Terms of Service

Little Otter Learning
Version: 2026-02-19
Effective Date: February 19, 2026
Last Updated: February 19, 2026

Table of Contents

1. Agreement to Terms
2. Changes to Terms
3. Description of Service
4. Accounts and Parental Consent (COPPA)
5. Acceptable Use
6. Fees and Subscriptions
7. Intellectual Property
8. Privacy
9. Disclaimer of Warranties
10. Limitation of Liability
11. Dispute Resolution and Arbitration
12. Governing Law and Venue
13. Termination
14. General Provisions

1. Agreement to Terms

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) constitute a legally binding agreement between you and Little Otter Learning (“we,” “us,” or “our”), governing your access to and use of the Little Otter Reader application and website located at littleotterlearning.com (collectively, the “Service”).

By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms and our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated herein by reference. If you do not agree to these Terms, do not use the Service.

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account. The Service is designed for use by children under the active supervision and control of a parent or legal guardian who holds the account.

2. Changes to Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will notify you of material changes by posting the updated Terms on our website and, where appropriate, by email. The updated Terms will include a new effective date. Your continued use of the Service after that date constitutes your acceptance of the changes. If you do not agree to the updated Terms, you must stop using the Service and may close your account.

3. Description of Service

Little Otter Reader is an educational reading application that provides children with guided reading practice, speech recognition feedback, and adaptive content. The Service is intended to supplement, not replace, professional reading instruction.

Little Otter Learning does not guarantee that use of the Service will result in improved reading levels, test scores, or specific educational milestones. Educational progress depends on many factors outside of the Service's control, including the child's development, frequency of use, and parental involvement.

The Service is provided for personal, non-commercial, household use only. Institutional use (including by schools, tutors, libraries, or other organizations) requires a separate written agreement with Little Otter Learning.

3.1 Service Modifications

We reserve the right to modify, suspend, or discontinue any aspect of the Service at any time, with or without notice. We will endeavor to provide reasonable notice of material changes where feasible.

3.2 Third-Party Services

The Service relies on third-party service providers to deliver certain functionality. Your use of the Service may be subject to the terms and privacy policies of those providers. We are not responsible for the availability, accuracy, or conduct of third-party services.

4. Accounts and Parental Consent (COPPA)

4.1 Account Creation

You must be at least 18 years old and a parent or legal guardian to create an account. By creating an account, you represent and warrant that:

• You are at least 18 years of age;
• You are the parent or legal guardian of any child whose profile you create;
• All information you provide is accurate and complete; and
• You have the authority to agree to these Terms on behalf of yourself and your household.

4.2 Children's Profiles and Supervision

The Service allows you to create profiles for children in your care. The Service is intended to be used under adult supervision at all times. You are solely responsible for supervising your child's use of the Service. Little Otter Learning is not responsible for any actions taken by a child while using the Service. We do not knowingly permit children to create accounts or provide personal information to us without verifiable parental consent.

4.3 COPPA Compliance

The Service is operated in compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). We collect personal information about children only with verifiable parental consent, which is obtained through your account creation and email confirmation process. For full details on how we collect, use, and protect children's information, please review our Privacy Policy.

4.4 Account Security

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us immediately at support@littleotterlearning.com if you suspect any unauthorized access to your account.

5. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

• Use the Service for any unlawful purpose or in violation of any applicable laws or regulations;
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to any part of the Service or its underlying infrastructure;
• Reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble any portion of the Service;
• Scrape, crawl, or use automated means to access the Service without our prior written consent;
• Upload, transmit, or distribute any content that is harmful, offensive, or that violates the rights of any third party;
• Impersonate any person or entity, or misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity; or
• Interfere with or disrupt the integrity or performance of the Service.

6. Fees and Subscriptions

The Service is currently provided free of charge. We may introduce paid subscription plans in the future. If we do:

• Current pricing and plan details will be posted on our website;
• We will obtain your authorization before initiating any recurring charges; and
• We will provide reasonable advance notice of any price changes.

If you subscribe to a paid plan:

• You authorize us to charge your payment method on a recurring basis (monthly or annually, as selected) until you cancel;
• You may cancel at any time through your account settings; cancellation takes effect at the end of your current billing period; and
• All fees are non-refundable except as required by applicable law or as expressly stated at the time of purchase.

