I’ve been experimenting with A.I. (Artificial Intelligence, i.e. not written by humans) ESL stories for kids. I think this is still too complex for A1 level, what do you think?
Title: The Colorful Butterfly
Once upon a time, there was a colorful butterfly. She had wings that were bright and beautiful, with colors of pink, purple, and blue.
One day, the colorful butterfly went on a journey to explore the world. She flew over mountains, through valleys, and over rivers. She saw all sorts of amazing things, like tall trees, sparkling lakes, and even a rainbow.
As the colorful butterfly flew, she sang a little song. The song went like this:
“I am a butterfly, oh so bright
I fly high and out of sight
Pink and purple and blue, oh my!
My wings are a colorful sky!”
The colorful butterfly sang her song as she flew, and it made her feel happy and free.
After a while, the colorful butterfly felt a little tired. She looked for a place to rest and found a field of flowers. She landed on a big, beautiful sunflower and took a nap.
When she woke up, she realized that she had lost her way. She didn’t know how to get back home. She started to feel scared and sad.
But then she remembered her little song. She sang it to herself, and it made her feel better.
“I am a butterfly, oh so bright
I fly high and out of sight
Pink and purple and blue, oh my!
My wings are a colorful sky!”
She sang it louder and louder, until she heard a buzzing sound.
It was a group of bees! They had heard her singing and came to investigate. The colorful butterfly told them that she was lost and didn’t know how to get back home.
The bees said, “Don’t worry, little butterfly. We can help you find your way home. Follow us!”
The colorful butterfly followed the bees, and soon enough, she was back home.
She thanked the bees for their help and sang her little song again. It made her feel happy and grateful.
From that day on, the colorful butterfly sang her little song every time she felt scared or lost. It reminded her that she was strong and beautiful, just like her wings.
“I am a butterfly, oh so bright
I fly high and out of sight
Pink and purple and blue, oh my!
My wings are a colorful sky!”
And the song became famous among all the animals in the jungle. They would sing it too, and it made them feel happy and free, just like the colorful butterfly.
I hope you enjoyed this story about the colorful butterfly and her little song. Remember, when you feel scared or lost, sing a little song and it will make you feel better.
And always remember that you are strong and beautiful, just like the colorful butterfly.
written by A.I. Edited by R. Graham GenkiEnglish.com
Be genki,
Richard
P.S. If you want my real, human written books, you can find them here.
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The story is fun but, as you said, It’s too difficult for A1. Maybe you could go by age reading level instead of ESL level.
Thank you Nicola! Yes, reading age is one thing it does do well, even at the easiest settings of “1st grader” it is way above most ESL levels! 🙂 So still looking at how to train the A.I. to make it simpler!
Definitely a nice cute story but on a too high level!
Instead of “she” It!?
It is a fun story. It has difficult words that A1 students will not understand.
Maybe you can use the simpler language that is on their level of understanding. The story should be fun and understandable at the same time.
Thank you for the feedback Lerato, and remember for this one I didn’t write it, it was written by the Artificial Intelligence machines 🙂
Thank you too Helga for the feedback!
For the “she” vs. “it” question, very good question! The answer is that usually in English we use gendered pronouns when we anthropomorphise.
I would use it with my young learners even though the level may be a little high. By preteaching the important vocabulary and with pictures they should understand it. But I don’t really like the song, needs to be catchier!
Maybe changing it as much as possible into present simple instead of past? This is a butterfly, she has beautiful, colourful wings.. she likes exploring the world, she can fly over mountains… and so forth…
Language level is A2. The language matches many of the ESL grade 3 and 4 text and student books.