In my post about creating foreign language reading materials, the last tip was using Microsoft Copilot to create a story that can last for as long as you'd like. If you're using Copilot Pro, you get 600 responses per chat, so you probably won't run out of resposnes for a very long time. But if you're using the free version of Microsoft Copilot, there's a limit of 30 responses per chat. So how do you continue your story when you run out of responses? I'll show you in this post.
Please note that these tips show steps for using the free version of Microsoft Copilot and Office Online. You can use any word processing program you prefer so long as it allows you to save the document as a PDF.
Step 1. Export the first chapter to a Word processing document
Each response in Microsoft Copilot comes with options to export it. At the end of each response is a menu of options. You can export the response as a Word doc, PDF, or plain text document. For a story with chapters, use the export option only on the first chapter and choose the Word doc option. Export the chapter and save the Word doc with the title of your story.
Sometimes, Copilot goes over its own response character limit and stops mid-chapter. In that case, be sure to export each response.
Step 2. Copy and paste in the other chapters
After you've created your Word document with the first chapter, use the copy option to copy and paste subsequent responses/chapters into the same document.
Step 3. Export your story as a PDF
When you've got all your chapters in the Word Document, go to:
- File
- Save as
- Download (or Save) as PDF
Step 4. Open your PDF in Microsoft Edge browser
If you don't have Microsoft Edge browser, download it for free because we will be using the Copilot sidebar in Edge for the next steps.
Open your PDF in Microsoft Edge browser by dragging the file into the browser window.
Step 5. Open the Copilot sidebar in Microsoft Edge
Select the Copilot icon in the upper-right corner of Microsoft Edge browser.
Step 6: Allow access to page content
For Copilot to read the content in the document, you need to allow Microsoft Edge access to the page content. (You only have to do this the first time.)
- Select the three vertical dots (not the horizontal ones) in the upper-right corner of the chat sidebar.
- Select Notification and App settings.
- Toggle Allow Microsoft to access page content to on.
Step 7. Generate a document summary
Now that Copilot can read your PDF, select Generate document summary from one of the options in the Copilot sidebar. If the option isn't there, type "Generate document summary" into the prompt box.
For privacy/security reasons, Copilot doesn't save responses in chats that have a document summary. This is improtant to remember at the end of your session. Select Got it to proceed.
Copilot analyzes the document and generates a page summary. This means that Copilot has "read" your PDF.
Step 8. Write a prompt to ask for the next chapter
Now that Copilot "knows" the contents of the previous chapters, you can ask it to write the next chapter(s). To do this, I used a prompt along the lines of:
Please write the third chapter of this story in Norwegian bokmål using the characters and details from the chapters this document. In this chapter, Bård and Kaptein journey through forests and fields. They hear a horse in distress in the woods and find a beautiful chestnut mare stuck in a mud puddle. Bård and Kaptein help to free her from the mud and she begins to follow them. Bård gives her some carrots from his bag and names her Kastanje. Please write 1000 words for this chapter and include a title for the chapter at the beginning.
Copilot wrote this new chapter for me with the chapter title "A new friend." Have Copilot write as many new chapters as you'd like (up to the 30-response limit) and then go to the next step.
Step 9. Save your new chapters into your document
Because chats from document summares aren't saved, it's important that you remember to save the all your new chapters by copying them into your word processing document. After you close the chat, the chapters will be gone for good.
(Bonus/optional) Step 10. Turn your story into an ebook!
When your story is complete, you can turn it into an ebook using free tools from Microsoft using my tips in that post!
I hope you found this tutorial for continuing previously generated stories in the free version of Microsoft Copilot helpful, and I hope you and your students/tutees/kids find joy in learning foreign languages by reading. If you created a fun story and/or ebook, feel free to share it with me on Twitter @HelloCappuccino!
