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Text message terms

Last updated November 3, 2026

These terms apply to the TaleTykes reading tips text message program. They are part of our Terms of service. Our Privacy policy explains how we handle your mobile number.

The program

  • Program name: TaleTykes reading tips.
  • Sent by: TaleTykes, Inc.
  • What you get: short, practical tips about your child's reading practice, such as a sound your child is practicing this week, an idea for practicing it at home, and a note about what your child read. Sign-up messages also include a one-time code to confirm your number.
  • What you don't get: marketing, ads, offers, or messages from anyone else. We don't send marketing texts.

Who can sign up

  • Text tips are for parents and guardians who hold a TaleTykes family account, and the other grown-ups they add to it.
  • You must be 18 or older.
  • You need a US mobile number that can receive text messages. We don't send texts to numbers outside the United States.
  • We never send text messages to children. Don't sign up with a number that a child uses.
  • Teachers and schools can't sign up students' families for texts. Each family decides for itself.

How to sign up

Text tips are off until you turn them on. To sign up:

  1. Sign in to TaleTykes as a grown-up and open your family's notification settings.
  2. Enter your US mobile number.
  3. We text a 6-digit code to that number. The code expires after 10 minutes.
  4. Enter the code in TaleTykes to confirm the number is yours.
  5. Turn on text tips and choose how many a week you want.

Confirming your number and turning on tips is your consent to receive recurring text messages from TaleTykes at that number. Consent is not a condition of buying anything. You can use TaleTykes fully without text tips.

To protect the number's owner, you can ask for a new code at most once a minute and at most 5 times a day, and each code allows up to 5 tries. If you enter a number that isn't yours, the person who owns it can reply STOP and won't hear from us again.

How often we text

  • You choose 1, 2 or 3 tips a week. The most is 3 a week.
  • With 3 a week, tips come on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. With 2, they come on Monday and Friday. With 1, it comes on Friday.
  • We send tips once on each of those days, during the day. We don't send tips between 7:30 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. in the time zone on your account. If a tip day falls in those hours when we send, we skip that day's tip rather than send it late.
  • When you sign up, we also send the one-time codes you ask for.

Message frequency may vary within these limits. We may send fewer tips, for example if there is nothing useful to say about your child's week.

What the messages look like

Each tip is short and starts with a label that says what kind of tip it is. These are examples of the kinds of text we send. The sound, the number of days, and whether your child's name appears depend on your child's week and your settings.

  • Monday, FACT: a sound your child is practicing this week, with a quick game to play at home.
  • Wednesday, TIP: a way to help if your child gets stuck on that sound tonight.
  • Friday, GROWTH: how many days your child read this week, any new sounds learned, and an idea for reading together.
  • Sign-up code: "TaleTykes code: 123456. It expires in 10 minutes. Reply STOP to stop."

Tips never include links, offers, or requests for personal information. If you get a text that claims to be from TaleTykes and asks for a password, a card number or a payment, don't reply. Forward it to us through Contact us.

Message and data rates

Message and data rates may apply, depending on your mobile plan. TaleTykes doesn't charge for text tips. Ask your carrier about the cost of receiving text messages.

How to stop

You can stop text tips at any time, in either of these ways:

  • Reply STOP to any TaleTykes text. We also accept STOPALL, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, END and QUIT. Tips stop for every TaleTykes family that uses that number. You will get one message confirming you've opted out, and no further tips.
  • Turn text tips off, or remove your number, in your family's notification settings.

Every tip ends with "Reply STOP to stop."

How to get help

  • Reply HELP to any TaleTykes text for information about the program and how to reach us.
  • Visit Contact us or the Help center.

How to start again

If you replied STOP and want tips again:

  • Reply START to a TaleTykes text so your carrier and our text provider allow messages from us to that number again.
  • Then turn text tips back on in your family's notification settings. Replying START on its own doesn't turn tips back on.

Your child's name

Tips say "your child" unless you choose to include your child's first name. You choose that in your notification settings, and it applies only if you have also allowed us to use your child's first name in messages to you, as our Notice for parents describes. We never put a child's last name, school, or any other identifying detail in a text.

A tip is about one child in your family. If you have more than one child, tips may be about the child whose space was set up first.

What we do with your number

  • We keep your mobile number in your family's settings, and use it only to send the texts you asked for.
  • We send your number and the text of each message to our text message provider, Twilio Inc., only so the message can be delivered. Twilio is listed on our Subprocessors page.
  • We don't sell your number, share it for advertising, or use it for marketing.
  • When you remove your number, we stop using it. We keep records of messages sent, and opt-outs, as our Retention schedule describes.

See our Privacy policy for more about how we handle personal information, and our Notice for parents for how we handle children's information.

Carriers

Wireless carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. Delivery depends on your carrier and your phone's coverage, and isn't guaranteed. TaleTykes is also not responsible for messages that are delayed or not delivered for reasons outside our control.

Supported carriers may change. If your carrier doesn't support text messages from businesses, you may not receive tips.

If you change or lose your number

If you change your mobile number, or your phone is lost or given to someone else, remove the number from your family's notification settings, or reply STOP from that phone first. Then confirm your new number if you want tips to continue. You are responsible for telling us if a number you gave us is no longer yours.

Changes to these terms

We may change these terms or the program, or end the program. We post changes on this page with the date. If a change matters to you, such as more messages a week, we tell you before it takes effect, by text or by email.

Contact

Questions about text tips: Contact us. Privacy questions: privacy@taletykes.com.

TaleTykes, Inc. Our mailing address is available on request from legal@taletykes.com.