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Niels Hoven 🐮

@NielsHoven • 33,736 subscribers

Founder and CEO of @MentavaInc. Building early literacy software for preschoolers. Help me bring back excellence in education. Father of 4.

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Actually, Matt, some parents give tablets to their 4yos to teach them how to read (I think this girl is younger than 4)

Actually, Matt, some parents give tablets to their 4yos to teach them how to read (I think this girl is younger than 4)

396,684 views

At this point the “no screens” thing is just self-sabotage virtue signaling. You can buy some overpriced artisan wooden blocks to make yourself feel superior, or accept that new technology is more convenient, more effective, and more useful in a broader variety of environments

At this point the “no screens” thing is just self-sabotage virtue signaling. You can buy some overpriced artisan wooden blocks to make yourself feel superior, or accept that new technology is more convenient, more effective, and more useful in a broader variety of environments

260,199 views

How many more 2-year-olds do we have to teach to read before people just admit that phonics works?

How many more 2-year-olds do we have to teach to read before people just admit that phonics works?

104,387 views

> "When are you gonna put out some actual data to back up your claims?" Our claim is our software teaches kids to read Our data is videos of kids that we taught to read Not sure why this is so confusing

> "When are you gonna put out some actual data to back up your claims?" Our claim is our software teaches kids to read Our data is videos of kids that we taught to read Not sure why this is so confusing

87,654 views

How long does it take to go from zero to an early 2nd grade reading level? For this 2yo, about 6 months:

How long does it take to go from zero to an early 2nd grade reading level? For this 2yo, about 6 months:

87,547 views

Mentava’s early literacy software has taken 2yos (almost 3) to an early 2nd grade reading level in as little as 3 months. Some people think this is a miracle. I do not. If a kid can learn fast, we let them learn fast. If a kid learns slower, we let them learn slower. This should be common sense, but unfortunately it’s opposed by the National Education Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, the National Council of Teachers in Mathematics, and many other groups who drive education policy. It’s a tragic indictment of our education system that Mentava simply reveals how fast some kids can learn and people think it’s a miracle. Mentava’s early literacy software has two main ingredients: curriculum + motivation There’s nothing revolutionary about Mentava’s curriculum. Our curriculum is a typical, extremely structured phonics curriculum. There is a massive body of evidence (and common sense) backing the idea that kids should learn to read by sounding out words. Armed with any decent phonics curriculum, I would expect a skilled parent/teacher who can motivate, engage, and teach a kid 1-1 on a daily basis over a period of several months to get similar results to our software. (I frequently recommend the book Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons as a cheaper alternative to Mentava.) So why do some families choose to pay $500/month for Mentava? Well, not everyone has the time/motivation/desire to become that teacher. Some people do, and they love that process. On the other hand, some families come to Mentava and say, “I used that book to teach my first child to read. It worked, we both hated it, and I will never do it again.” By contrast, my 4yo wakes me up in the morning asking to do Mentava. He gets mad in the evenings when I don’t have time to do it with him. He LOVES learning to read. What Mentava does exceptionally well is provide motivation and fun - without sacrificing academic rigor. Our team members led some of the top mobile and AAA games in the world. We are very very good at motivation design. In short, we take phonics and gamify it to be as fun, easy, efficient, and motivating as we can possibly make it. So, claims: - Mentava works really, really well for SOME kids - Mentava probably does not work well for ALL kids - Under ideal conditions, other phonics programs will probably perform similarly to Mentava (or better!) No research study will tell you whether Mentava is the best fit for your family. So we offer a two-week free trial. That’s enough time for some families to make it most of the way through our kindergarten curriculum. Use Mentava with the kids it works for. Don't use it with kids for whom it doesn't. Don’t overcomplicate things.

