[Fiona McManus]

I agree with Joann that while we have been introduced to a fantastic selection of AI tools and apps I will also try to focus on upskilling myself in just a few of these initially. I think it would be overwhelming and self-sabotaging to try to use too many of these straight away. I also hope to avoid falling into the trap of trying to bring AI into too many areas of my teaching. I am mindful of trying to retain my autonomy and creativity and allowing the children to do the same.

[Fiona McManus]

This course has really inspired me to try out many of the apps and tools that we have learned about. I have never used any AI tools in my teaching and planning before and am shocked at how much time I could have been saving myself in the areas of admin and planning in particular. I am looking forward to introducing tools like microsoft learning tools – Immersive Reader and Microsoft Forms, Copilot, reading coach and many more with the pupils during the school year and also using planning aids like Diffit and Magic School Ai to help me with admin and planning tasks.

While planning this lesson using ChatGPT I utilised skills taught to me in this course- how to use targeted prompts to get the most accurate and tailored content. I also revisited my prompt to request it be made more concise and less detailed. The ease with which this was done and how easy it was to tailor and filter it to my specific needs was very impressive and inspiring for future use.

 

4th Class Literacy Lesson Plan (Short Format)

Class: 4th Class
Subject: English – Writing (Narrative)
Duration: 60 minutes
Topic: Using AI to Support Story Writing

Learning Intentions

• Plan and write a short narrative.
• Use descriptive language.
• Use AI to generate ideas and improve vocabulary.
• Edit writing using AI suggestions.

Success Criteria

Pupils can:

• Plan a story with a beginning, middle and end.
• Write a 150–200 word story.
• Improve at least one part of their writing using AI.

Resources

• Interactive whiteboard
• Devices (shared or individual)
• AI tool (e.g. ChatGPT/Copilot)
• Story planner
• Writing copybooks

Lesson

Introduction (10 mins)

• Show an image and discuss possible characters, setting and problem.
• Explain AI will be used to generate ideas, not write the story.

Development (40 mins)

• Teacher models prompt:
  • “Give me three story ideas for a mystery story suitable for a 10-year-old.”
• Pupils use AI to generate:
  • Character ideas
  • Settings
  • Descriptive vocabulary
• Pupils complete a story plan.
• Pupils write their own narrative, using AI only for vocabulary or editing support.

Conclusion (10 mins)

• Pupils share a favourite sentence.
• Discuss one way AI helped improve their writing.

Assessment

• Observation during discussion and writing.
• Review completed story plans and narratives.
• Check pupils have independently selected and improved their work.

Differentiation

Support

• Word banks
• Sentence starters
• Teacher-guided AI prompts

Extension

• Add dialogue.
• Use figurative language.
• Compare two AI-generated story ideas and explain which is better.

Sample AI Prompts

• Give me three story settings.
• Suggest stronger verbs than went.
• Give me words to describe a storm.
• Check my punctuation without changing my ideas.

[Fiona McManus]

Hi Darragh I also think that this module has reminded us how useful AI tools can be in the classroom without actually having to allow the children access to these tools individually. Some schools do not have the resources to allow each child access to explore these tools individually but they can be easily modelled on a whiteboard and discussed in a whole class setting. There are also many schools who have not updated their Digital Learning policies yet and may be reluctant to allow their pupils access to AI tools without a full overview of their policies. The tools can be used to benefit the teacher and the learner without (as Darragh said) putting the tools in their hands.

[Fiona McManus]

Upon completion of module 4 I am most interested in using an AI application such as Gemini or Chat GPT to teach a literacy lesson based on ‘persuasive writing’ while introducing the concepts of critical thinking and analyzing bias in the media and in the World of AI. I would choose a topic suited to 4th class eg ‘Should Zoos be banned?’. I would ask the children to offer their own opinions initially and we will record them on a whiteboard slide. Then I would use Gemini on the interactive whiteboard to produce 2 alternating views on Zoos (positive/negative) based on prompts provided. We would then analyise the persuasive writing articles picking out persuasive language, perceived biased claims and statements and false claims. We could also compare the opinions in the articles with the childrens own opinions previously recorded and highlight similarities and differences. I think this lesson would be beneficial in teaching 4th class children methods and features of persuasive writing while also encouraging them to consider the AI articles and pick out questionable areas allowing them to become critical readers and learners.

[Fiona McManus]

Martha I agree with you that Reading Coach could be very beneficial in supporting children with reading difficulties as it seems to be able to assign and assess easily. This will be a useful tool to aid the class teacher at times where SET might not be available or applicable to certain students or when as mentioned they have completed Reading Recovery or similar interventions. I too had noted while watching the videos that this tool could be used for homework providing the parents are happy and shown how to use these tools.

