Choose one real moment, get the details right, and leave room for your child’s version.
Information for parents and carers. Not clinically reviewed.
Start here: choose what the story is for.
Pick one moment: something coming up, something your child wants to revisit, or an ordinary routine. An enjoyable memory counts. You do not need to invent a worry or a lesson to make a story worth keeping. Ask whether your child wants a book about it.
Does this sound familiar?
A first appointment has a few important details to explain.
Your child keeps telling the funny part of yesterday’s trip.
A familiar routine would be easier to describe with pictures.
A new adult is joining an activity, and your child wants to know who.
These are possible uses, not promises that a story will change behaviour or feelings.
Try this
Write down what you know
Name the adult, place and agreed arrangement. For an appointment, check support with the service first.1 Say what is unknown; leave out addresses and details the story does not need.
Say it like this: “Grandad is coming with you. Let’s ask the practice about the chair.”
Let the child have a say
They can point, draw, speak or choose not to join in. Describe events without prescribing bravery, happiness or compliance. If the story concerns someone else, do not invent their thoughts.
Say it like this: “Which bit should we keep? Is there anything we got wrong?”
Check the words and pictures together
Read every page yourself. Check the people, familiar things and sequence; remove invented procedures or promises. An inaccurate book can wait. Offer the checked story without making reading it a requirement.
Say it like this: “Would you like this story now, another book, or neither?”
Why this can help
Enjoyable shared reading can support connection and early learning.2 A personal book can also hold information your family has checked. That does not establish that an AI-generated story treats a condition. Keep its purpose modest: explain, remember or enjoy something together.
Three situations
These families are fictional. Use only the details that are true for yours.
Coming up: a new dentist
Theo is three. Grandad phones the practice: Theo can sit on his lap, and sunglasses are welcome. Those are confirmed arrangements, not things the story can promise for every visit.1
“Grandad is taking you. The dentist will look at your teeth. We can ask about anything else.”
Show what you know, leave the length of the wait open, and check the final pages for invented treatment.
Already happened: a first bike ride
Amara wants a book about riding without stabilisers. Ask what she remembers: the wobble, the yellow helmet, her cousin running beside her. She does not need a fear or a lesson added to make the afternoon interesting.
“Which bit belongs in our story?”
If your memory differs, ask rather than presenting the book as proof. Keep it private unless the people included are comfortable sharing.
Keeps happening: getting ready for swimming
Leo and Dad check their actual routine: bag, bus, changing room. Leo wants a page showing where his dry clothes wait. Dad checks that the pool still uses the same arrangement.
“What would you like to see before we go?”
Use a few factual pages if Leo wants them. If the plan changes, update it. Reading the book is not a condition for going swimming.
A story about it
The moment
Theo’s first visit, with the arrangements Grandad has checked. This example is fictional; replace its details before using it.
Theo is three and has his first check-up at a new dentist on Saturday. Grandad is taking him. The practice has agreed that Theo can sit on Grandad’s lap and wear his sunglasses. Describe arriving, waiting, meeting the dentist and the dentist looking at his teeth with a small mirror. We do not know how long the wait will be. Do not invent treatment, promise it will not hurt or tell Theo how he must feel. He can ask questions by pointing or speaking. End with them leaving together.
Check every word and picture: the right adult, the real arrangements, no invented procedure or guaranteed feeling. Put an inaccurate version aside.
Use paper, or prntAI with invited access and the required funded package. An adult uses the oneprnt account. The Library has examples; Leona can answer questions about these guides and the product. She does not assess your child.
Go deeper
What evidence does — and does not — say
The American Academy of Pediatrics supports enjoyable shared reading with young children.2 That recommendation is not evidence that a prntAI book treats a condition. We do not have evidence establishing that prntAI treats autism, ADHD, anxiety or OCD.
When a story is the wrong tool
Do not use a book to establish what happened in a safeguarding concern, reconstruct trauma or prescribe treatment. Seek appropriate professional help. If exact rereading becomes a way to obtain certainty or prevent feared harm, ask the child’s clinician how to respond; do not use the story to push your child towards the fear, and do not suddenly take it away as if that were treatment.3
Familiar details without unnecessary private information
A nickname, the adult attending, the child’s communication and a chosen familiar thing may be enough. A home address, school’s full name or medical record is unnecessary for these examples. In prntAI, review the saved people, pets and comfort things you select. A name alone does not guarantee an accurate likeness; check the actual pictures.
Help now
Get help today
If your child talks about suicide or self-harm, seek urgent professional help. If you cannot keep someone safe, use the emergency number below.9293
A story cannot assess illness, establish what happened in a safeguarding concern, or replace treatment. Seek professional help for persistent distress; use the urgent contacts above when safety is at risk.93
Who to ask
Start with your paediatrician or family doctor; ask about the appropriate local service. For school concerns in canton Zürich, the school psychology service advises parents free of charge.94
What to bring
Explain the real concern rather than relying on a generated story as evidence. Bring your child’s own words where possible and ask what support is appropriate.
Sources and further reading
Sources checked 27 September 2026. Examples and suggested words are fictional illustrations of the guidance, not tested interventions. Sources do not endorse oneprnt.
