Five Tips for Making UDL-Aligned Custom Chatbots in Magic School

published by Mike Neumire on 12/6/2025

You may have played or had your students play one of my AI-powered who-dunnit activities in Magic School, where I design custom chatbots to act as suspects. But custom chatbots in Magic School can be more than a novelty—they can serve as powerful tools for designing universally accessible learning experiences. When created with intention, they extend the UDL mindset by offering flexibility, reducing barriers, and supporting learner agency.

Here are five practical tips for building UDL-aligned chatbots that help students develop agency over their own learning.

1. Start with Firm Goals and Flexible Paths

UDL begins with clarity: What should students know, understand, or be able to do? Before you write any chatbot instructions, identify the specific learning goal the bot will support. Then design the bot to help students reach that goal in multiple ways, such as:

• Breaking content into smaller pieces

• Offering explanations at different levels of complexity

• Providing additional examples or analogies on request

• Redirecting students back to the core learning target

This structure keeps the goal firm but gives learners choice in how they get there.

2. Build in Multiple Means of Representation

A UDL-aligned chatbot should adapt its explanations to student needs rather than offering a single, rigid response. Consider including instructions that allow the bot to:

• Rephrase explanations in simpler language

• Provide step-by-step breakdowns

• Offer alternate examples or real-world applications

• Translate into native languages (if language acquisition isn't the goal) or clarify academic vocabulary

3. Allow Multiple Ways for Students to Respond or Show Understanding

Chatbots can support learner agency by embracing different modes of interaction. You can program your Magic School bot to:

• Support brainstorming, outlining, or drafting

• Help students think through what they want to communicate about what they've learned

• Give optional sentence starters or templates

• Provide project or product suggestions

When students have choices in how they express understanding, the chatbot becomes a facilitator rather than a gatekeeper of the “correct” format.

4. Embed Metacognitive and Self-Regulation Supports

One of the most underused powers of custom chatbots is their ability to promote expert learning. Consider embedding prompts that encourage students to:

• Set a goal at the start of the conversation

• Reflect on their progress

• Identify what they’re still unsure about

• Ask for a different type of explanation

• Plan next steps

These supports help students take ownership of the learning process and build transferable skills.

5. Proactively Reduce Barriers and Encourage Independence

UDL is fundamentally proactive. Use your chatbot instructions to anticipate common sticking points and bake in supports. Examples include:

• Breaking complex tasks into stages

• Offering reminders of directions or success criteria

• Providing vocabulary cues

• Modeling how to think through a problem

• Pointing students back to class resources before offering direct answers

By designing supports upfront, the chatbot helps remove predictable barriers and nudges students toward independence, not dependence.

When created with a UDL lens, custom chatbots become thoughtful learning companions rather than simple answer machines. They help deliver flexible access, nurture expert learning habits, and support all students in reaching shared goals.