[Fiona McManus]

Part 1:
Gamma- I can envisage myself using Gamma regularly to create Powerpoints based on topics we are covering in SESE, Maths, English grammar etc…. I find Powerpoint to be a very useful tool to introduce new themes and topics, to consolidate learning at the end of a lesson or unit of work and also to visually engage learners as we work through new concepts and topics. Recently the powerpoints I have been using are a bit dated or visually uninspiring. I would rarely have the time or resources to create my own but now feel that Gamma will let me do this in an efficient, visually pleasing and levelled manner. It is very useful that they can be generated using simple prompts and also that I can edit them easily if and when needed.

Youtube Translation also appears to be a vey useful and time saving tool that I look forward to trying out. I will have a new EAL pupil in my class with additional needs and so I think something like this will help make certain lessons more accessible and can also be differentiated when needed. The tool to auto-generate questions from the Youtue video is a fantastic idea and one which may be very useful.

Part 2:
Diffit, Gamma, Co – Pilot Image creator, Twee….. really do seem to be excellent resources aimed at the academic world that will be very useful and should impact positively on future teaching, learning and assessment. The potential to access so many resources from one App/website – ‘Magic School AI’ is an excellent option for time-poor teachers and education staff. I can imagine many of these AI tools discussed in Module 3 hugely improving lessons like literacy in areas like improved imagery, reading and speaking coaches, levelled reading passages and comprehension tasks and station teaching prompt and aids. The potential is huge and I hope I can utilize some of these tools for the benefit of the class and my own planning and teaching overall.

[Fiona McManus]

I strongly agree with Caroline that the video from China is a step too far. The headbands appear to be very questionable in terms of privacy, accuracy and effectiveness. I would imagine the headbands would cause considerable stress and anxiety on children for minimal benefit and progress.

I also agree that I would hope to utilise AI as a way of reducing teacher workload in terms of planning, worksheet creation etc…. But will use it sparingly in the primary classroom to avoid over reliance on it and prevent these tools blocking pupil creativity and individuality.

[Fiona McManus]

This module is very interesting and informative showing so many practical methods of utilizing AI in the classroom on a daily basis. The Microsoft Learning tools, Immersive Reader and Microsoft forms appear to be very useful and I envisage using them regularly in my future teaching.
My school uses a group reading program called ‘Literacy Lift-Off’ which provides structured short term intervention in reading. As part of this program we have various reading based independent work stations and we often struggle to come up with meaningful ,engaging and interesting tasks that require minimal teacher support. I think that AI tools such as Microsoft Forms, Immersive Reader and picture generators will be so handy to use to create tailored worksheets based on the topics they are reading about that day, quizzes based on what they have read previously and image based challenges for the students. Immersive Reader should also be very useful for the ipad work station allowing us to tailor the tasks to the ability of the reader rather than just their class/age level.
In my class I try to do a morning brain teaser or challenge every day to ease the children into the day ahead and get them warmed up and focused. I find it hard to find free and age appropriate challenges once I have used up all the Twinkl resources aimed at our age group! It is very time consuming to create my own. Seeing how the instructor used the 3 different chatbots to generate a lesson plan has shown me that I might be able to do something similar to create morning challenges and brainteasers and will be able to request specific themes, topics and areas of focus depending on what we are focusing on each week etc…
The biggest challenges I envisage for the above uses will be the reliability of the WIFI in a rural school in the West of Ireland and the availability of devices as we have a small number to cater for 150 children. I am also very aware that I will need to monitor and pre assess tasks that I create and differentiation that I introduce to ensure they are suitable overall and also suitable for the Irish curriculum and that the age/class/grade corresponds correctly.

[Fiona McManus]

I agree with Tracey that the potential for using AI to aid with differentiation in lesson planning and in many practical areas of the classroom is fascinating. Planning and differentiating for the many needs and ability levels of a modern classroom can be daunting and very time- consuming but using GenAI appears to be a great aid in speeding up and streamlining this process. I learned a lot in Module 1  about how to hone my AI prompts to be more specific and targeted and this will be very useful when catering to varied abilities in the classroom.

[Fiona McManus]

I believe AI will be a very significant and instrumental part of education in the future and will undoubtedly impact positively on future teaching, learning and assessment. While optimistic and fascinated by the potential of AI tools in the classroom I have always also been quite cautious about the opportunity for the exploitation of the tools and the possibility of these tools impacting on creativity and critical thinking . Having completed module 1 and explored some of these tools in more detail I am reassured and happy that many of these tools can be used for the good of pupils and teachers. I am looking forward to studying and teaching about responsible use of AI and digital citizenship to my Fourth class in September
I look forward to utilizing the chatbots to aid in lesson planning, picture prompts, mind mapping and creative writing ideas. Primary teachers are generally time poor with constant pressure to cover all areas of the curriculum in a short space of time. AI tools will be so helpful in speeding up research and planning of certain tasks, topics quizzes etc… I can now imagine myself using tools such as chatbots, vidnoz and pictory to support and optimize my time while aware that they should not and will not replace us as critical thinkers and educators whose opinions, ideas and personalities are key to the development and growth of our students.

[Author]

Posts