Tessy & Tab By Age And Stage

The Tessy & Tab Books have everything it takes…

to capture and hold your child’s attention, to show your child that books are fun, and to help them start down the path that will take them from the reading pictures stage, through the sound-it-out phase, and finally to the reading sentences stage.

Every child is different and will respond to different parts of the books at different times, yet every child is wired to decode the things they encounter and are interested in in their world. Tessy and Tab capture your child’s interest, and your child’s natural inclination takes over.

Our unique balance of information-rich illustration with a single sentence of real language is why our books span the ages and stages. Your child will see right away that Tessy & Tab books are different – there is a greater ratio of picture to text. This means that there is at least as much information to be gathered from the pictures as from the words and that helps at every level.

Reading Pictures:
Your child will naturally have fun pointing to and naming all the familiar objects and activities in their books. Ask questions and talk about everything that interests your child on the page. When you are done with that, say, “OK, now let’s read the sentence!” and point at each word as you say it. A word is a picture too, and it tells readers what to say. Through pointing, you are making this connection.

Sound-It-Out:
When your child knows their alphabet, it is fun for them to try it out. Join them in the time, patience, and trial it takes to decode the letter-to-sound connections. Do not over correct. Encourage them to try again. Help them find clues to give a boost. Sometimes the word is in the illustration. Every time they recognize a word from before, congratulate them on this new word.

First Sentences:
As your child begins to master the letter-to-sound decoding and build their sight word inventory, they will begin to want to try to do it all by themselves. With just one sentence per page, these books are ideal to encourage sentence reading and build confidence. Show your child that in the Tessy & Tab books, the words they’ve read on the left page are often also on the right page. Matching words are there to draw them forward.

  

 

 

Motivation and Reading Rituals

We have gathered the best practices in building independent reading skills, and developed the perfect books and tools to guide your child from reading pictures to reading words and sentences. Our program is all about play. The foundation of learning to read is the motivation to interact with books and printed words. Here are some of the ways The Tessy & Tab Reading Club will spark your child’s enthusiasm:

Your child will love their new friends, Tessy and Tab. First things first. You do what you love. Tessy and Tab are preschoolers, just like your child. They are in the real world, with things your child knows, doing things your child loves to do, and exploring things your child wonders about. Familiarity brings comfort and expertise.

Your child will begin to see herself or himself as a reader.Your child will build a collection of books that they are excited by because they can read them, with you, or all by themselves. No matter what age your child is, the stories and activities are accessible to them. The books are designed to reveal new layers of what books and reading can offer as your child naturally gains understanding and moves forward.

Your child will be excited by the daily (or nightly) delivery ritual of Tessy & Tab books.Getting a new book every day is exciting. Seeing what Tessy and Tab are doing in every new book is great fun. Whether you decide to put your child’s blue durable woven nylon Tessy & Tab Delivery Envelope in with the daily mail, or have it be a bedtime delivery, the moment of arrival is magical.

Your child will be proud of their big collection, and they will have fun keeping track. With every new book, your child gets the thrill of finding that book on their BIG, beautiful Tessy & Tab Collection Poster, placing their “I read it!” sticker on the poster and tucking the new book into its color-coded section in their sturdy Tessy & Tab Library Box.
After the child has received their full collection of 60 Tessy & Tab books, they will continue to want to play with them every day. You can evolve your ritual from receiving a new book to picking out their five favorites, reading those, and tucking them into the orange durable woven nylon Tessy & Tab Travel Tote to be ready to go anywhere your child wants to take them.