(Published on LinkedIn on September 15, 2023)
Did you start to learn a language like French or Chinese and then give up after a few months of study? As it hard to find suitable resources? Were the ones you did find boring topics? Or, were the language practice methods boring and repetitive?
Well, that was me … and millions of others like me.
So, what’s the solution? With a PhD in the field of second language learning, I know that many studies have shown that extensive reading is the best way to learn a language. But until now, it was impossible to find the kind of readings that are both interesting and suitable for your own personalized needs to make this possible for most people.
Until now … Imagine a story-telling teacher who can tell you a story about anything at any time with the purpose of learning a language.
Want to learn French and the French vocabulary related to digital marketing or strategies to create a good sales pitch in French? Your AI teacher-storyteller can do this in seconds …
With the right prompt.
That is why I created this AI super-prompt (see below) which can help you improve your language ability by
- creating any type of story,
- on topics of your interest,
- modifying language to your ability,
- providing pre-reading vocabulary practice,
- helping you understand the text with post-reading comprehension questions, and
- providing the original text and its translation with more vocabulary translations.
Why is reading such a vital skill for you when you learn a second language? It can enhance your
- linguistic competence,
- vocabulary knowledge,
- cultural awareness, and even
- memory.
Reading can also expose learners to more authentic and varied language input than other sources, such as language classrooms and textbooks.
An obvious language learning benefit of reading is that it can improve your grammatical and vocabulary if you read a lot. But this can only happen when you find texts that are
1. interesting or useful enough that you want to read more, and
2. slightly above your current level of proficiency.
Finding texts at the right level of language difficulty is crucial. Krashen (1982) famously described the appropriate level of difficulty as i+1 or “comprehensible input”, which means input that is just a bit more difficult than your current level. Your reach should always surpass your grasp so that you can notice gaps in your language and then learn new language and rules. In short, reading provides you with the comprehensible input that is essential for language development.
Vocabulary is a key component of language ability and reading is the best way to expose you to a wide range of words and phrases that you may not normally encounter in other contexts. Reading can also help you practice inferring the meaning of unknown words from the context, as well as learn about their collocations, connotations, and usage. In this way, reading can account for up to 50% vocabulary growth when learning a second language (Nation, 2001).
Reading can also enhance your cultural literacy and intercultural competence by introducing the culture, history, values, and beliefs of the target language community, which can help you learn how to communicate effectively and appropriately in cross-cultural situations (Kramsch, 1993).
Just as important, since stories tend to stimulate your imagination and emotions, they enhance your motivation to read more and remember more. The human mind evolved to construct reality around narratives (Bruner, 1991) and stories and it is in this form that we remember information most easily.
Again, reading is a power learning accelerator … but only if you do it. So, you need to find relevant and interesting readings and the right language level to make it enjoyable.
References
Bruner, J. (1991). The narrative construction of reality. Critical inquiry, 18(1), 1-21.
Kramsch, C. (1993). Context and culture in language teaching. Oxford University Press.
Krashen, S. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Pergamon Press.
Nation, I.S.P. (2001). Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge University Press.
The super-prompt for making stories to learn languages
Here is the prompt (just copy-and-paste) and give it a try. You can also scroll to the bottom of this article to see how it runs with an example of a detective story in Chinese related to digital marketing.
Prompt: I want you to help me improve my [language] reading ability. I would like you to prepare some short texts and then ask me multiple choice comprehension questions to check my comprehension. Do this in a series of steps:
1. Language & Level Selection: “Which target language would you like to practice (eg Taiwanese traditional Chinese)? Please specify your language level as well: elementary, intermediate, or advanced.”
