Literacy, Done With Care

Our Purpose

Reading is the key to knowledge—and for too many people, the code to reading was never clearly taught.

Teach the Good Stuff exists to unlock that code.

This platform was created to support students, adults, families, and educators who are struggling with reading and decoding because they were never given clear, explicit instruction in foundational reading skills. For generations, we have moved away from teaching the 'how' of reading—and the result is a nation where many children and adults read below grade level, often carrying shame, frustration, and self-doubt instead of support.

Teach the Good Stuff is a place where learning to read is broken down into simple, practical, and accessible steps. Through short, focused video tutorials, resources, and lesson tools, learners of all ages can begin to understand how reading actually works—and apply those skills immediately.

This work is rooted in equity and access. Literacy is a civil right, yet inequitable instruction has left too many people behind. Teach the Good Stuff exists to help close that gap by providing culturally responsive, joyful, and rigorous literacy instruction—delivered by an educator who understands the experience of struggling readers and reflects the communities most impacted.

This platform is designed to:

  • Support struggling readers and build confidence

  • Equip parents and caregivers with tools to help at home

  • Support teachers who were never taught how to teach reading explicitly

  • Create a welcoming space where Black and Brown students can see themselves, ask questions freely, and feel affirmed while learning

At its core, Teach the Good Stuff believes that everyone can learn to read when they are taught clearly, consistently, and with care. This is a space for learning, healing, and reclaiming access to literacy—one foundational skill at a time.

About Teach the Good Stuff

Teach the Good Stuff is a literacy-focused platform designed to support students, parents, and educators through clear, explicit instruction in foundational reading skills. At its core, this space is about making the process of learning to read understandable, accessible, and empowering.

The platform provides short, focused video tutorials that break down the essential building blocks of reading—phonemic awareness, phonics, decoding, and fluency—so learners can quickly put strategies into practice. These videos are designed to be easy to follow, practical, and immediately useful in classrooms, homes, and tutoring settings.

In addition to video instruction, Teach the Good Stuff offers:

  • Literacy resources and templates

  • Lesson ideas and instructional tools

  • Guidance for supporting struggling readers

  • Culturally responsive approaches to literacy instruction

Teach the Good Stuff was created for:

  • Students who need foundational reading support

  • Parents and caregivers who want clear guidance on how to help at home

  • Teachers who were never explicitly taught how to teach reading

This platform centers joy, clarity, and rigor. Literacy instruction here is culturally responsive, affirming, and grounded in the belief that students learn best when they feel seen, supported, and capable. Teach the Good Stuff is not about quick fixes or one-size-fits-all solutions—it is about building strong foundations and restoring confidence in the reading process.

Above all, Teach the Good Stuff exists to remind learners of all ages that reading is learnable, and that with the right instruction, access, and encouragement, growth is possible.

Our journey has been anything but ordinary. Through every step, we've focused on staying true to our values and making space for thoughtful, lasting work.

What began as a passion project has evolved into something more. We’re proud of where we’ve been and even more excited for what’s ahead. What sets us apart isn’t just our process—it’s the intention behind it. We take time to understand, explore, and create with purpose at every turn.

Teach the Good Stuff

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Teach the Good Stuff ~

About the Founder

Teach the Good Stuff was founded by Crystal Cobb Collier, a Reading Interventionist, literacy educator, and instructional leader committed to unlocking the code of reading for learners of all ages.

Crystal is also dyslexic—and she names that openly.

For her, dyslexia is not a deficit. It is a lived experience that shaped how she understands reading, learning, and instruction. Like many students and adults across this country, Crystal was never explicitly taught the foundational code of reading early on. She had to learn it intentionally, systematically, and later than expected. That journey transformed not only how she reads—but how she teaches.

Crystal’s dyslexia became her superpower: it sharpened her ability to break reading down into clear, teachable parts and to anticipate where learners get stuck. It allows her to teach reading in a way that is explicit, accessible, and grounded in empathy—without lowering expectations.

As a Reading Interventionist, Crystal works directly with struggling readers and supports educators and families who want to better understand how reading actually works. Her focus is on foundational literacy skills, including phonemic awareness, decoding, word study, and fluency—the skills many students and adults were never taught but are expected to already know.

