Building a Reader

How AI Is Helping Us Teach Students to Read—A Conversation About Flexibility, Creativity, and Student-Centered Support

I had the chance to sit down with my friend Jacklyn for a powerful conversation about how artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping the way we support students—especially when it comes to reading instruction. From reluctant readers to collaborative lesson planning, AI is helping educators meet student needs with creativity, speed, and flexibility.

Listen to hear how Jacklyn uses AI to differentiate teaching. 

Creating appropriate reading material

Supporting vocabulary instruction

Adapting lessons

Some of her favorite tools?
IEP Pilot and ChatGPT top the list for their practicality and flexibility.

And if you’re just getting started with AI in your own practice, here are a few prompting ideas from Jacklyn:

Be specific. 

Don’t settle. 

Vet everything. 

Talk to it like a colleague. 

Listen for more ideas about how AI could change how you meet the varied needs of your students.

~Jennifer

Are your students stuck in a reading rut? In this episode, we explore how expanding text formats—not just genres—can unlock

Use your summer freedom to rethink what counts as reading and prep for a year of curiosity, creativity, and real growth. Ideal for K–5 teachers seeking responsive, student-centered literacy practices.

Episode Notes:

Have you ever looked around your classroom and felt like something was missing?

Maybe your highest readers aren’t growing.
Maybe your students are disengaged.
Maybe you’re caught in the rut of sameness—where reading is defined by a basal, a video, or another paragraph on the projector.

If this sounds familiar, you're not alone.

Summer is the perfect time to reset. With the curriculum paused and creativity on high alert, it's your chance to reimagine what reading looks like for your students—and for you.

When students seem bored or stuck, we often reach for interventions or new programs. But what if the issue isn’t ability or behavior... but opportunity?

What if the texts we put in front of students don’t reflect their interests, their curiosities, or their lived experiences?

In this episode of the podcast, we’re rethinking the idea of "text."
Not just books. Not just passages. But formats—ways that words and sentences show up in the world.

To get started, try this:

Write down three students you’ve taught.
Next to each name, list one or two of their top interests.
Then, brainstorm a list of possible text formats that match those interests.

For example: Johnny loves construction. He might enjoy

DIY home guides

Local construction news

Tool catalogs

How-to websites

Email exchanges or letters about building projects

Make a list of everything you read in a day.
Think beyond books: recipes, menus, texts, newsletters, blog posts, instructions, social media posts, comment sections...

Challenge yourself to brainstorm 50 different text formats.
See how many ways people engage with print in real life. You’ll quickly see how narrow classroom texts can feel in comparison.

When students experience more variability in what they read, it leads to:

Reduced boredom

Increased engagement

More authentic reading experiences

Better options for take-home texts

Clearer mentor texts for writing

A stronger connection between reading and the real world

By the end of the summer, you’ll be equipped with a refreshed mindset—and practical ideas to reach every reader in your room, from the highest flyer to the most reluctant learner.

Whether you're planning whole-group lessons, small-group instruction, or one-on-one reading conferences, expanding your text formats gives you a powerful tool: choice.

And choice creates opportunity.
And opportunity? That’s what helps kids grow.

In this episode of Building a Reader, I'll share one powerful question every teacher should ask when making instructional decisions: “What evidence do you have?” Consider how your notes can help you to indicate one-off behaviors and patterns.

When a student struggles to read a word, it’s easy to jump to conclusions or offer surface-level solutions.

But what if we paused and asked why—not just once, but five times?

In this episode of Building a Reader, we explore the 5 Why’s strategy, a simple yet powerful tool borrowed from problem-solving frameworks, and show how it can be used by teachers to uncover the root causes behind students' reading behaviors.

Whether a student can’t decode a word, remember a sight word, or apply a strategy you've taught, the 5 Why’s can guide you from confusion to clarity—and from frustration to action.

Tune in to learn how asking better questions leads to better instruction.

What do learning to read and playing basketball have in common?

In this episode of Building a Reader, we explore how reading involves much more than just phonics and sight words—just like basketball involves more than shooting hoops.

Discover how cognitive skills, practice, and strategy apply to both literacy development and athletic training. This analogy will help you understand the full complexity of how children learn to read.

Perfect for teachers looking to explain the reading process in an accessible and engaging way.

Are your students slowing down or stumbling when they encounter long, multisyllabic words? In this episode of Building a Reader, literacy consultant Jennifer unpacks what it really means when students struggle with reading fluency—especially with longer words.

You'll learn how to recognize the signs that a student needs support.

More importantly, you’ll walk away with a clear, step-by-step strategy to help readers break through long-word, fluency roadblocks.

Plus, discover how to integrate this strategy throughout the school day—from shared reading and small groups to content-area lessons.

Whether you're a classroom teacher, reading specialist, or literacy coach, this episode gives you practical tools to help students read longer words with confidence and improve their overall fluency.

Get your free download to help you implement the stragegy.  Click Here

As the school year wraps up, it's time to go beyond reading levels and reflect on what really matters: how our young readers have grown.

In this episode of Building a Reader, Jennifer guides you through the three essential behaviors—integration, flexibility, and independence—that reveal deep, meaningful progress.

You’ll learn what each behavior looks like in practice,

how to spot the signs of growth (or gaps),

and how to use this lens to support every child’s next step as a reader.

Whether you’re in the classroom or at home, this is your guide to recognizing and celebrating true reading development.

I love scaffolds.

They send students into action taking mode.

If taught intentionally, they send the message,

"You are the kind of kid who can figure this out."

Help students to become action-takers with...

 1. Letters

2. Words

3. Science processes

or more..

Grab a sheet of paper and I'll share with you three steps to take to transfer the action taking over to your students.

Cheers to transferring the power!

~Jennifer

Teaching kindergarteners can be confusing and old techniques of drill and skill and flashcards can be minimally effective.

When teachers, Megan and Danielle, joined the Building Kindergarten Readers training and started using authentic texts they started to see growth - in the phonics/reading game.

Listen as they tell us about the progression of learning they took their students on and how their students stayed completely engaged. In fact they stated, "They didn't have time to be disengaged!"

Learn

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE

In this episode we'll consider the mindset of the learners that you teach. Some of them seem to approach learning with an open mind and others do not. 

Today we'll talk about the four categories that helped me to reconsider the students I was teaching and what I needed to do next.

Join me as we consider

1. The knower

2. The NOT knower

3. The guesser

4. The believer, "I can figure it out."

And the three steps to get you started shifting your students. Grab a piece of paper and consider the students that are sitting in front of you.

~Jennifer