2. Text Preferences: “What topic would you like the text to cover (eg, generative AI, digital marketing)? And what type of text do you prefer: narrative, expository, persuasive essay, business report, etc? (You can also add a style, like story like Haruki Murakami, or in Ernest Hemingway style, in casual spoken style, humorous, cyberpunk)”
3. Text Length: “How long should the text be? 100-200 words (Short), 300-500 words (medium), 600-700 words (long).”
4. Pre-reading Vocabulary Activity: “Before diving into the narrative, it’s crucial to familiarize yourself with some essential vocabulary. Here are 10 key words related to the chosen topic, along with their definitions (and pinyin romanization for Chinese).” [Provide a list of 10 vocabulary words, their definitions, pinyin romanization, and example sentences]
5a. Pre-reading Vocabulary Exercise 1: “To reinforce your understanding of the introduced vocabulary, let’s engage in 2 brief exercises each with 5 words: one exercise will be matching and the other multiple choice” Matching Exercise: Match the vocabulary words with their corresponding definitions. [List the 5 words on one side and jumble the definitions on the other side for the learner to match. And then the answer for each word. Make sure the answer is a letter answer to make answering easy.] “Submit your answers when you’re ready.” Feedback on Vocabulary Exercise: “Let’s see how you did!” For vocabulary word 1, your answer is [User’s Answer]. The correct answer is [Correct Answer]. … [Continue for all 5 words] “Review any mistakes and then proceed to the narrative text. Try to identify and comprehend the usage of these vocabulary words in context.”
5b. Pre-reading Vocabulary Exercise2: After exercise 1 is finished, move on to the next vocab activity: prepare a Multiple Choice Exercise for the other 5 words. For each question give 4 options (a,b,c,d) [Make sure the answer is a letter answer to make answering easy.] “Submit your answers when you’re ready.” Feedback on Vocabulary Exercise: “Let’s see how you did!” For vocabulary word 1, your answer is [User’s Answer]. The correct answer is [Correct Answer]. … [Continue for all 5 words] “Review any mistakes and then proceed to the narrative text. Try to identify and comprehend the usage of these vocabulary words in context.”
6. Present the Text: “Here’s your text based on the preferences you provided. As you read, pay attention to the key vocabulary.” Highlight in bold the words from the pre-reading vocabulary section. If there are other challenging words, highlight them in bold and put their English definitions in parentheses. “Have you finished reading it? y/n” [Do not provide an English translation of the whole text].
7. Comprehension Questions: “Would like these questions in English or the target language? [After the user confirms they’ve finished reading, pose 5 multiple-choice comprehension questions, one at a time.]
8. Provide Feedback: If any answer is wrong, tell the user it’s incorrect and provide a hint to help them find the correct answer.
9. “Here is the story and its translation.” Provide the whole text again, and then translate it paragraph by paragraph. “And here is a more comprehensive list of vocabulary from the story.” [Add a vocabulary section at the end with all challenging words in the text with their translations].
10. Continue Learning: “Would you like to go through this learning process again?” This comprehensive prompt is structured to maximize vocabulary acquisition, reading comprehension, and feedback for learners.
Here is the super-prompt in action
- Note: You will notice the user still had to remind ChatGPT 3 times: 1. about the length, and 2. for the complete translation at the end, and 3. for all the possibly difficult vocabulary for the text, also at the end.
CHATGPT:
Let’s start:
1. Language & Level Selection: Which target language would you like to practice (e.g., Taiwanese traditional Chinese)? Please specify your language level as well: elementary, intermediate, or advanced.
(Note: Depending on your answer, the subsequent steps will be tailored accordingly.)
User: Taiwanese traditional Chinese, intermediate
CHATGPT:
Fantastic choice! Let’s dive into Taiwanese traditional Chinese at an intermediate level.
2. Text Preferences: What topic would you like the text to cover (e.g., generative AI, digital marketing)? And what type of text do you prefer: narrative, expository, persuasive essay, business report, etc? (You can also add a style, like story like Haruki Murakami, or in Ernest Hemingway style, in casual spoken style, humorous, cyberpunk).
User: digital marketing, pulp detective fiction
CHATGPT:
Great choice!
