Institute of Reading Development
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Live Online Reading Tutoring · Pre-K to grade 5

When reading is still hard work, a live teacher makes it easier.

Enroll your child

You pick your day and time during checkout.

A girl sits on a window seat, smiling as she reads Kanga's New Shoes.

Who we are

More than three million families have trusted the Institute of Reading Development since 1970.

56Years providing reading instruction to children
250K+Children taught in live-online sessions
1,320+Google reviews · 4.5 stars on Trustpilot from 655 reviews

In our 56 years, more than 200 colleges, universities, and school districts have chosen to offer our reading programs in their communities.

As featured in
TIMEUSA TodayReutersAssociated PressCBS NewsChicago TribuneNew York Daily NewsSFGATE

For children in Pre-K through fifth grade, wherever their reading is today.

Your child might be just starting to hear the sounds in words, reading slowly and working hard at it, or reading fine and rarely choosing a book. Each of those is a stage of reading, not a verdict.

When a child avoids reading, it usually isn't defiance. Reading hasn't become easy enough to enjoy yet. Skill makes reading easier, easier reading builds confidence, and confidence makes a child want to read more. Every part of that is teachable.

Child in grade 6 or above? See our grade 6 and up program →

It works because it's one connected week, not four separate things.

A live teacher starts the week, with a small group of about four children, never more than six, or with your child alone. Between classes, your child does four short online lessons, 15 to 20 minutes each. The week ends with a skills check you can see.

Day 1 Live class The teacher introduces the week’s skill, shows how it works, and opens the week’s book.
Four short online lessons · 15 to 20 minutes a day
Day 2 Guided reading Reads the week’s story, with questions built in.
Day 3 Skills lesson Learns a new reading skill directly.
Day 4 Fluency practice Reads a passage from the story smoothly and with expression.
Day 5 Skills check A short quiz on the week's skill. The teacher sees what landed and what did not, before the next class.
No assigned work
Day 6 · Day 7 Reread the week’s book, or read one of their own choosing.
Then it begins again.

All four online lessons can be done in one sitting, but we recommend spreading them out over the week, one a day.

The teacher sees what landed and what did not, before the next class. Then a new week begins.

Teachers we hand-pick, train, and watch teach every week.

The unfair advantage of teaching online: every class is recorded. Every teacher is reviewed. Every parent gets the version of teaching we've trained for, with accountability baked in.

We train every teacher in IRD's specific methodology: how to lead a discussion in a small group. How to draw out a quiet reader. How to redirect a disengaged one. How to use the curriculum we wrote so that it teaches the way it's supposed to teach. Our teachers teach all grades, so they understand the stages of reading development and how to help readers pass them with flying colors.

And then we keep watching. Senior IRD educators review teacher recordings every week, checking that lessons match the curriculum, that students are getting called on, and that no child is being missed. Feedback flows back to the teacher within days.

Your child's teacher isn't just qualified. They're supervised, every week.

Liberty S., IRD reading teacher
"Our programs are warm, encouraging, and very low-pressure. We laugh, celebrate small wins, and mistakes are treated as part of learning — not something to be embarrassed about."
Liberty S.
Reading Teacher
Bella L., IRD reading teacher
"Every child comes in at a different place, and the curriculum gives me the tools to adjust in real time. I watch for the moment a student stops guessing and starts actually reading — and then I build on that. That's when the confidence follows."
Bella L.
Reading Teacher
Rod G., IRD reading teacher
"I have seen immediate confidence and love for reading build in my students, setting them on course for expressive and fluent reading."
Rod G.
Reading Teacher

Three things parents miss when they assume online doesn't work for kids.

  1. A child in a small class gets called on more than a child in a classroom of thirty.About 4 children in a small group, never more than 6, against 30 in a typical classroom. There's nowhere to hide. There's no back row. They read aloud more, they're heard more, and they can't drift, because there is nowhere to drift to.
  2. A child at home is more focused than a child in a classroom.No bus. No hallway drama. No twenty other kids whispering. Just your child, their teacher, a few classmates, and the week's book.
  3. A child who's struggling is harder to ignore in a class of four on a screen than in a classroom of thirty.Their teacher sees them every minute. Sees the moment they're lost. Sees the moment it clicks. The format doesn't hide kids. It surfaces them.

One-on-one tutoring is one teacher and one child, and every session is theirs.

