Our Story

Innovation from the Head. And Heart.

EarlyBird is the product of breakthrough science and a boundless dedication to the role reading plays in the lives of children.

As a developmental neuroscientist at Boston Children’s Hospital, Dr. Nadine Gaab developed a screener shown to be effective at predicting which children would develop dyslexia and other reading disorders. Recognizing that educators lacked easy to administer, evidence-based tools to find these children early, Dr. Gaab partnered with the Boston Children’s Hospital Digital Health Accelerator to create the Boston Early Literacy Screener (BELS).

Dr. Yaacov Petscher’s work blends quantitative methods of measuring and analyzing student reading skills with creative use of emerging technologies in education. Recognizing the potential to transform lives, Dr. Gaab and Dr. Petscher brought together years of research, data and expertise to create EarlyBird.

As the parent of a child with dyslexia, and leader of the Accelerator while BELS was in development, Carla Small combined forces with Drs. Gaab and Petscher to launch EarlyBird.

The Challenge

Two-thirds of 4th grade children in the U.S. are not reading at grade-level. Our purpose is to give every child what they need to maximize their personal potential to learn to read.

of fourth graders are not
reading on grade level.

of school age children are
diagnosed with dyslexia.

chance of having dyslexia when a
parent/sibling has dyslexia.

Motivated to Make a Difference

Reading is a fundamental right, but life is harder for those who don’t make the transition from learning to read to reading to learn in the elementary years.

70% of those reading at a below average level in first grade will still be reading at a below average level in 8th grade.
A child that doesn’t read is vulnerable to feelings of shame, failure, inadequacy, helplessness, depression, and loneliness.
Struggling readers are 4X more likely to drop out of school.
Children with learning disabilities are at an increased risk of entering the juvenile justice system.

Early Intervention Changes Outcomes

Taking a preventive approach makes a difference. Intervention in kindergarten/first grade was shown to be 25-50% more effective than waiting until 2nd/3rd grades. The majority of students, even students identified at risk, will achieve at least average reading with appropriate early intervention – 56-92% achieve average reading.

Get in touch for a demonstration of EarlyBird today!

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