[Pat Brennan]

Hi again Michelle,

Thanks for sharing your lesson plan, and good to hear your first experience using GenAI to support planning was a positive one. While it’s not advisable to take an AI output as is, it’s certainly helpful for overcoming the blank page and works particularly well for drafting and redrafting.

As for the maths lesson itself, it’s well structured and certainly suits the cohort you have in mind, with the use of songs, concrete materials, and small group stations. I also like how you’ve planned for differentiation and built in Assessment for Learning through observation and questioning.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Shauna,

Thanks for sharing your plan. From what  you’ve outlined, Khan Academy Kids will work well in your special class, particularly with its ability to personalise learning to individual needs.

Your structured approach as detailed with a group introduction, differentiated tasks, teacher support, and follow-up work, should ensure all pupils are supported and have the necessary scaffolds for them to work independently. Also, using observation alongside task outcomes for assessment is practical and suited to your class size of 6.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Sarah,

Welcome to the course. Thanks for sharing how low and medium-tech tools are being used for early stage interventions in your junior school setting.  Also as you’ve outlined, Immersive Reader should prove an invaluable support for EAL learners and pupils with additional needs such as Dyslexia, autism, ADHD, particularly with features like the picture dictionary and text-to-speech.

Your point about early access for students with physical disabilities is well made.  Providing the right tools, such as a trackball or joystick mouse, along with time to build familiarity, can support long-term independence. AT is all about matching the technology to the individual need, not the other way around.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Rebecca,

Welcome to the course!  You’ve clearly outlined how AI tools can support personalised learning, automate feedback, and assist diverse learners and the examples listed are practical, particularly around differentiation.

You also raise an important point about teacher confidence, the necessity for relevant CPD and the risk of overreliance. It goes without saying that whilst GenAI can support, it can never replace, the human connection, creativity, and emotional intelligence that teachers bring and the video from China, very much illustrated this.

As we move forward, we need to be thinking about how schools can support teachers in using AI effectively, while also protecting the right to disconnect for both staff and pupils.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Caroline,

I very much agree with your sentiments. As a parent of girls now in their late teens, we held out for as long as possible when they were that age, until it reached a point where we were essentially plugging the dam.

There’s a very good reason why most platforms and apps have an age restriction of 13, even though it’s routinely flouted. If email accounts are to be introduced for primary school children, I believe it should be limited to 6th class and framed as part of the transition to second-level.

More fundamentally, children and their families, should very much have the right to remain unplugged. The increasing digitalisation of school life and modern society in general can pressure families who choose a screen-free environment. We need to respect and protect that choice.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Michelle,

As a previous incumbent of the digital learning coordinator role for many years, I’m acutely aware of the need to lead by example so introducing Scratch in a more structured way makes sense, and informal CPD sessions covering just the basics will go a long way in building teacher confidence. And again as you’ve referenced, the Scratch.ie lesson plans are a great support for this.

Your goal of having pupils independently coding by 2nd class is realistic, particularly with the approach you’ve outlined here but as I suggested in my previous reply on this forum, Scratch doesn’t have to necessarily be the only game in town code.org, offers structured activities and pathways suitable for a wide range of classes/age groups and is well worth checking out to compliment the work you’ll be doing in Scratch.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Ashling,

Gamma certainly promises to help you get time back by simplifying and speeding up the creation of slideshows for your classroom next year. Also worth checking out is PowerPoint Designer which I’ve mentioned previously here, it brings some helpful ai-powered design assistance to the PowerPoint app.

I also like how you plan using Copilot to scaffold descriptive writing, particularly for pupils who find it challenging. Getting  Copilot to generate a visual based on their writing can help them with drafting and redrafting This is a a really practical way to build confidence and support the writing process visually.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Leanne,

Welcome to the course! You’ve certainly captured how DE can inspire both personal and collective responsibility for global change. I agree, the quote trying to be the change we wish to see in the world is both accessible and powerful, no matter how big or small one feels their contribution is” is a strong reminder that every action matters, and that developing this mindset in your classroom will have a lasting impact.

