Background. The digitalization of education reaches the preschool level. AR books are increasingly used with children, yet their educational potential for preschoolers remains understudied, particularly how their appeal relates to children’s text comprehension.
Objective. To examine senior preschoolers’ comprehension of an informational text when reading an AR book versus books without illustrations and with traditional printed illustrations.
Sample. 120 senior preschoolers (M = 75 months): 60 aged 5 to 6 years and 60 aged 6 to 7 years, assigned to three groups of 40 by illustration format.
Methods. Non-participant observation during reading, an individual interview on the text afterwards (three open questions), and analysis of children’s drawings. Data were analyzed with the c² test; instruments underwent expert verification.
Results. During reading, verbal activity was highest in the AR group; however, many of these reactions concerned technological effects rather than the text content (c² = 10.74; p = 0.005). When answering questions, children with printed illustrations reproduced the factual content most fully, whereas the AR group relied more on personal experience. Printed illustrations also yielded the most accurate reflection of content in drawings (c² = 28.44; p < 0.001). No age differences emerged.
Conclusion. The effectiveness of AR books depends not only on their appeal but also on the match between visual content and text and on pedagogical support. For informational books, traditional illustrations ensure better comprehension. It justifies a differentiated approach to illustration format by text type and educational objectives.