Creating Interactive Lesson Plans

This lesson plan from TeachingEnglish British Council, designed for secondary learners aged 13-17 at B2+ / C1 level, focuses on the use of AI in education and the ethical issues involved. The 80-90-minute lesson is divided into three main parts: a lead-in discussion (10 minutes), a reading and discussion segment (30-40 minutes), and a production task (30-40 minutes). During the lesson, learners will discuss various uses of AI in education, evaluate ethical issues through case studies, and produce guidelines for the ethical use of AI in the classroom. Some learners may also use these guidelines to assess further cases of AI in teaching and learning. The lesson aims to develop critical thinking and ethical awareness among students. Materials provided include a lesson plan, student worksheet, and presentation. Access the full lesson here: https://lnkd.in/ei2NvZQ3 #TeachingEnglish #TEFL #TESOL #CELTA #LessonPlan #EnglishLesson #Edtech #AI #LessonMaterial #TeachingResources

Critical Thinking Activities for the Age of AI! I've been reading a lot of research on how generative AI affects our students' thinking, and the findings are concerning. Gerlich (2025) connected regular AI use with weakened critical thinking. Fan et al. (2025) documented metacognitive laziness. Shaw and Nave (2026) describe something they call cognitive surrender. And brain imaging data from Kosmyna et al. (2025) showed measurably lower cognitive effort during ChatGPT-assisted writing. I take these findings seriously. But I have reservations too. Many of these studies draw from narrow populations and short-term experiments. Generative AI is still new, and the strongest evidence will come from longitudinal research we don't have yet. So where does that leave us? The way students use AI is what counts. Right now, most students treat it as an answer machine: prompt, receive, accept, move on. That's where thinking shuts down. What if we flipped that? What if AI interactions became the place where critical thinking actually happens? I put together a free guide based on a workshop I delivered at NENA ICHRIE 2026. It has 13 hands-on activities tied to Robert Ennis's (2015) critical thinking framework. Students fact-check AI hallucinations, run blind comparisons between human and AI writing, Socratic-question a chatbot until its reasoning falls apart, and audit AI output against a rubric. It's free under a Creative Commons license. Use it in your courses, PD sessions, faculty workshops. Adapt it, change the prompts, make it yours. Link in the first comment! #AIinEducation #CriticalThinking #TeachingWithAI #HigherEducation #AILiteracy #AIPedagogy #GenAI References Ennis, R. H. (2015). Critical thinking: A streamlined conception. In M. Davies & R. Barnett (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of critical thinking in higher education (pp. 31-47). Palgrave Macmillan. Fan, Y., Tang, L., Le, H., Shen, K., Tan, S., Zhao, Y., Shen, Y., Li, X., & Gasevic, D. (2025). Beware of metacognitive laziness: Effects of generative artificial intelligence on learning motivation, processes, and performance. British Journal of Educational Technology, 56(2), 489-530. Gerlich, M. (2025). AI tools in society: Impacts on cognitive offloading and the future of critical thinking. Societies, 15(1), Article 6. Kosmyna, N., Hauptmann, E., Yuan, Y. T., Situ, J., Liao, X.-H., Beresnitzky, A. V., Braunstein, I., & Maes, P. (2025). Your brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of cognitive debt when using an AI assistant for essay writing tasks. MIT Media Lab. Shaw, S. D., & Nave, G. (2026). Thinking fast, slow, and artificial: How AI is reshaping human reasoning and the rise of cognitive surrender. Working paper, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.

If you thought the pace of AI in education was slowing down, this week proved otherwise. We aren't just seeing the release of faster models; we are seeing tools that fundamentally change how we create learning materials and how students collaborate. What is new? Chat GPT 5.1, Gemini 3, Nano Banana Pro just to start We are moving past the phase of using AI simply to "write text." We are entering a phase of multimodal workflow! Here is the breakdown of the major releases this week and what they mean for the classroom: 1. The End of "Gibberish" in Educational Visuals Google has released Nano Banana Pro, and for educators, this is a massive leap forward. Until now, generating images for class often meant dealing with garbled text or hallucinated details. What changed? This new model integrates Google Search and "world knowledge." It can handle complex infographics, accurate text rendering, and precise diagrams. The Education Impact: Teachers can now generate accurate anatomy diagrams ("visual anatomy of a car with labeled parts"), historical storyboards (e.g., manga-style scenes for literature), or complex charts and all with legible, correct labels. It’s finally usable for creating legitimate study materials and handouts. 2. Lesson Planning Quietly tucked into the updates was a game-changer for NotebookLM. It now integrates these image generation capabilities to create Infographics and Slide Decks directly from your source material. The Education Impact: Imagine feeding a research paper or a textbook chapter into NotebookLM and instantly generating a visual slide deck or a summary infographic for your students. The time-saved on resource creation is going to be astronomical. 3. Collaborative AI is Here OpenAI has rolled out ChatGPT Group Chats to all tiers. This allows up to 20 users to collaborate in a single thread with the AI. PLC Group Projects: Teachers can brainstorm with the AI acting as a moderator or idea generator. Departments can co-plan curriculum in a shared thread where the AI maintains the context of the entire unit. 💡 Why this matters Whether it is visualizing a complex science concept with Nano Banana Pro or hosting a 20-person Socratic seminar in a ChatGPT group thread, the walls between "creation" and "learning" are getting thinner. #EdTech #AIinEducation #FutureOfLearning #Google #OpenAI