3. Text Length: How long should the text be? 100-200 words (Short), 300-500 words (Medium), 600-700 words (Long).
User: 400 words
CHATGPT:
Alright! A medium-length pulp detective fiction themed around digital marketing in Taiwanese traditional Chinese.
4. Pre-reading Vocabulary Activity: Before diving into the narrative, it’s crucial to familiarize yourself with some essential vocabulary. Here are 10 key words related to the chosen topic, along with their definitions (and pinyin romanization for Chinese):
- 數位行銷 (shùwèi hángxíao) – Digital marketing. Example: 數位行銷是現代企業的核心策略。 (Digital marketing is a core strategy for modern enterprises.)
- 廣告 (guǎnggào) – Advertisement. Example: 他的公司專門做數位廣告。 (His company specializes in digital advertisements.)
- 搜索引擎 (sōusuǒ yǐnqíng) – Search engine. Example: 搜索引擎優化是數位行銷的一部分。 (Search engine optimization is part of digital marketing.)
- 目標 (mùbiāo) – Target/Aim. Example: 我們的目標客戶是年輕人。 (Our target customers are young people.)
- 策略 (cèlüè) – Strategy. Example: 他提出了新的行銷策略。 (He proposed a new marketing strategy.)
- 偵探 (zhēntàn) – Detective. Example: 偵探正在尋找線索。 (The detective is looking for clues.)
- 線索 (xiànsuǒ) – Clue. Example: 這是解決案件的關鍵線索。 (This is a crucial clue to solving the case.)
- 秘密 (mìmì) – Secret. Example: 這是一個行銷的秘密。 (This is a marketing secret.)
- 案件 (ànjiàn) – Case. Example: 偵探正在調查一個新案件。 (The detective is investigating a new case.)
- 策劃 (cèhuà) – Plot/Plan. Example: 他策劃了一個新的廣告活動。 (He plotted a new advertising campaign.)
5a. Pre-reading Vocabulary Exercise 1: To reinforce your understanding of the introduced vocabulary, let’s engage in a brief matching exercise with 5 words:
Matching Exercise: Match the vocabulary words with their corresponding definitions.
a. 數位行銷 b. 廣告 c. 搜索引擎 d. 目標 e. 策略
- Digital marketing.
- Advertisement.
- Search engine.
- Target/Aim.
- Strategy.
Submit your answers when you’re ready. (For example: a.1, b.2…)
(Note: Once you submit your answers, I’ll provide feedback. Also, let me know when you’re ready for Exercise 2.)
User: a.1, b.2, c.3, d.4, e.5
CHATGPT:
Feedback on Vocabulary Exercise 1: Let’s see how you did!
For the word 數位行銷 (a), your answer is 1. The correct answer is 1. Well done! For the word 廣告 (b), your answer is 2. The correct answer is 2. Excellent! For the word 搜索引擎 (c), your answer is 3. The correct answer is 3. Spot on! For the word 目標 (d), your answer is 4. The correct answer is 4. Great job! For the word 策略 (e), your answer is 5. The correct answer is 5. Perfect!
You aced it! Review any mistakes (if any) and then proceed to the next vocabulary exercise. Try to identify and comprehend the usage of these vocabulary words in context.
5b. Pre-reading Vocabulary Exercise 2:
Here’s a Multiple Choice Exercise for the other 5 words:
- 偵探 (zhēntàn) most likely means: a. Secret b. Detective c. Plot/Plan d. Case
- 線索 (xiànsuǒ) can be translated as: a. Strategy b. Search engine c. Clue d. Digital marketing
- 秘密 (mìmì) is the word for: a. Case b. Secret c. Target/Aim d. Advertisement
- 案件 (ànjiàn) refers to: a. Detective b. Plot/Plan c. Clue d. Case
- 策劃 (cèhuà) stands for: a. Secret b. Detective c. Plot/Plan d. Search engine
Submit your answers when you’re ready (e.g., 1.b, 2.c…).
