Talking Fingers, Inc. is a subsidiary of California Neuropsychology Services (CNS), a non-profit organization for research and education founded in 1982 by neuropsychologist Dr. Jeannine Herron,. CNS has conducted numerous research projects in schools throughout California, funded by organizations such as the W.S. Johnson Foundation, the Hearst Foundation, and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. In 1994, CNS set up a for-profit subsidiary, Talking Fingers, Inc., and other educational materials for teaching phonics, writing, keyboarding and word processing to young children. The company's name is taken from the Apple IIe software first developed by Dr. Jeannine Herron, that was the foundation of Read, Write & Type!â¢. Over the next 5 years, Talking Fingers (CNS) tested the first version of its Read, Write & Type!⢠software program with children in numerous California schools and incorporated its findings into the final version of the product. That version was released for both Macintosh and Windows platforms in 1994, under a publishing and distribution arrangement with The Learning Company, a major publisher of educational software for the home and school markets.
In 1997, Read, Write & Type!⢠ranked #6 in school sales out of more than 100 of Learning Company products. Read, Write & Type!⢠is currently being used in over 200 school districts by more than 10,000 children