7. Intellectual Property

7.1 Our Content

The Service and all content provided through it — including but not limited to stories, software, graphics, logos, and the Little Otter mascot — are owned by or licensed to Little Otter Learning and are protected by copyright, trademark, and other applicable intellectual property laws. You may not reproduce, distribute, modify, or create derivative works from our content without our prior written consent.

7.2 Your Data

You retain ownership of any data you provide to the Service. By using the Service, you grant us a limited license to use your data as described in these Terms and our Privacy Policy.

7.3 Aggregated and De-identified Data

We may collect, process, and use de-identified, aggregated data derived from use of the Service (for example, anonymized reading performance metrics) for the purpose of improving the Service, developing new features, and conducting internal research. Such data cannot reasonably be used to identify you or your child and is not shared with third parties in identifiable form.

8. Privacy

Your use of the Service is subject to our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference. By using the Service, you consent to our collection, use, and handling of your information as described in the Privacy Policy.

9. Disclaimer of Warranties

The Service is provided “as is” and “as available” without warranties of any kind, either express or implied, including but not limited to implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free of harmful components. We make no representations or warranties that the Service will produce any particular educational outcome for your child.

You acknowledge that the speech recognition technology used in the Service is provided “as is.” Background noise, hardware quality, and variations in a child's speech patterns may affect the accuracy of the feedback provided. We are not liable for any inaccurate scoring, feedback, or other errors arising from speech recognition processing.

10. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, in no event shall Little Otter Learning be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of or relating to your use of, or inability to use, the Service, even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages.

Our total cumulative liability to you for any claims arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service shall not exceed the greater of (A) the total fees paid by you to us in the twelve (12) months preceding the claim, or (B) ten dollars ($10.00 USD).

11. Dispute Resolution and Arbitration

11.1 Informal Resolution

Before initiating any formal dispute proceedings, you agree to contact us at privacy@littleotterlearning.com and give us 30 days to attempt to resolve the matter informally.

11.2 Binding Arbitration

Subject to your right to opt out as set forth in Section 11.5, if we cannot resolve a dispute informally, and to the extent permitted by applicable law, you and Little Otter Learning agree to resolve any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service through binding individual arbitration, rather than in court. Arbitration shall be conducted by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, which are available at www.adr.org. The arbitration will take place in Tennessee or, at your election, by video or telephone. Each party will bear its own arbitration costs, subject to the AAA's consumer rules regarding fee allocation.

11.3 Class Action Waiver

To the extent permitted by applicable law, you and Little Otter Learning agree that each may bring claims against the other only in an individual capacity and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class, collective, or representative proceeding.

11.4 Exceptions

Notwithstanding the foregoing, either party may seek injunctive or other equitable relief in a court of competent jurisdiction to prevent actual or threatened infringement of intellectual property rights or other urgently harmful conduct. Nothing in this Section limits your right to file a complaint with a government agency or consumer protection authority.

11.5 Opt-Out

You may opt out of binding arbitration by sending written notice to privacy@littleotterlearning.com with the subject line “Arbitration Opt-Out” within 30 days of first accepting these Terms. If you opt out, disputes will be resolved in the courts specified in Section 12.

12. Governing Law and Venue

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Tennessee, without regard to its conflict-of-law principles. To the extent a dispute is not subject to arbitration under Section 11, you and Little Otter Learning consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in Tennessee.

13. Termination

13.1 By You

You may close your account at any time by contacting us at support@littleotterlearning.com. Upon account closure, we will handle your data as described in our Privacy Policy.

13.2 By Us

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account at any time, with or without notice, if we believe you have violated these Terms or if we discontinue the Service. We will provide reasonable notice where feasible.

13.3 Effect of Termination

Upon termination, your right to access the Service ceases immediately. Sections 7, 9, 10, 11, and 12 survive termination.

14. General Provisions

14.1 Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and Little Otter Learning regarding the Service and supersede all prior agreements and understandings.

14.2 Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, that provision will be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, and the remaining provisions will continue in full force and effect.

14.3 No Waiver

Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms does not constitute a waiver of that right or provision.

14.4 Assignment

You may not assign your rights or obligations under these Terms without our prior written consent. We may assign our rights and obligations without restriction, including in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

14.5 Contact

For questions about these Terms, please contact us:

• Email: privacy@littleotterlearning.com
• Contact form: littleotterlearning.com/contact

Version: 2026-02-19 | Last Updated: February 19, 2026