A free guide for educators and families
AI can help an adult discover books, prepare a question, or plan a conversation. The child still needs to hear stories, learn reading skills, read real text, and find the joy of choosing another book. Here is a practical way to use both.
The core idea
Think of AI as a preparation partner for adults. It can suggest options quickly, but it cannot see whether a child decoded a word, made sense of a passage, or fell in love with a story unless a person observes and talks with that child. Generated text and questions also need checking.
Reading research already gives us useful anchors: teach foundational skills directly, provide time with connected text, and build comprehension through knowledge, questions, and discussion. Research on the added impact of generative AI for reading is still underway. This guide adapts established reading practices; it does not claim that AI alone raises scores.
Dr. Rob’s rule: AI may help set the table. The child does the reading, and a human pays attention.
Meet readers where they are
A joyful Pre-K read-aloud, a beginning reader’s decoding practice, and a middle-schooler’s independent book life are different jobs.
Read aloud, sing, tell stories, notice print, and talk back and forth. Let a child choose the funny book again. AI can give an adult fresh conversation ideas, but independent word reading is not the goal yet.
Where AI can help: Ask AI for three playful questions about a book you already know. Use one if it feels natural; follow the child’s lead.
Keep explicit teaching of sounds, letters, decoding, and word recognition with the educator. Give children connected text they can actually read, along with richer books read aloud by adults.
Where AI can help: Ask AI to suggest discussion questions for a teacher-selected text. Check every question against the actual pages. Do not let generated “decodable” text replace a verified sequence.
Help students find books they want to finish. Keep teaching vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension when needed. Invite students to ask questions, find the gist, and notice when meaning breaks down.
Where AI can help: After a student reads a section, use AI to prepare a spoiler-free conference question. Ask for evidence from the student’s copy, not an AI summary.
Copy, adapt, verify
These are prompts for an adult using a school-approved tool. Keep student names, reading records, and private details out of a general-purpose chatbot.
I am helping a reader in [grade band] who enjoys [interests] and recently liked [book or topic]. Suggest five kinds of books or search terms to try in a public or school library catalog. Include fiction and nonfiction. Do not invent titles or claim a book is available. Give me two questions to ask the reader before we choose.
The human move: Check the catalog and sample the actual books. The student picks; a librarian is an excellent next stop.
I am reading [teacher-selected title or short excerpt] with [age group]. Suggest three useful vocabulary words from the excerpt I provide, a child-friendly explanation for each, and one everyday question that uses each word. Use only words present in my excerpt: [paste a short permitted excerpt].
The human move: Confirm the words in the text and teach them in context. Respect copyright and school rules when sharing excerpts.
A student has just read through [chapter or section] of [book]. Write three open questions that ask about character, evidence, or a surprising idea. Do not reveal anything beyond that section. If you do not know the book reliably, give general question stems instead of inventing plot details.
The human move: Ask one question, then listen. Let the reader show you the page that shaped their answer.
Help me prepare a five-minute reading conference. The student is reading [book or type of text], and I want to learn about [choice, understanding, stamina, or a specific taught skill]. Suggest three questions, one observation to record, and one small next step. Do not diagnose a reading difficulty or write an evaluation.
The human move: The teacher observes the actual reading and chooses the next instructional move.
A repeatable routine
Adjust the length to the child and the setting. The goal is a reading life that can continue, not a contest over minutes or pages.
Free family and classroom menu
Pick one small action each day. Repeat the ones that work. No account, purchase, or AI tool is required; an adult may use the prompts above to prepare.
Browse a shelf, library catalog, or book basket. Let the reader choose one to try.
Notice one interesting word in the real book. Use it in a new sentence together.
After reading, ask: “What happened, and what makes you say that?”
Share a page with a sibling, caregiver, or grandparent, in person or by video call.
Reread a beloved page or passage. Notice one detail missed the first time.
Use a library book or trusted source to investigate a question the story raised.
Ask the reader what they want more of: humor, mystery, facts, pictures, or a new voice.
For families: A video-call story with Grandma, an older sibling’s recommendation, a library trip, or a story in the family’s home language all belong in a reading life. Connection matters more than an app.
Check the learning
Look beyond minutes logged or questions answered by a chatbot. Is the student choosing and returning to books? Can the student read the assigned text with growing accuracy or fluency? Can they explain an idea and point to the page? What support or explicit instruction is still needed?
If a student struggles to decode or understand text, a pleasant AI conversation is not a substitute for assessment and instruction. Use the school’s reading team and intervention process. Do not paste a child’s private assessment data into an unapproved tool.
Evidence and context
The What Works Clearinghouse guides cover foundational skills in K–3, early comprehension, and interventions in grades 4–9. The Institute of Education Sciences is also studying AI for reading; those projects are research in progress, not proof of a particular product’s effectiveness.
This guide extends the joyful reading habits Dr. Furman shares with families: choice, conversation, rereading, and people who love the child. Explore more AI workflows for teachers or return to the AI in Education hub.