THE STORY OF TESSY & TAB 
by: Linda Collier

Love Words Early 
In 1990, Judy Johnston and Rosie Welch first tested the idea of a magazine for preschoolers. Judy, a North Miami Beach native whose parents were both teachers in Miami-Dade public schools, was working for Hewlett Packard and volunteering nights at a children's hospital. She quickly noticed that very young kids were already spending lots of time watching the television. The more she interacted with the kids, the more she wondered about how they were getting hooked on TV. Then it dawned on her: what they liked about TV was that they could "do it themselves". 
So why not create a reading experience that young children could "do themselves"? Judy teamed up with Rosie Welch, an established artist and illustrator from Scotland, and together they evolved the idea into a magazine with engaging characters and illustrations that captures the imagination of today's media-savvy children.
Even though they tested the magazine with parents and children and received excellent feedback, Judy and Rosie put this idea on hold as their "real" careers were progressing. In 1995, they left their jobs to become entrepreneurs – founding PrintPaks, a children's software company, and later Kibu, a web community for teenage girls. 
Twelve years later and successful entrepreneurial experiences behind them, Judy and Rosie were ready to return to their original idea and launched The Tessy & Tab Reading Club. 

Meet Tessy & Tab
Imagine the excitement and anticipation of four year old Bradley as he races to the mailbox. “Is it a Tessy & Tab day?” He pulls open the mailbox and sees the familiar recycled brown envelope with his name in big bold letters. Tearing open the envelope, Bradley sits down to read his latest Tessy & Tab magazine titled “Play at the Park”. Another adventure begins…
According to co-founder Judy Johnston, “Learning to read and write starts at home, long before children go to school. The Tessy & Tab Reading Club provides simple and fun tools to begin weaving language and literacy into a preschooler's life.”
Preschool age children go through a process of “getting ready to read” where they gain specific skills. The Tessy & Tab Reading Club is designed to help your child build the Six Early Literacy Skills endorsed by the U.S. Department of Education.

Parent Tools and Learning Kits
Over the last six years, Judy and Rosie have seen thousands of parents and preschoolers fall in love with Tessy & Tab. Children from across the United States and even internationally share their favorite Tessy & Tab story or moment and parents asked for more tools and learning products. 
Because Tessy & Tab engage in “real” preschooler activities, Judy and Rosie decided to create learning kits to help families learn about important topics. 

Money Manager Kit
Parents want a system to set their young kids on a path to understanding money. The Tessy & Tab Money Manager Kit provides parents with a 7-step process for teaching their young children the basics about money and helps build a child's financial skills and enthusiasm for managing their own money. The kit contains:

• 3 books featuring Tessy & Tab with money
• Parent's Guide To Building Early 
• Financial Skills 
• 7 Step Program with Allowance Calculator 
• Kids' Posters and Job Charts 
• 3-Part Bank: Save, Spend & Share

Kindergarten Confidence Kit
Preschoolers getting ready to start kindergarten may feel a little anxious as they get used to new routines, teachers and friends. This kit provides answers to common preschool-age questions and helps make the transition to Kindergarten as easy as possible. The kit contains:

• 4 books featuring Tessy & Tab preparing 
• for Kindergarten
• Parent's Guide To Kindergarten 
• Readiness 
• 3-Step Program that starts one 
• month before school 
• Kids' School Stuff Vocabulary Chart 
• DVD featuring a Real Day at Kindergarten

TV Turn Off Kit
Extensive research shows kids who spend 2+ hours per day watching TV are more likely to exhibit violent behavior, poor school performance, and a higher intake of junk food. On the flip side, kids who spend less time glued to a screen are less prone to violence, do better in school, and are less likely to be obese.
The Tessy & Tab TV Turnoff Kits provide parents with a 6-step guide to reprogram family leisure time bringing healthy activities such as reading, exercise or creative projects back into their lives. The kit contains:

• Parent's Guide to Managing 
• Preschool Screen Time
• Four Tessy & Tab Books (Plant A 
• Garden, Flag Football, Making 
• Monsters, TV Turn Off )
• Chart to Prepare for Successful 
• TV Turnoff Week 
• Chart to Help Build New Routine With Less TV 

Between fielding customer calls, creating new products and running the business - Judy, Rosie and their small team feel excited about the future for Tessy & Tab. Judy notes “We receive so many phone calls and emails from our subscribers telling us how much their child adores Tessy and Tab. This feedback from our customers reinforces the importance of engaging reading material for young kids and gives us the energy we need to keep up with the challenges of running a small business.”
Parents can learn more about The Tessy & Tab Reading Club by visiting their website at www.tessyandtab.com or calling 1-800-921-3284.