Pre-Sale Questions

What is Ziptales?

Ziptales is an elementary language arts program. It was created with the aim of making reading a pleasure. Its philosophy is to offer a vast range of reading experiences, very much like a digital version of a real library, where above all the child actually enjoys the reading.

Where was Ziptales developed, and by whom?

Ziptales was founded by two ex-teachers, Richard and Valerie McRoberts. Richard has been a writer, editor and publisher working at all levels of elementary and secondary publishing. He has a Masters in Education and specialized in literature and reading.
Valerie has been a teacher, editor and publisher. She has an Honors degree in Literature, as well as a Masters in Education, specializing in gifted education.
Both had previously been directors of a successful print publishing company, Wizard Books, with sales throughout Australia and overseas.

What sort of licenses are there?

Schools can subscribe as a whole – the most economical way of taking the service – or ask for a single class license.
Families can also subscribe for a home license.

How much does it cost?

For schools, Ziptales is available as a whole school site license, as well as individual class licenses. The fee is structured around the number of student users. We also offer family subscriptions at a flat, affordable yearly cost. See our Pricing page for more info.
We have dedicated worksheets for parents to use with their children, or for teachers to use as homework tasks.

What support does Ziptales offer teachers?

It is important for teachers to know that there is a whole staffroom of essential information and class support. We also offer phone and email support.

Is new material added to the website?

Every year, Ziptales adds new content, as part of our pact with teachers to continually “refresh” the site. It is important for schools to read the regular newsletters, to keep up with what is new.

Does Ziptales allow you to “track” what the child is reading?

Ziptales is focused on the pleasure of the child’s reading experience, and sees “assessment” as secondary. There is no automatic “tracking” of children’s scores. We ask teachers to use one of the two tracking devices to record what their children have read and what scores have been obtained.

Technical Questions

What are the technical requirements for Ziptales?

Ziptales works on both PC and Mac using any modern browser. As well as any tablet or mobile device, such as an iPad or Android Tablet. All you need to do is go to ziptalesusa.com in your browser. We recommend using Google Chrome as it is the fastest and free.

Does it work on an iPad or cell phone?

Yes! The 600+ modules are now all available to view on the iPad or any mobile device or tablet.