a child moving at their own pace. |
| What arrives | Nothing in the post. Every book can be printed or saved from the browser. | Storybooks, workbooks and stickers each month. |
| Who the story is about | Whoever your child chose, and they can be in it themselves. | Storybooks built on its letter-sound lessons. |
Books to go with the sounds
Once a child can blend a few sounds, it helps to have plenty of text they can decode. That is what we write. The order the sounds come in, and the words each phase can read, are published on our phonics page.
What TaleTykes costs
Every new family gets 3 days free with 2 books included. If you cancel before it ends, we charge nothing.
Sprout
$12.99 a month
For one or two young readers.
Grove
$24.99 a month
For a houseful.
Questions
Is TaleTykes a phonics programme?
No. There are no lessons or worksheets. We publish the order of sounds we write to, and each book keeps to the sounds your child has been taught, plus a few words learned by sight, so a programme and these books can run side by side.
Can I match the books to the programme we use?
Yes. Choose the phonics phase closest to where your child is in your programme, and move it on when they do. Our phases are our own, so they will not match any programme exactly.
Where these facts come from
- Hooked on Phonics describes itself as a step-by-step phonics method, taught one sound at a time, with a child moving at their own pace. hookedonphonics.com, read on 25 September 2026.
- It says books, workbooks and stickers come to your door each month, matched to the lessons in its app, which has games and songs. hookedonphonics.com, read on 25 September 2026.
- Its site sets out paths for preschool, kindergarten, first grade and second grade, and describes its storybooks as built on letter-sound lessons. hookedonphonics.com, read on 25 September 2026.
Also worth reading
Last checked on 25 September 2026.
Product and company names on this page belong to their owners and are used to say which product is meant. TaleTykes is not affiliated with any of them, none of them has endorsed TaleTykes, and this page is not an endorsement of any product. Prices and offers change: any quoted here are as of the month shown, and the company’s own site has the current ones. If anything here has gone out of date, tell us at support@taletykes.com and we will correct it.
Try a book written to their sounds
You get 3 days free with 2 books included, and we charge nothing if you cancel before the trial ends.