Differentiated Reading Comprehension Passages AI Prompt
Designing reading passages for mixed-ability learners is tough. You juggle text complexity, background knowledge, and standards while keeping everyone engaged. It’s easy to end up with generic content that’s either too hard or too simple—and weak questions that don’t assess the right skills.
A sharp prompt fixes that. When you specify reading level bands, target skills, content area, and assessment formats, AI can produce differentiated, standards-aware passages with aligned questions and answer keys. AskSmarter.ai guides you with clarifying questions to capture these details—like student profiles, lexile ranges, topic constraints, and assessment goals—so you get strong outputs on the first try.
Use this prompt to generate three leveled passages on the same topic, each with precise question types, annotations, and teacher notes. You’ll save hours while delivering accessible, rigorous reading practice that actually builds skills.
The transformation
Before — Vague prompt
Write a reading passage with some questions for my class.
After — Optimized prompt
You are a K–12 literacy specialist. Create 3 differentiated nonfiction passages on the same topic (renewable energy). 1: Grades 3–4 (~500L). 2: Grades 5–6 (~800L). 3: Grades 7–8 (~1000L).
- Focus skills: main idea, inference, citing evidence, domain vocabulary.
- For each passage, provide: title, 350–550 words, 6 questions (2 multiple choice, 2 short answer, 2 evidence-based), answer key with rationales, 5 vocabulary terms with student-friendly definitions.
- Constraints: neutral, engaging tone; no prior knowledge required; avoid technical jargon; include one real statistic with source.
- Add teacher notes: extension activity, differentiation tips for ELLs, and suggested timing.
Why this works
The optimized prompt outperforms the vague request because it provides clear direction and constraints the model can execute. It adds:
- Clarity: Exact number of passages, grade bands, and word counts remove guesswork.
- Context: Topic (renewable energy), skill focus, and audience levels ensure relevance and rigor.
- Structure: A repeatable template (title, word count, question mix, vocab, answer key) yields consistent, usable outputs.
- Assessment alignment: Specific question types and evidence requirements target comprehension skills directly.
- Tone and accessibility: Guidance on neutrality, jargon, and background knowledge supports inclusivity.
- Teacher utility: Rationales, vocabulary, and teacher notes make the resource classroom-ready.
AskSmarter.ai gets to this level by asking the right questions first—about reading levels, target skills, content boundaries, tone, and assessment formats. Those answers translate into precise instructions that eliminate revisions. The result is differentiated content that’s accurate, age-appropriate, and immediately deployable for instruction and assessment.
When to use this prompt
Marketing Managers
Create content literacy passages about your product category for internal enablement training, tailored by role seniority.
Product Managers
Generate user education passages that explain complex features at beginner, intermediate, and advanced reading levels.
Customer Success Teams
Build help center reading practice with comprehension checks for onboarding, localization, and accessibility needs.
Researchers
Summarize study topics into leveled passages to prep stakeholders with varying expertise before briefings.
Educators and Curriculum Leads
Produce standards-aware, leveled reading sets for mixed-ability classrooms with aligned questions and notes.
Pro tips
- 1
Specify lexile or grade bands to control complexity and ensure accessibility.
- 2
Define exact question types and counts to align with assessment goals.
- 3
Include topic constraints and tone guidance to prevent misconceptions and bias.
- 4
Add teacher or facilitator notes to make the output immediately classroom- or training-ready.
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Build a prompt for your situation
This example shows the pattern. AskSmarter.ai guides you to create prompts tailored to your specific context, audience, and goals.