Docs / MCP server / MCP server
MCP server
A free, read-only Model Context Protocol server. It gives an AI assistant 38 English word lists placed by grade with sources, and 216 lists in five other languages, so a teacher can ask for "20 words with sh for a first grader" and get an answer from sourced lists. Hosted at https://mcp.dyslexiasteps.com/mcp, or run locally with npx -y dyslexiasteps-mcp.
Hosted or local
| Hosted | Local (npx) | |
|---|---|---|
| Install | Nothing | Node.js 18+, npx -y dyslexiasteps-mcp |
| Works in ChatGPT and Claude custom connectors | Yes | No (they cannot start a local process) |
| Works offline | No | Yes |
| Tools | Same six | Same six |
Connect your client
- Claude Code: Add the hosted URL with one command. A local install works too.
- Claude (claude.ai and Desktop): A remote server is added as a custom connector. It needs the hosted URL; npx does not work here.
- Claude Desktop (local): To run the server on your own machine with npx, add it to Claude Desktop's config file.
- ChatGPT: Only a remote (hosted) server works. ChatGPT cannot start a local npx process.
- Codex: The Codex CLI and the IDE extension read the same config.toml. Use --url for hosted, npx for local.
- Cursor: Add a URL or a command to mcp.json, for one project or for every project.
- VS Code: The workspace file is .vscode/mcp.json. Its top-level key is servers, not mcpServers.
- Gemini CLI: Use gemini mcp add or edit settings.json. The key for a remote server is httpUrl.
- Any other client: Any MCP client that supports Streamable HTTP works with the hosted URL. Clients that only support stdio use npx.
Tools
| Tool | What it returns |
|---|---|
list_word_lists | The available lists with id, title, language, section, grade range, the source of the grade placement and word count. Filter by language, grade or section. |
get_word_list | One list in full: every word, its groups (for example -at, -an, -ap families), the grade range, the placement basis, the page URL and the license. |
get_words_for_grade | Every different English word from the lists that cover a grade, deduplicated, with the lists each word comes from; optional section filter. |
find_words | Words that start with, end with or contain a pattern such as sh, ck or ight, with their list, grade range and page. |
get_placement_basis | How grades were assigned: Dolch's own grade levels (1936, public domain), the Common Core Foundational Skills item that names the skill, or a typical sequence when no standard names it. Includes the limits. |
get_citation | The license (CC BY 4.0 for the compilation; the Dolch words are public domain), the citation text and the CSV and JSON download addresses. |
Parameters and real example responses are on the tool reference.
What it does not do
- It does not assess a child. It returns word lists. A grade is a typical guide, not a rule, and a placement is not an assessment of any child.
- It gives no advice about a learning difficulty. The screening test on dyslexiasteps.com is a screening, not a diagnosis; only a specialist can diagnose dyslexia.
- It writes nothing, opens no account and spends no credits. All six tools are read-only and need no API key or sign-in.
- Other languages have no grades. The German, Spanish, French, Dutch and Brazilian Portuguese lists follow each language's own reading curriculum, so they are not mapped to US grades.
Example questions
- “Give me 20 words with sh for a first grader.”
- “Which sight words belong to kindergarten, and how were they placed there?”
- “I teach second grade: what vowel team words can I use, with their source?”
- “Show me every list that has words ending in ight.”
- “Which word lists exist in Spanish?”