Speaking lessons built around escape rooms and imaginative role play are some of the most effective ways I develop oracy in both native and ESL learners. These tasks require sustained talk, collaboration, and thinking aloud, which is why my students are deeply engaged and regularly ask when the next lesson will be. A simple example is asking them to take on the role of an inanimate object, such as the ocean, a pencil case, or a chair, and speak one sentence about what it feels like to be that object. I then extend this through teacher-led questioning, asking prompts such as: Tell me about your typical day, What is your biggest worry for the future? or What do humans do that affects you most?* Students must remain in role, selecting language carefully and responding thoughtfully. Then reverse. Students step into the role of humans, and I continue questioning with prompts like: What else could you do to solve this issue?, Is a compromise possible? or What responsibility do humans have here? This role reversal deepens perspective-taking and requires students to evaluate ideas from more than one viewpoint. Through such activities is how students use talk to think. As they speak, they plan what they want to say, monitor whether their message makes sense to others, and adapt their language in response to new ideas. In problem-solving tasks, they draw on what they already know, identify gaps in understanding, test ideas aloud, and revise their thinking as the task unfolds. Spoken language becomes a working space for thought rather than a finished performance. Critical thinking is embedded as students analyse causes and consequences, justify opinions, challenge assumptions, and explain reasoning. Questioning sits at the centre of this process, yet not all learners arrive with the ability to ask productive questions. Some require explicit modelling and scaffolding, while others benefit from being pushed to refine and extend their thinking. During these lessons, I do not interrupt, avoid correcting language in the moment and instead focus on listening for reasoning, vocabulary choice, and interactional strategies. This allows students to take risks, think aloud, and use language as a tool for problem solving. Feedback is then planned and delivered intentionally, based on observed needs. Careful planning for individual students remains essential. Some learners excel at empathy and perspective-taking in role play, while others are stronger at logical reasoning or leadership. Differentiated questioning and targeted prompts ensure that each student is supported and appropriately challenged, allowing different strengths to contribute meaningfully to the task. When speaking tasks are cognitively demanding, socially purposeful, and thoughtfully structured, oracy develops alongside metacognitive awareness and critical thinking skills that extend well beyond the classroom. #Oracy #ESLTeaching #CriticalThinking #Metacognition #StudentVoice #SpeakingSkills

Stanford University has updated its free, ready-to-use AI lessons for high school educators! Classroom-Ready Resources About AI For Teaching (CRAFT) is a co-design initiative from the Stanford University Graduate School of Education. If you're looking for engaging, multidisciplinary activities to help students explore, question, and critique AI, these resources are for you. Some of the latest lesson additions include: AI or Not AI? A critical thinking activity about what actually qualifies as AI. How Can AI Help Us Communicate with Whales? Exploring AI in marine conservation. How Does Bias in AI Affect the Global South? Understanding the consequences of biased data in AI systems. Is ChatGPT Plagiarizing? A debate-driven lesson on AI, creativity, and academic integrity. How Can AI Be Used in Music Generation? Comparing AI-generated music to human-created songs. CRAFT’s library continues to grow, so be sure to check back regularly! You can access all of these free resources here: https://lnkd.in/dHie_PHy Learn more about CRAFT here: https://lnkd.in/dQtCQx7N #AIinEducation #Teachers #AIethics #EdTech