That's not screen time. That's a reading class.

A new book every week, written by our own team.

Pre-K and kindergarten

First grade

Second grade

Third grade

Fourth and fifth grade

A girl laughs as she holds up Frog and Turtle.
More about the books

Every book your child reads is an IRD original, written at a level that matches your child's reading ability. The teacher opens the week's book in class, and your child reads it again in the lessons between classes. As the weeks go on, the books grow more challenging.

Pick the level your child is reading at. Tap any cover to see it larger.

The printed books are optional. Every book is included as an eBook in the online lessons either way. Printed, it's real pages, a real spine, a stack on the shelf that says this kid reads, and a book to reread on the days between lessons.

Don't take our word for it. Take theirs.

"My daughter has only had two sessions and she is reading the words on the screen. Is this real life? I could burst into tears right now."
Sakena W. · Parent of 1st Grader
"By the third week, I saw my child grasping the new sight words. At the fifth week, my child said 'Mommy I can read!'"
Michele · Parent of Kindergartner
"My son had major breakthroughs with reading. He read with expression so clearly you could feel the story come alive."
Rochelle · Parent of 3rd Grader

More than three million families have trusted the Institute of Reading Development since 1970.

Month to month

Choose the format that fits your child.

Live class · about four children, never more than six

Small-Group Reading Program

For a child who would rather read with a few other children.

$199 a month

  • One live class a week, about 50 minutes, with an IRD teacher
  • Four short online lessons between classes, 15 to 20 minutes each
  • A skills check you can see, every week
  • A free assessment, scheduled separately from class
  • A reassessment every six weeks, with a short note from the teacher

Printed books, optional: four books a month for $22 a month.

Enroll in the small group

Two sessions to decide. The terms are just below.

One teacher · one child

1:1 Private Tutoring

For a child who does best with a teacher working with them alone.

$349 a month

  • One live session a week, about 50 minutes, one-on-one with an IRD teacher, who adapts the curriculum to your child
  • Four short online lessons between sessions, 15 to 20 minutes each
  • A skills check you can see, every week
  • A free assessment as part of the first lesson
  • A reassessment every six weeks, with a short note from the teacher

Printed books, optional: four books a month for $22 a month.

Enroll in 1:1 tutoring

Two sessions to decide. The terms are just below.

Both are month to month. You pay when you enroll, and the plan bills once a calendar month until you stop it. Nothing is owed past the month you have already paid for. You pick your day and time during checkout.

How it starts

Pick a day and time at checkout and start this week.

Every child starts with a free assessment. In 1:1 tutoring, it is part of the first lesson. In the small group, we schedule it separately from class, but you don't have to wait for the assessment to start the lessons.

Every six weeks: a reassessment and a note from the teacher

Every six weeks, you see where your child's reading stands: a reassessment by their teacher, and a short note on where they are reading now, compared with where they started.

Every six weeks, for as long as your child continues, your child's teacher reassesses their reading. With each reassessment, the teacher sends you a short note on where your child is reading now, compared with where they started.

You enroll one month at a time. The first reassessment comes after six weeks of classes, so it falls in your child's second month. From then on it comes every six weeks, for as long as your child continues.

Printed books (optional)

Add four printed books a month for $22 a month. The books are shipped to your home.

If you add the books, we try to ship your first set the next business day. Your child can start reading the eBooks in the online lessons right away, so class never waits for the books.

You can stop the printed books at any time and keep going with the program.

Stopping

Stop at any time by emailing help@readingprograms.org. We need your request at least 3 days before your next billing date to stop the next charge.

Every small group caps at six, so families who enroll sooner get the widest choice of days and times.

The two-session decision window

Try the first two sessions.

The school year is not the summer. Our programs are built for both, sized to be doable and sustainable alongside school, not an extra burden. You can't know until you've lived a couple of weeks of the program whether this time, this teacher, and this workload fit your school-year week. So the first two sessions exist for you to find out, and if it doesn't fit, we return the tuition.

If this is your child's first school-year program with us, tuition is refunded in full if you tell us you want to stop within 48 hours after the end of the second scheduled session, or within 21 days of purchase, whichever comes first. Email help@readingprograms.org to request the refund. This is a decision window on a purchase you have already made, and your enrollment continues normally unless you tell us to stop it.