Mentava’s early literacy software has taken 2yos (almost 3) to an early 2nd grade reading level in as little as 3 months. Some people think this is a miracle. I do not. If a kid can learn fast, we let them learn fast. If a kid learns slower, we let them learn slower. This should be common sense, but unfortunately it’s opposed by the National Education Association, the National Council of Teachers of English, the National Council of Teachers in Mathematics, and many other groups who drive education policy. It’s a tragic indictment of our education system that Mentava simply reveals how fast some kids can learn and people think it’s a miracle. Mentava’s early literacy software has two main ingredients: curriculum + motivation There’s nothing revolutionary about Mentava’s curriculum. Our curriculum is a typical, extremely structured phonics curriculum. There is a massive body of evidence (and common sense) backing the idea that kids should learn to read by sounding out words. Armed with any decent phonics curriculum, I would expect a skilled parent/teacher who can motivate, engage, and teach a kid 1-1 on a daily basis over a period of several months to get similar results to our software. (I frequently recommend the book Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons as a cheaper alternative to Mentava.) So why do some families choose to pay $500/month for Mentava? Well, not everyone has the time/motivation/desire to become that teacher. Some people do, and they love that process. On the other hand, some families come to Mentava and say, “I used that book to teach my first child to read. It worked, we both hated it, and I will never do it again.” By contrast, my 4yo wakes me up in the morning asking to do Mentava. He gets mad in the evenings when I don’t have time to do it with him. He LOVES learning to read. What Mentava does exceptionally well is provide motivation and fun - without sacrificing academic rigor. Our team members led some of the top mobile and AAA games in the world. We are very very good at motivation design. In short, we take phonics and gamify it to be as fun, easy, efficient, and motivating as we can possibly make it. So, claims: - Mentava works really, really well for SOME kids - Mentava probably does not work well for ALL kids - Under ideal conditions, other phonics programs will probably perform similarly to Mentava (or better!) No research study will tell you whether Mentava is the best fit for your family. So we offer a two-week free trial. That’s enough time for some families to make it most of the way through our kindergarten curriculum. Use Mentava with the kids it works for. Don't use it with kids for whom it doesn't. Don’t overcomplicate things.

72,839 views

me when I get to teach artists that 3d models can move

me when I get to teach artists that 3d models can move

59,906 views

Tell me: If 1 in 3 fourth graders in our schools can't read at a basic level But phonics software can teach a preschooler to read in a couple months Why are we still debating whether phonics works?

Tell me: If 1 in 3 fourth graders in our schools can't read at a basic level But phonics software can teach a preschooler to read in a couple months Why are we still debating whether phonics works?

29,154 views

When people say that phonics is “too boring” or “doesn’t work”, it’s just an admission that they don’t know how to teach it well. Here’s my son working through one of the most difficult transitions in phonics: the introduction of digraphs like “sh” Until now, the words he read could be sounded out one letter at a time - each letter makes its own sound. But once digraphs are introduced, the reader needs to learn to “look ahead” one letter while reading. When reading “fish”, he cannot pronounce the “s” as “ssssss”. Instead of parsing fish as f/i/s/h, he has to notice that the letter following “s” is “h”, switch to parsing the word as f/i/sh, and pronounce the sounds accordingly. To make it easier for novice readers to notice digraphs and parse them correctly, Mentava’s software displays them in a slightly different colored font. As the student demonstrates increased mastery, the font hints gradually fade out to greyscale and then normal black. This gradual process avoids the frustration that would be caused by sudden increases in difficulty, leading to an engaged and successful learner!

When people say that phonics is “too boring” or “doesn’t work”, it’s just an admission that they don’t know how to teach it well. Here’s my son working through one of the most difficult transitions in phonics: the introduction of digraphs like “sh” Until now, the words he read could be sounded out one letter at a time - each letter makes its own sound. But once digraphs are introduced, the reader needs to learn to “look ahead” one letter while reading. When reading “fish”, he cannot pronounce the “s” as “ssssss”. Instead of parsing fish as f/i/s/h, he has to notice that the letter following “s” is “h”, switch to parsing the word as f/i/sh, and pronounce the sounds accordingly. To make it easier for novice readers to notice digraphs and parse them correctly, Mentava’s software displays them in a slightly different colored font. As the student demonstrates increased mastery, the font hints gradually fade out to greyscale and then normal black. This gradual process avoids the frustration that would be caused by sudden increases in difficulty, leading to an engaged and successful learner!

26,303 views

Our schools think their job is to equalize, not to educate. But some kindergarteners have been reading for years. Some can't read at all. They should not be learning the same material. They should not be finishing the school year at the same place.

Our schools think their job is to equalize, not to educate. But some kindergarteners have been reading for years. Some can't read at all. They should not be learning the same material. They should not be finishing the school year at the same place.