Teach the Good Stuff was created as a practical, welcoming literacy platform where:

  • Students can rebuild reading skills without shame

  • Adults can finally make sense of how reading works

  • Parents and caregivers can learn how to support struggling readers

  • Teachers can access clear, effective instructional tools

The platform centers short, easy-to-apply instructional videos, along with resources, templates, and lessons that make foundational reading skills visible and usable. The goal is simple: help people understand the code so they can apply it with confidence.

Teach the Good Stuff is also deeply rooted in equity and representation. Crystal recognizes that Black and Brown students are disproportionately affected by ineffective literacy instruction and limited access to structured, explicit teaching. This platform intentionally creates space for learners to see an educator who looks like them, understands their experiences, and believes in their ability to grow.

Teach the Good Stuff exists to challenge the narrative that struggling readers are incapable.

You are not broken.
You were not taught the code.
And learning is always possible.

This work is for students, adults, parents, caregivers, and teachers—anyone ready to learn the good stuff and finally make reading make sense.

Credentials & Experience

Crystal Cobb Collier is a certified educator and Reading Interventionist with extensive experience supporting struggling readers across grade levels.

Education & Certification

  • Master’s Degree in Special Education

  • Certified Teacher (Massachusetts)

  • Wilson Reading System® Certified

  • Trained in Orton-Gillingham–based structured literacy

  • Specialized training in:

    • Phonemic Awareness

    • Decoding & Word Study

    • Morphology

    • Foundational Literacy Skills

    • REWARDS® Intermediate & Secondary Reading Strategies

Professional Experience

  • Boston Public Schools Educator

  • 6 years as a General Education Teacher

  • 4 years as a Special Education Teacher

  • Elementary classroom experience (early and upper grades)

  • 3 years teaching at the elementary level

  • Currently serving as a High School Reading Interventionist

Areas of Expertise

  • Supporting students with reading difficulties and language-based learning differences

  • Explicit, systematic instruction in foundational reading skills

  • Literacy intervention for upper elementary, middle, and high school students

  • Coaching and supporting families and educators in evidence-based reading practices

Crystal works with students both in the classroom and beyond, bringing structured literacy instruction to learners who were never taught how reading works. Her approach blends rigor, clarity, cultural responsiveness, and joy, ensuring students build skills and confidence together.

Crystal Cobb Collier is a certified educator, Reading Interventionist, and literacy specialist with over a decade of experience supporting struggling readers across elementary and secondary settings.

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Crystal Cobb Collier is a certified educator, Reading Interventionist, and literacy specialist with over a decade of experience supporting struggling readers across elementary and secondary settings. 〰️

About the Book

The book behind Teach the Good Stuff was born from a simple but powerful idea:
Teachers are superheroes—and they help students discover their own.

Crystal wrote this book to celebrate the brilliance, creativity, and impact of teachers—particularly Black educators, whose work is often overlooked despite the extraordinary role they play in shaping minds, building confidence, and changing lives.

At the heart of the story is a teacher who embodies what so many educators do every day: she helps students recognize their strengths, think critically, and grow through their challenges. The students in the book are intentionally named after lesser-known civil rights leaders, expanding the narrative beyond the few names we hear most often and honoring the many voices who fought for justice, equity, and opportunity.

The book weaves together themes of:

  • Superpowers and self-discovery

  • Critical thinking and creativity

  • Facing fears and embracing strengths

  • Representation, leadership, and possibility

For Crystal, writing this book was also deeply personal. As someone who is dyslexic, writing once felt intimidating—even though ideas flowed freely. Creating this book became an act of courage: a way to confront fear, trust her voice, and model what it looks like to persevere through obstacles rather than hide from them.

That same spirit is at the core of Teach the Good Stuff.

Both the book and the platform are about overcoming barriers, embracing how we learn, and recognizing that our differences often hold our greatest strengths. History is filled with innovators, thinkers, and writers—like Agatha Christie—who learned differently and still changed the world.

This book is not just a story.
It’s an invitation.

An invitation to see teachers as guides and heroes.
To see students as capable and powerful.
And to believe that learning—like literacy—is something we can all access, grow into, and own.