Rethinking reading instruction

When Byrne first considered Mentava for his 5-year-old son, JD, he was uncertain how reading instruction really worked. With his two older daughters, now 7 and 9, his early literacy efforts hadn't yielded significant progress.

"I had was unsure of how learning to read really worked. With my older kids, I had been reading aloud to them and pointing to the words that they might recognize. And I didn't really make any progress," Byrne explains. "So JD is the first one where he seems to have picked up fluent reading just through Mentava.

After seeing Mentava on social media and learning that others in his social circle were using it, Byrne was intrigued by what seemed like "a more serious approach" to literacy. As the family explored homeschooling options, Mentava became a natural choice to try.

Persistence led to breakthroughs

The journey wasn't immediately smooth. JD struggled with early lessons, particularly blending sounds.

"I actually thought that he just wasn't ready for it. I think he took maybe 3-4 times doing the fish-dog lesson before it clicked. And then it clicked, and he couldn't understand why this was hard," Byrne recalls.

This breakthrough moment convinced Byrne that consistent practice would lead to success. They began setting achievable goals: "We'd set a goal for him let's do 50 lessons, and then he could actually sit down and attempt that. Sometimes he would actually finish it, sometimes he wouldn't."

From nothing to fluency

The progression was remarkable: "You can quote us on it—that he was not able to read and did not know his letters last fall, and now he can read his baby brother a book before bed."

Byrne knew Mentava was truly working when JD transformed “from struggling through sentences to thinking all the questions are too easy. And making fun of some of the ridiculous images."

Within a few of months, JD's reading abilities extended beyond the app. "He could read things outside of the app and understand things! He reads labels on food items, or signs on stores, or restaurant menus," Byrne shares proudly. "It's actually a way for him to understand the broader world."

JD's progress accelerated dramatically: "There has been this acceleration just over the last couple months. He doesn't need the app to make the next advance—he's bootstrapped to the point where he is learning to read by figuring out unfamiliar things and asking us questions."

His confidence has grown tremendously, as evidenced by his ambitious reading choices: "He tried The Hobbit—he didn't get very far—but he did make a valiant attempt at the Hobbit."

The only program that achieved its goal

When asked how he would describe Mentava to others, Byrne emphasizes its methodical approach: "Mentava reduces every part of reading to its atomic element, and teaches you everything from the ground up."

Despite having recommended Mentava to many families, Byrne acknowledges that the price point initially concerns some. His response: "The way I frame it is this is probably cheaper than a tutor, it's probably faster than a tutor. And you can also cancel it without making someone feel bad in a month if it doesn't work out."

Ultimately, Byrne considers the experience exceptional: "This is the only educational app we've ever used where [my kids] used it from start to finish and accomplished the stated goal of the program."