About Us
Maggie Tales™ offers instant Storytime™ experiences.
Our Storytimes can stream directly to your computer or
iPhone or be downloaded to multimedia devices and taken
just about anywhere. Contrary to the many passive entertainment
options for children, Maggie Tales offers a wholesome solution
for your kids through a positive learning and personal
Storytime experience!
Our Passion is Reading
Maggie Tales is passionate about reading to kids. Industry
statistics show that reading to children daily is on
a decline, and the rapid pace of our society creates
more challenges and fewer opportunities for parents to
read to their children.
Maggie Tales are digital stories for kids – appropriate
for children age 2 and up. Maggie Tales are different from
an eBook, a cartoon or an audiobook. Maggie Tales begins
with existing in-print and out-of-print children’s
picture books and then adds professional voice narration,
original music, page turn tones and page turn animations.
Maggie Tales are developed and produced by early reading
specialists, professional narrators and composers, video
editors, recording engineers, and graphic designers to
create a Storytime?.
How We Got Started
Maggie Tales was founded by Mark Smith. The concept for
Maggie Tales resulted from several observations and a
serendipitous event.
When traveling, Mark noticed that:
•kids often became restless, fidgety and bored while
waiting in lines, flying on long flights, waiting in restaurants
or while mom or dad were on the phone.
•on more than one occasion Mark overheard parents telling
their kids, “Sorry, I forgot to bring ‘that’ with
me for you to play with. Just sit there and be quiet.”
Concurrently, Mark was hearing from family members how
important reading to children is for early childhood development
and how reading to children is on the decline because of
the ever increasing pace of our lives. Mark also knew from
personal experience that reading to his son on a regular
basis required a conscious effort.
Then there was a serendipitous event that brought it all
together. While waiting to board a delayed flight Mark
noticed that a dad gave his cell phone to his son. The
child sat and watched the cell phone for 49 minutes (yes,
Mark timed it) and then got fussy. At that point mom took
away the cell phone and started to read a picture book
to the child. When Mark approached the father to ask what
the child was watching on the cell phone, the dad smiled
and said MSNBC. No, this is not a story about a financial
prodigy. Dad went on to explain that as long as there was
action on the screen and sound his son was entertained.
Mark returned to his seat and that is when it all came
together. What if the picture book mom was reading was
on the cell phone, or for that matter an iPod, gaming device,
laptop or any multimedia device? After all, almost everyone
has at least one portable multimedia device. This would
allow kids to enjoy a story at times other than bedtime
or at school. After all, adults listen to audio books to
gain the pleasure of reading while on the go … why
couldn’t kids do the same with picture books. Following
product design discussions to make Storytime an enriching
experience with elementary reading experts and researching
the state of available technology, Maggie Tales was launched.
Finally, enter Maggie the family dog. Mark knew that the
kids at his wife’s elementary school loved when she
brought Maggie (a black and white Havanese) for a visit.
Additionally, Mark noticed how Maggie would sit and listen
attentively while his wife read to their son. Plus, at
the end of a book Maggie would give a little bark. Thus,
Maggie and her little bark became the mascot for Storytime.
Thus, Maggie Tales was launched as a solution for parents
and children alike. The Storytimes offer an alternative
to passive entertainment for kids. The product’s
mobility makes it easier for parents to make sure their
child is read to, even when they’re on the go.
