Do you read books with your children? Imitate the different characters and animals from books’ visualizations? Do your children enjoy the storytime? I bet the answer’s yes to all the above! But children’s books aren’t just limited to a fun time. They are tools for children’s imagination, curiosity, and empathy. More than words, these books are filled with illustrations and visual content to help children connect emotionally with the stories.
Before generative AI, children’s books were exclusively handwritten by writers, focusing more on emotional nuance, story rhythm, and children-appropriate language. Artists carefully created the illustrations using their preferred medium, be it watercolors, acrylics, or colored pencils. Handworks made sure the characters’ expressions align with words in the story. Even digital painting apps can achieve subtle expressions in drawings. Visually, these books look beautiful, funny, and even dreamy sometimes.
Every passing day, AI-generated content is flooding into our lives in every way. Children’s books are no exception to that. AI has heavily penetrated the children’s books market, often referred to by critics as ‘AI slop.’ Research conducted by Indicator found over 500 non-fiction books on Amazon that were either partially or fully generated by AI. Another study by Qiao Jin and Yi Yuan (International Journal of Child Computer Interaction, Vol. 46) found that children were more susceptible than parents to the disconnect between emotions conveyed by visuals and the text, while most parents were concerned about AI generating the text of the stories. Overall, AI-generated content can have inconsistencies, illogical concepts, a lack of emotional depth, and human connection.
However, if used wisely, you can fill the empty glass. One positive benefit that AI offers is the personalization. With AI at fingertips, people are making reading content that can connect with kids on a deeper emotional level. For example, mentioning the kid’s name or adding their favorite hobbies in the story itself. A research by Ihsan Seyit Ertems published in 2013, shows that personalization in kids’ books boosts their reading engagement by 3 to 5 times. Customizing the stories to create unusual twists and varied settings can spark imagination and make kids see the world in different ways. Especially for children who find books boring or frustrating, personalized content can be transformative.
It’s easier to give in to the new technology, especially when it’s making your life easier. But we cannot solely rely on it. Moderation is the key. Generative AI should be a part of children’s reading material and not a replacement.
Below is my small attempt at creating a short comic story using AI. If you look closer, you can see it is not perfect; rather, it’s full of errors and irregularities. However, personalization made it better and maybe more engaging for a kid with a cat named ‘Dumpling.’
