Bedtime Stories - A Leap into Lexical Exposure with a Touch of AI

Life is busy. It just seems to get busier and busier. Shamefully, for me, that sometimes means bedtime with my little one can feel more like a box-ticking routine. I often remind myself of the beauty in these moments, knowing one day I'll miss them dearly.

Each evening, my daughter Cleo and I delve into books, a cherished routine before she snuggles up in bed. This routine took an interesting turn when I introduced a dash of tech - a personalised story crafted through ChatGPT. It was initially just for fun, incorporating her sister and dog into the tales.

But then, driven by an interest in technology and AI, I wondered: could I use this innovative tool to enhance Cleo's language development while make the stories come to life? My plan was to keep track of new words she was learning and input these into a custom bedtime story generator, like ChatGPT. This way, her nightly stories are not just engaging but also educational, featuring words she's currently absorbing.

Cleo, growing up in Sweden, gets her primary exposure to English through my wife and I. Customising stories with words, people and places she knows seemed like the perfect way for me to contribute in that short window together. After all, the frequency and context of word exposure play a crucial role in language learning.

After all, the frequency and context of word exposure play a crucial role in language learning. Research supports this: a study by the National Reading Panel shows that children need to encounter a new word 4 to 12 times to firmly place it in their memory. Additionally, the Joan Ganz Cooney Center reports that children who engage in conversation and are read to regularly can have vocabularies nearly twice as large as those who lack such interactions by age three.

My aspiration is to give Cleo a rich vocabulary, a foundational skill that perhaps I wish I had, especially as a child. By combining my passion for technology and AI with parenting, I hope to give her a head start in the world of words.

Have you found innovative ways to blend technology into learning or daily routines? Let's exchange ideas and inspire each other in this journey of integrating tech with everyday life.

#languagelearning #EarlyChildhoodEducation #aieducation