22,928 views

Today we’re announcing our new Mentava Basics curriculum, aimed at kids who are still a bit too young for the standard Mentava curriculum. Here’s what people don’t understand about teaching a 2 or 3 year old to read: The necessary skills for reading don’t all develop at the same time. The ability to associate letters with sounds happens first, and at a pretty early age. If you think about it, learning “this funny shaped animal says moo” is pretty similar to learning “this funny shaped line says aaa.” However, the second necessary skill for reading is blending those letter sounds together, and kids often aren’t developmentally capable of doing that until at least 6-12 months later. Until today, our recommendation has been to wait until the child is developmentally ready to blend sounds. and then we just go full speed and teach them everything all at once, as fast as possible. But sometimes we have students who start a little younger. And then their parents are confused, because they see that their kids are having a ton of fun learning letter sounds super fast, but then are being gatekept from additional learning because they aren't yet developmentally ready to blend those sounds. That’s why we created the new Mentava Basics curriculum. Mentava Basics lets our youngest students focus on letter/sound pairings until they're developmentally ready to begin blending them. Mentava Basics takes the fun and delight of the core Mentava experience, but applies it to a curriculum that’s developmentally appropriate for even younger children. Mentava’s standard curriculum is still the fastest way to go from zero to reading, but with Mentava Basics now we can give kids a head start by helping them learn their letter sounds in advance. If your child is struggling with blending and you think it may just be a developmental readiness issue, you can use the grownup menu to switch into the Mentava Basics curriculum. We save your progress on both pathways, so you can switch back to our standard curriculum whenever you want.

Today we’re announcing our new Mentava Basics curriculum, aimed at kids who are still a bit too young for the standard Mentava curriculum. Here’s what people don’t understand about teaching a 2 or 3 year old to read: The necessary skills for reading don’t all develop at the same time. The ability to associate letters with sounds happens first, and at a pretty early age. If you think about it, learning “this funny shaped animal says moo” is pretty similar to learning “this funny shaped line says aaa.” However, the second necessary skill for reading is blending those letter sounds together, and kids often aren’t developmentally capable of doing that until at least 6-12 months later. Until today, our recommendation has been to wait until the child is developmentally ready to blend sounds. and then we just go full speed and teach them everything all at once, as fast as possible. But sometimes we have students who start a little younger. And then their parents are confused, because they see that their kids are having a ton of fun learning letter sounds super fast, but then are being gatekept from additional learning because they aren't yet developmentally ready to blend those sounds. That’s why we created the new Mentava Basics curriculum. Mentava Basics lets our youngest students focus on letter/sound pairings until they're developmentally ready to begin blending them. Mentava Basics takes the fun and delight of the core Mentava experience, but applies it to a curriculum that’s developmentally appropriate for even younger children. Mentava’s standard curriculum is still the fastest way to go from zero to reading, but with Mentava Basics now we can give kids a head start by helping them learn their letter sounds in advance. If your child is struggling with blending and you think it may just be a developmental readiness issue, you can use the grownup menu to switch into the Mentava Basics curriculum. We save your progress on both pathways, so you can switch back to our standard curriculum whenever you want.

10,497 views

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When I was a kid, libraries looked for books to get kids excited about reading It feels like priorities have shifted
0:27
NielsHoven's profile picture

When I was a kid, libraries looked for books to get kids excited about reading It feels like priorities have shifted

Niels Hoven 🐮

204,479 views • 22 days ago

People are skeptical that teachers don't know their students can't read. Yes, teachers know students can't decode words. But teachers have been taught that words aren't necessary for "reading". Here's a teacher teaching kids to "read" by looking at pictures. In fact the word they're "reading" is covered up so the students can't even see it! And listen to how she describes it at the end of the video: "reading and analyzing text"
0:51
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People are skeptical that teachers don't know their students can't read. Yes, teachers know students can't decode words. But teachers have been taught that words aren't necessary for "reading". Here's a teacher teaching kids to "read" by looking at pictures. In fact the word they're "reading" is covered up so the students can't even see it! And listen to how she describes it at the end of the video: "reading and analyzing text"

Niels Hoven 🐮

563,286 views • 6 months ago

Us: we taught 2yos to read and here's video proof Them: seems like snake oil
0:29
NielsHoven's profile picture

Us: we taught 2yos to read and here's video proof Them: seems like snake oil

Niels Hoven 🐮

243,389 views • 5 months ago

The goal of modern education policy is not “helping every kid achieve their potential”, but rather “closing the gap” between high achievers and low achievers. Unfortunately, this means that many high-achieving students are intentionally slowed down, and held back to allow their classmates to catch up. Mentava Reading 🐮 is building software to ensure high-achieving students can have their learning needs met, starting with a software-based tutor that teaches preschoolers to read.
1:11
NielsHoven's profile picture

The goal of modern education policy is not “helping every kid achieve their potential”, but rather “closing the gap” between high achievers and low achievers. Unfortunately, this means that many high-achieving students are intentionally slowed down, and held back to allow their classmates to catch up. Mentava Reading 🐮 is building software to ensure high-achieving students can have their learning needs met, starting with a software-based tutor that teaches preschoolers to read.

