In response to the new requirements for higher-order thinking skills in the AI era, this paper investigates an innovative approach to fostering critical thinking by integrating Large Language Models (LLMs) into the EFL reading instruction. It constructs and illustrates a three-step cyclical teaching model (diagnose-challenge-reconstruct) designed to externalize and scaffold the internal process of critical thinking. The LLM is tasked with the dual roles of diagnosing and challenging, offering both analytical feedback and counterarguments to students’ initial perspectives. Students, in turn, critically engage with, reflect upon and revise their ideas, leading to a profounder and reconstructed understanding. This human-AI collaborative paradigm not only revitalizes conventional pedagogy but also prompts a shift in the teacher’s role from a knowledge transmitter to a critical thinking facilitator. The ultimate objective is to equip students with the essential skills of independent thinking and sound judgment necessary for navigating a complex information society.