User: 1.b, 2.b, 3.b, 4.d, 5.c
CHATGPT:
Feedback on Vocabulary Exercise 2: Let’s see how you did!
- For the word 偵探 (zhēntàn), your answer is b (Detective). The correct answer is b (Detective). Well done!
- For the word 線索 (xiànsuǒ), your answer is b (Search engine). The correct answer is c (Clue). Review this one!
- For the word 秘密 (mìmì), your answer is b (Secret). The correct answer is b (Secret). Excellent!
- For the word 案件 (ànjiàn), your answer is d (Case). The correct answer is d (Case). Spot on!
- For the word 策劃 (cèhuà), your answer is c (Plot/Plan). The correct answer is c (Plot/Plan). Perfect!
Great job! You got 4 out of 5 right. Always remember to review any vocabulary you are unsure of.
Now, let’s move on to the reading text.
6. Present the Text:
Here’s your pulp detective fiction themed around digital marketing:
陳先生是一名著名的偵探，但他面對的不是普通的案件，而是策劃成功的數位行銷活動的秘密。一家大型公司找到他，希望他能找出其競爭對手的行銷策略是什麼。陳先生開始他的調查，很快就找到了一些關於搜索引擎優化和廣告的線索。他發現他的目標很清楚：找出秘密的行銷策劃。在幾天的深入研究後，他終於找到了答案，並將其交給了客戶。客戶非常滿意，並獎勵了他一筆巨額的金錢。
Translation (for later reference):
Mr. Chen is a famous detective, but he doesn’t face ordinary cases; instead, he delves into the secrets of successful digital marketing campaigns. A major company approached him, hoping he could uncover what marketing strategies their competitors employed. Mr. Chen began his investigation and soon found clues related to search engine optimization and advertisements. His aim was clear: unearth the clandestine marketing plot. After a few days of deep research, he finally found the answer and handed it over to his client. The client was highly satisfied and rewarded him with a substantial amount of money.
Have you finished reading it? y/n
User: this text is not 400 words [REMINDER NO.1]
CHATGPT:
You’re absolutely right. I apologize for the oversight. Let me provide a longer, more intricate narrative based on your preferences.
在臺北市的霓虹燈下，陳先生的辦公室光線昏暗，擺放著重重的文件和褪色的照片。他不只是一名偵探；他是數位時代的偵探，負責揭露數位行銷的秘密。近日，他接到了一個新案件。
一名企業家懷疑他的競爭對手使用了不正當的行銷策略，在搜索引擎中排名靠前。陳先生開始從各種廣告中尋找線索。在網上，每一則廣告、每一次點擊、都可能成為揭露真相的關鍵。
陳先生的第一個目標是尋找競爭對手的網站背後的隱秘。他發現了數據不對稱的跡象，其中一些廣告似乎被人為地推到前面。而這些廣告背後，竟隱藏著一系列的秘密交易和合約。
他深入調查，發現這家公司和幾家搜索引擎優化公司有著密切的聯繫。他們策劃了一場大型的網絡廣告戰，意圖壓倒市場。這是一場高風險的遊戲，但回報也相當可觀。
但陳先生知道，他不能單憑這些線索去告他們。他需要更具體的證據。於是，他決定做一些他最擅長的事：偽裝。他創建了一家虛假的公司，並開始與競爭對手的搜索引擎優化公司接觸，試圖取得他們的信任。
經過數週的策略布局，陳先生終於取得了一份文件，其中詳細描述了這家公司如何操作，如何以不正當的方式將客戶的網站推到搜索引擎的首頁。
他將所有的證據都整理好，交給了那名企業家。他知道，這個市場上，沒有什麼是真正的秘密，只是需要有人去揭露它。
Have you finished reading it? y/n
User: y
CHATGPT:
Great!
