Webby Awards Entry | Video Series
Ask Karly & Reading Fundamentals
Two social-first video series that put a trusted reading expert in every family’s feed.
Two social-first video series that put a trusted reading expert in every family’s feed.
Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) created two short-form social video series that turn trusted literacy expertise into quick, practical guidance families can use every day. Ask Karly answers the questions parents and caregivers ask most often about raising readers. Reading Fundamentals makes phonics, the skills behind learning to read, easy to understand one concept at a time.
Together they give families tools for everyday moments that make a lasting difference in a child’s reading journey.
of 4th graders read below grade level,setting them up for difficulty in school and beyond.Source: National Assessment of Educational Progress, via rif.org/why-reading-matters
Parents and caregivers are a child’s first and most constant reading teachers. Yet most guidance on how reading develops is written for educators, not families. RIF built these series to close that gap where families already spend their time: scrolling on their phones, in the few minutes between everything else.
Making literacy expertise relatable, one question at a time.
Ask Karly turns these relatable questions into engaging, bite-sized lessons. Each video opens with a question parents are asking, gives a clear answer and ends with practical guidance grounded in how children learn to read.
Why shared reading still matters as children become independent readers.
Watch on TikTok ↗How rereading builds fluency, comprehension and confidence.
Watch on TikTok ↗How listening to stories supports literacy development alongside print.
Watch on TikTok ↗Complex concepts. Simple explanations. Skills families can put into practice.
Phonics is the foundation of learning to read, and when adults understand how it works, they can reinforce it at home. Reading Fundamentals brings these concepts to life through short visual demonstrations. Each episode focuses on one skill, with familiar words, step-by-step explanations and examples parents and caregivers can use right away.
Making a common spelling pattern memorable through clear examples.
▲ Featured at the top of this pageShowing how kids say each sound in a word, then blend them together to read it.
Watch on TikTok ↗Parents, grandparents and caregivers of young children who want to help with reading but aren’t sure where to start.
Each series is a collaboration between RIF’s marketing team and its in-house literacy content experts. It is backed by RIF’s 60-year history as one of the nation’s most trusted children’s literacy nonprofits.
Karly O’Brien, RIF’s Literacy Services Manager, is a former PK–8 classroom teacher and reading specialist. She brings 8 years of literacy experience and a Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction with a focus in Literacy to every episode.
Ask Karly starts where parents already are. By opening with a question they’ve asked themselves, each episode feels relevant from the first second. It also makes a clear point: parents don’t need hours of training or a degree in literacy to play a meaningful part in their child’s reading life.
Reading Fundamentals was designed for short-form social from the start. Each episode covers one skill and uses on-screen visuals and familiar words. What could have been a formal phonics lesson becomes a quick, approachable learning moment.
Both series combine three things that are hard to fake: research-based instruction, a relatable former classroom teacher, and a 60-year-old organization families already know and trust.
Every episode is produced in-house by RIF’s own literacy and marketing teams, not an outside agency. The result looks and feels like advice from a teacher you trust rather than an ad. It also keeps donor dollars focused on what matters most: getting books and reading resources to children.
On TikTok, Ask Karly episodes averaged nearly twice the views of RIF's other posts and earned the highest like rate and watch time of any recurring RIF series; on YouTube, they averaged more than eight times the views of RIF's other 2026 videos.
These results show a real appetite for approachable, question-led literacy education. Rather than simply promoting reading, Ask Karly helps adults understand how to support it.
Reading Fundamentals grew steadily through its first quarter, with September episodes averaging more than four times the TikTok views of its summer episodes, and viewers watch its phonics lessons about 44% longer than RIF's other posts.
Saves are one of social’s clearest signals of usefulness, because viewers bookmark content they plan to come back to. That is exactly what this series is for: content that is engaging in the moment and still useful at the kitchen table later.
I wish I could send this to my mom 20 years ago, great video!
How do I engage my nonverbal kiddo in reading?
This is why series are SO great! Once you get a kid hooked on the first book, they’ll voraciously read the rest.
I knew a tutor who said when two vowels walk together, the first one says its name.
Together, they show how social-first educational content can make trusted literacy knowledge more accessible, relevant and actionable.
For RIF, short-form video is more than a way to reach an audience. It is another way to advance our 60-year mission: making sure every child has the opportunity to become a lifelong reader.