Niels Hoven 🐮

481,004 views • 1 year ago

Edtech’s failure is a problem with demand, not supply Of course it’s possible to create effective educational software. Mentava’s software is teaching 3yos to read every day But the software you see is edutainment slop because schools want software that babysits and equalizes
0:56
NielsHoven's profile picture

Edtech’s failure is a problem with demand, not supply Of course it’s possible to create effective educational software. Mentava’s software is teaching 3yos to read every day But the software you see is edutainment slop because schools want software that babysits and equalizes

Niels Hoven 🐮

72,242 views • 4 months ago

Thanks all for the support! We're trying to keep up. If you want your kids to learn to read fast and for far less than the price of private school, sign up now at We're backed by the best investors in tech, including Garry Tan, Balaji, Tim Ferriss + more
0:29
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Thanks all for the support! We're trying to keep up. If you want your kids to learn to read fast and for far less than the price of private school, sign up now at We're backed by the best investors in tech, including Garry Tan, Balaji, Tim Ferriss + more

Niels Hoven 🐮

201,669 views • 2 years ago

“Whole word” reading teaches kids to read by relying on crutches, like context and pictures By contrast, phonics is is best taught by eliminating all possible shortcuts and isolating the skill of decoding for focused training This 3yo (almost 4) is looking for the word “big” mixed in among distractors like: bgi, blg, gib This ensures he’s not just guessing at words by their first letter, or whether they have the right letters in the wrong order. He has to sound the word out from left or right, building his decoding skills and setting him on the path to becoming a fluent reader
0:23
NielsHoven's profile picture

“Whole word” reading teaches kids to read by relying on crutches, like context and pictures By contrast, phonics is is best taught by eliminating all possible shortcuts and isolating the skill of decoding for focused training This 3yo (almost 4) is looking for the word “big” mixed in among distractors like: bgi, blg, gib This ensures he’s not just guessing at words by their first letter, or whether they have the right letters in the wrong order. He has to sound the word out from left or right, building his decoding skills and setting him on the path to becoming a fluent reader

Niels Hoven 🐮

57,373 views • 6 months ago

Tell me more about how bad our literacy software is, it's so hard to hear you over the noise of this 2-year-old reading
0:23
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Tell me more about how bad our literacy software is, it's so hard to hear you over the noise of this 2-year-old reading

Niels Hoven 🐮

49,864 views • 6 months ago

We weren't planning to launch Mentava for a few more months, so yeah. We've got no demos or anything.
3:38
NielsHoven's profile picture

We weren't planning to launch Mentava for a few more months, so yeah. We've got no demos or anything.

Niels Hoven 🐮

87,939 views • 2 years ago

About a year ago, I made a fun TikTok video with my daughter where I rated different reading software (including Mentava, of course) Looks like Readability has now copied that video (including my daughter's voice) to turn it into an ad for their crappy app
0:52
NielsHoven's profile picture

About a year ago, I made a fun TikTok video with my daughter where I rated different reading software (including Mentava, of course) Looks like Readability has now copied that video (including my daughter's voice) to turn it into an ad for their crappy app

Niels Hoven 🐮

12,816 views • 2 months ago

Alphabet books teach reading wrong. They focus on letters when kids should be learning sounds. There are 44 sounds in the English language! Kids need to learn all of them but alphabet books only teach 26. So we made a better book and we're giving it away for free.
1:46
NielsHoven's profile picture

Alphabet books teach reading wrong. They focus on letters when kids should be learning sounds. There are 44 sounds in the English language! Kids need to learn all of them but alphabet books only teach 26. So we made a better book and we're giving it away for free.

Niels Hoven 🐮

61,561 views • 1 year ago

Teacher: “Education isn’t about results.” Cool. Then I guess this isn’t education. What should we call it?
0:22
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Teacher: “Education isn’t about results.” Cool. Then I guess this isn’t education. What should we call it?

Niels Hoven 🐮

13,755 views • 6 months ago

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