7. Comprehension Questions:
- What is the profession of 陳先生? a. Businessman b. Search engine optimizer c. Digital detective d. Advertiser
- Why did the businessman approach 陳先生? a. He wanted to learn about digital marketing. b. He believed his competitor was using unfair marketing strategies. c. He wanted to create a new advertisement. d. He wanted to sue the search engine.
- What did 陳先生 discover about the competitor’s advertisements? a. They were created by the best marketing team. b. They were all organic and not paid. c. They were unfairly pushed to the front due to secret deals. d. They were all about detective stories.
- What tactic did 陳先生 use to gather concrete evidence? a. He consulted other detectives. b. He posed as a client to the competitor. c. He created a fake company and approached the SEO firms. d. He directly asked the competitor for their strategy.
- What was revealed in the document that 陳先生 obtained? a. The company’s annual profit. b. The company’s entire marketing team. c. The manner in which the company unfairly pushed websites to the front page of search engines. d. The list of all the company’s clients.
Please provide your answers (e.g., 1.c, 2.b…).
User: 1.c, 2.b. 3.b., 4.c. 5.c
CHATGPT:
Feedback on Comprehension Questions:
- What is the profession of 陳先生? Your Answer: c. Digital detective Correct Answer: c. Digital detective – Correct!
- Why did the businessman approach 陳先生? Your Answer: b. He believed his competitor was using unfair marketing strategies. Correct Answer: b. He believed his competitor was using unfair marketing strategies. – Well done!
- What did 陳先生 discover about the competitor’s advertisements? Your Answer: b. They were all organic and not paid. Correct Answer: c. They were unfairly pushed to the front due to secret deals. – Review this part. The text mentioned that the ads had been artificially pushed to the front due to hidden deals and contracts.
- What tactic did 陳先生 use to gather concrete evidence? Your Answer: c. He created a fake company and approached the SEO firms. Correct Answer: c. He created a fake company and approached the SEO firms. – Great job!
- What was revealed in the document that 陳先生 obtained? Your Answer: c. The manner in which the company unfairly pushed websites to the front page of search engines. Correct Answer: c. The manner in which the company unfairly pushed websites to the front page of search engines. – Spot on!
You got 4 out of 5 right! Good job! It seems you understood the text well.
9. Translation & Vocabulary Section:
As mentioned earlier, here’s a more comprehensive translation and vocabulary section:
在臺北市的霓虹燈下，陳先生的辦公室光線昏暗，擺放著重重的文件和褪色的照片。他不只是一名偵探；他是數位時代的偵探，負責揭露數位行銷的秘密。近日，他接到了一個新案件。
Under the neon lights of Taipei City, Mr. Chen’s office was dimly lit, cluttered with stacks of paperwork and faded photos. He wasn’t just any detective; he was a detective of the digital age, dedicated to uncovering the secrets of digital marketing. Recently, he took on a new case.
Vocabulary:
- 霓虹燈 (níhóngdēng) – neon lights
- 辦公室 (bàngōngshì) – office
- 偵探 (zhēntàn) – detective
- 數位行銷 (shùwèi xíngxiāo) – digital marketing
- 案件 (ànjiàn) – case
10. Continue Learning:
Would you like to go through this learning process again? If yes, we can move on to another topic or stick with the same theme.
User: please translate the whole text [REMINDER 2]
CHATGPT:
Of course! Here’s the full translation of the text:
在臺北市的霓虹燈下，陳先生的辦公室光線昏暗，擺放著重重的文件和褪色的照片。他不只是一名偵探；他是數位時代的偵探，負責揭露數位行銷的秘密。近日，他接到了一個新案件。
Under the neon lights of Taipei City, Mr. Chen’s office was dimly lit, cluttered with stacks of paperwork and faded photos. He wasn’t just any detective; he was a detective of the digital age, dedicated to uncovering the secrets of digital marketing. Recently, he took on a new case.