Backed by the IRD Triple Guarantee

Right Teacher. If the teacher is not the right fit, we rematch you within 7 days at no charge, plus one additional session with the new teacher at no charge.

Right Level. If your child was placed wrong, we re-place them within 7 days at no charge.

Right Outcome. If your child attends at least 90 percent of scheduled sessions and completes at least 90 percent of assigned practice, over a period of at least four weeks, and does not make measurable reading progress, we provide four further weeks of instruction at no charge.

The Triple Guarantee applies for as long as your child is enrolled. The Right Outcome is assessed over a minimum of four weeks and requires both the 90 percent attendance condition and the 90 percent practice condition. After the decision window, tuition already paid is not refunded; you may stop future billing at any time, and these guarantees continue to apply for as long as your child is enrolled. To make a claim, email help@readingprograms.org.

Your options

We know you have options. Let's compare them.

What you getReading appsYou teach them yourselfA local tutor or learning centerIRD
TeacherNoneYou. Every correction feels personal.Variable training, no oversightA teacher trained in our method, supervised by a senior reading teacher
CurriculumAlgorithm, no teacherWhatever you can find onlineWhatever the tutor bringsWritten and refined over 56 years
BooksPublic-domain or licensedWhatever you can findWhatever the tutor sourcesOriginal IRD books, written for this
Progress checksPoints and badges, not reading skillsYour best guessDepends on the tutorFree assessment; weekly skills check; reassessment every six weeks
Your timeLogging in, keeping them on taskPlanning and teaching, every weekDriving there and waitingA weekly teacher-led class; four short lessons a week that students can navigate by themselves
Quality controlAutomated, no human reviewNo one to check your approachNone: closed doorRecordings reviewed weekly
Cost$10–20 a monthFree, except your sanity and patience$65–130 an hour, or $200+ per weekLess than $50 a week small group; less than $88 a week 1:1

Straight answers

What does it cost?

$199 a month for the Small-Group Reading Program, or $349 a month for 1:1 Private Tutoring. Printed books are optional, four books a month for $22 a month, billed on the same schedule as the program. Every book is included as an eBook in the online lessons either way. You pay when you enroll, and it bills once a calendar month until you stop it. Nothing is owed past the month you've already paid for.

What is the difference between the small group and one-on-one?

The number of children in the session, and the price. A small group is about four children, never more than six, with one teacher. One-on-one is one teacher and one child, and the teacher adapts the same curriculum to exactly where your child is.

How does my child get started?

You pick your day and time during checkout, and your child can start this week. Every child starts with a free assessment. In one-on-one, it is part of the first lesson. In the small group, we schedule it separately from class.

What if it isn't the right fit?

The first two sessions exist so you can find out whether the schedule, the teacher, and the workload fit your family. If they do not, tell us within 48 hours after the end of the second scheduled session, or within 21 days of purchase, whichever comes first, and we return the tuition in full. Email help@readingprograms.org. This applies to your child's first school-year program with us.

What if we need to stop?

Email help@readingprograms.org at least 3 days before your next billing date, and the next charge won't happen. Nothing is owed past the month you've already paid for.

What if my child misses a class?

Tell us at least 24 hours ahead and we schedule a make-up lesson, so your child doesn't lose instruction time. With less notice, tell us anyway and we'll do what we reasonably can. The session recording and that week's book stay available either way. Email help@readingprograms.org.

Can we pause later?

Yes. You may pause once per calendar year, for up to 90 days, by emailing help@readingprograms.org. Billing and classes stop together and start again together. We do our best to hold your place, but we can't promise the same schedule or the same teacher when you return.

Why not wait and see if my child grows out of it?

Because reading develops in stages, not on a birthday, and the build either keeps moving or it stalls. Skill makes reading easier, easier reading builds confidence, confidence makes a child want to read more, and reading more is what builds the next skill. Once that cycle is turning, it carries itself. When it isn't turning, waiting doesn't start it.

What grades is this for?

Pre-K through fifth grade. Our teachers teach all grades, so they understand the stages of reading development and where your child is in them. Child in grade 6 or above? See our grade 6 and up program →

How do I reach someone?

Email help@readingprograms.org. We answer enrollment questions there.

Put them in the reading program kids actually do.

Enroll your child

You pick your day and time during checkout.

Questions first? Write to us at help@readingprograms.org.