Developmental education is indeed vital in today’s classrooms as it challenges pupils to think critically, be empathetic, and understand fully what is means to be a global citizen.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Michael,

I agree, both Diffit and Gamma offer powerful ways to differentiate curriculum content in the classroom. As you’ve outlined, Diffit’s ability to adapt texts and generate questions allows all pupils to access content at their own level. Gamma’s focus on multimedia and engaging presentation creation helps foster creativity, collaboration, and digital literacy. Together, these tools offer practical ways to meet diverse learning needs in your classroom.

One way to use Diffit effectively is to introduce a shared reading text to the whole class, then use Diffit to generate differentiated versions of the same text for small group work. Each group can access the content at a level suited to their reading ability, while still engaging with the same topic. This is particularly useful in senior classes, where it can be more challenging to find texts that match the interests of older students with reading difficulties.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Laura,

Welcome to the course! I agree, targeted use of Immersive Reader in the SET classroom can be a real game-changer for pupil’s with reading/literacy difficulties, particularly as you noted for pupils with dyslexia. The combination of visual supports, grammar tools, and flexible display options shows how assistive technology can reduce barriers and support literacy development.

One practical way to use Immersive Reader is during paired or small group reading sessions. You can have pupils take turns listening to a passage read aloud, then pause to discuss vocabulary, sentence structure, or content. This not only supports decoding and comprehension but also encourages collaboration and oral language development.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Tara,

Welcome to the course. There are many similar examples to the bridge-building one you’ve shared here on this forum, which really highlights how societal biases around gender remain widespread, and how they can influence children’s behaviour, self-esteem, and aspirations from such an early age. However, as you’ve outlined, using DE methodologies to challenge these biases, through diverse role models, inclusive discussions, and equal opportunities to lead, can make a real difference.

From an SSE perspective, integrating this approach into whole-school reflection around inclusivity and equality is great idea. Reviewing classroom dynamics, materials, and pupils engagement through a gender lens, as mooted,  can help identify areas for improvement, and guide targeted actions that champion these values..

 

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Aimee,

Thanks for sharing the Google link. This is a clear and practical example of how a lesson can be adapted using a UDL approach. As you outlined, converting the cloze procedure into a Word document to enable Immersive Reader shows how a small change can make a lesson more accessible for a 2nd class student with dyslexia. AS you mooted, features like line focus, text-to-speech, and adjustable spacing help reduce reading barriers and support independent learning.

On CPD, I couldn’t agree with you more, teachers by their very nature need to be lifelong learners and always be ready to upskill, as staying current with tools and strategies is essential for meeting diverse learning needs in today’s classrooms.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Victoria,

Welcome to the course!  It’s completely understandable to have reservations about AI, particularly when much of the conversation around it has been negatively focused. However, it’s good to hear that this module has helped shift your perspective and opened your eyes to the potential of AI as a supportive tool for teachers.

Like other contributors on the course forums, your point about getting the balance right and excessive screentime is well made.  Yes indeed, AI can enhance efficiency and support assessment. However, equally important  are the human interactions, you’ve mooted, which are so central to initial education.

As you continue through the course, I’d encourage you to explore the various generative AI tools introduced, particularly how they might support planning, assessment, and resource creation. With time and practice, you’ll find the right balance that works for you.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi Grainne,

Welcome to the course! It’s obvious from your post you’re carefully considering  how AT can support your pupils in meaningful ways. I agree too that  Immersive Reader is a powerful tool that can assist all learners but particularly those with reading difficulties and those acquiring English as an additional language.

It’s good to hear you’re planning to explore a range of AT tools in your SET role next year. I’d suggest, as you continue through the course, to keep an eye out for opportunities to trial these tools in small, manageable ways, possibly during literacy stations or as part of homework support. Building familiarity now will certainly help with implementation later on.

[Pat Brennan]

Hi again Kate,

As mentioned, Scratch is a fantastic starting point for introducing pupils to coding and computational thinking.

Another excellent resource is code.org, which I’ve used in many different classroom contexts in the past. It offers structured activities and pathways suitable for a wide range of classes/age groups. It’s also great for unplugged activities that you can use to reinforce concepts without devices, which can be helpful when the iPads are unavailable.

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