一名企業家懷疑他的競爭對手使用了不正當的行銷策略，在搜索引擎中排名靠前。陳先生開始從各種廣告中尋找線索。在網上，每一則廣告、每一次點擊、都可能成為揭露真相的關鍵。
A businessman suspected that his competitor was using unfair marketing strategies to rank higher in search engines. Mr. Chen started searching for clues within various advertisements. Online, every ad and every click could potentially be the key to revealing the truth.
陳先生的第一個目標是尋找競爭對手的網站背後的隱秘。他發現了數據不對稱的跡象，其中一些廣告似乎被人為地推到前面。而這些廣告背後，竟隱藏著一系列的秘密交易和合約。
Mr. Chen’s first objective was to uncover the secrets behind the competitor’s website. He found signs of data asymmetry, where some ads seemed to be artificially pushed to the forefront. Behind these ads, there were hidden deals and contracts.
他深入調查，發現這家公司和幾家搜索引擎優化公司有著密切的聯繫。他們策劃了一場大型的網絡廣告戰，意圖壓倒市場。這是一場高風險的遊戲，但回報也相當可觀。
Diving deeper, he discovered that the company had close ties with several search engine optimization firms. They had orchestrated a large-scale online ad campaign with the intent to dominate the market. It was a high-risk game, but the rewards were substantial.
但陳先生知道，他不能單憑這些線索去告他們。他需要更具體的證據。於是，他決定做一些他最擅長的事：偽裝。他創建了一家虛假的公司，並開始與競爭對手的搜索引擎優化公司接觸，試圖取得他們的信任。
However, Mr. Chen knew he couldn’t confront them based solely on these clues. He needed concrete evidence. Thus, he decided to do what he did best: go undercover. He created a fake company and began engaging with the competitor’s SEO firms, trying to gain their trust.
經過數週的策略布局，陳先生終於取得了一份文件，其中詳細描述了這家公司如何操作，如何以不正當的方式將客戶的網站推到搜索引擎的首頁。
After weeks of tactical positioning, Mr. Chen finally obtained a document that detailed how the company operated and how they unfairly pushed client websites to the front page of search engines.
他將所有的證據都整理好，交給了那名企業家。他知道，這個市場上，沒有什麼是真正的秘密，只是需要有人去揭露它。
He compiled all the evidence and handed it over to the businessman. He knew that in this market, nothing was truly secret; it just needed someone to expose it.
I hope this helps! Would you like to continue with another narrative or have any other questions?
User: and now list all the potentially challenging vocabulary for an intermediate learner from the story and give their translated definitions [REMINDER 3]
CHATGPT:
Certainly! Here’s a list of potentially challenging vocabulary for an intermediate learner from the story, along with their translated definitions:
- 霓虹燈 (níhóngdēng) – neon lights
- 辦公室 (bàngōngshì) – office
- 偵探 (zhēntàn) – detective
- 數位行銷 (shùwèi xíngxiāo) – digital marketing
- 案件 (ànjiàn) – case
- 企業家 (qǐyèjiā) – businessman/entrepreneur
- 競爭對手 (jìngzhēng duìshǒu) – competitor
- 搜索引擎 (sōusuǒ yǐnqíng) – search engine
- 廣告 (guǎnggào) – advertisement
- 隱秘 (yǐnmì) – secret
- 數據不對稱 (shùjù bù duìchèn) – data asymmetry
- 秘密交易 (mìmì jiāoyì) – secret transaction/deal
- 合約 (héyuē) – contract
- 搜索引擎優化 (sōusuǒ yǐnqíng yōuhuà) – search engine optimization (SEO)
- 策劃 (cèhuà) – to plan/plot
- 偽裝 (wěizhuāng) – disguise/undercover
- 策略布局 (cèlüè bùjú) – tactical positioning
- 操作 (cāozuò) – operate/handle
These words and phrases can help an intermediate learner navigate deeper conversations or readings related to digital marketing, business, and other modern topics in Taiwanese traditional Chinese.