A Thinking On Show Routine. The Connection Chain is a frame to encourage critical thinking skills by prompting learners to identify & analyze relationships between seemingly unrelated events, concepts, or figures. Aligned with IB ATLs, this routine requires research skills, critical thinking, and communication, prompting students to synthesize knowledge and articulate reasoned connections. Instructions 1. Select Two Concepts Teachers or students choose two historical events, scientific discoveries, literary works This selection serves as the foundation for constructing logical connections. Example: Van Gogh’s Sunflowers (1888) → Banksy’s Sunflowers from Petrol Station (2005) 2. Construct a Chain of Connections Students, working individually or in groups, identify a sequence linking the two concepts. Each step in the chain should be represented visually to illustrate relationships and transitions. Example:  Van Gogh’s Sunflowers (1888) →.Post-Impressionism → Expressionism & Social Commentary →.Graffiti & Street Art Movement → Banksy’s Artistic Activism → Banksy’s Sunflowers from Petrol Station (2005) 3. Justify the Connections Each link in the chain should be supported with evidence. Students provide concise explanations that clarify why each connection is valid, using historical, scientific, or thematic reasoning. This promotes evidence-based reasoning & encourages precision in argumentation. Van Gogh’s Sunflowers (1888) → A masterpiece of expressive brushwork and vibrant color. Post-Impressionism → Van Gogh’s style influenced later movements, particularly Expressionism. Expressionism & Social Commentary → Artists began using expressive techniques to convey deep emotions and critique society. Graffiti & Street Art Movement → The 20th century saw the rise of graffiti as a form of self-expression and protest. Banksy’s Artistic Activism → Banksy, inspired by earlier expressive art, uses street art to challenge political & social issues. Banksy’s Sunflowers from Petrol Station (2005) → A direct reference to Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, but with the flowers replaced by withered stems, symbolizing environmental destruction. 4. Present and Compare Chains Groups or individuals present their chains to the class, facilitating peer learning. Comparing different pathways helps students recognize multiple perspectives and alternative interpretations of interconnected events. 5. Reflect on the Learning Process To consolidate understanding, students engage in reflective discussion: What was surprising about the connections? How did this activity reshape thinking about history, science, or literature? How can this approach be applied to other subjects or real-world problem-solving? Link to Editable Canva Template: https://lnkd.in/dUN94CwZ

AI Teaching Platforms Showdown 🏆 I tested MagicSchool.ai, Brisk Teaching, and TeachAid to find out which one actually saves teachers time. Here’s the full breakdown 👇 📊 Quick Comparison MagicSchool.ai → 60+ specialized tools → Standalone platform → 40+ student tools → FERPA compliant → Medium learning curve → Free (limited) Brisk Teaching → Works inside Google/Canvas (Chrome extension) → Teacher-focused tools → FERPA compliant → Low learning curve → Free forever TeachAid → Unit-focused tools → Standalone platform → Limited student tools → FERPA not specified → Low learning curve → Free 🎯 Platform Deep Dive MagicSchool.ai — The Feature-Rich Giant ✅ 60+ AI tools for lesson planning, grading, IEPs ✅ FERPA compliant and education-trained ✅ Student tools + monitoring built in ❌ Too many tools = higher friction ❌ Free tier limited for heavy users 🧩 Example: Built a full Grade 10 Organic Chemistry unit in 12 minutes using 4 tools Verdict: Extremely powerful, but overwhelming for daily use. Brisk Teaching — The Contextual Champion ✅ Lives inside Google Classroom, Docs, Canvas ✅ No tab switching ✅ Personalized feedback saves 10+ hours per week ✅ 100% free ❌ Chrome-only (no Safari/Edge) ❌ Requires extension install 🧩 Example: Graded 20 essays in 45 minutes instead of 4 hours Verdict: The most frictionless tool for real classrooms. TeachAid — The Unified Newcomer ✅ Lesson + assessment + rubric in one system ✅ Free and clean interface ✅ Ideal for unit-first planning ❌ Smaller toolset ❌ Fewer integrations ❌ New platform—early stage 🧩 Example: Built 3-week Thermochemistry unit in 30 minutes Verdict: Simple, coherent, but still maturing. 🥊 Head-to-Head Winners → Quick feedback on Google Docs → Brisk → Full curriculum building → MagicSchool → Unit planning from scratch → TeachAid → IEP writing → MagicSchool → Daily grading → Brisk → Parent communication → MagicSchool ✅ Final Verdict → Use Brisk Teaching for 80% of daily work (grading, feedback, low friction) → Use MagicSchool.ai for specialized needs (IEPs, parent emails, differentiation) → Revisit TeachAid in 6 months, pass for now. #EdTech #AIinEducation #TeacherTools #TeachingWithAI #EducationTechnology #AIforTeachers #TeacherProductivity #EdTechReview #AIEducation #TeachersOfLinkedIn #DigitalLearning #TeachingTools #EducationInnovation #TeacherLife #EdTechCoach #AIClassroom #TeachingResources #AIWorkflow #ProductivityInEducation

Virtual Reality in the Classroom: A Game-Changer for Global Education "Therefore, we decided we would develop our own apps to ensure that content was relevant to teachers and their subjects. To do this we worked first with an external company called VictoryXR to create bespoke content and see what was possible before bringing this development in-house." – Joana Simas, Global Head of EdTech Implementation, Inspired Education Group Virtual reality in education has long been a futuristic idea—until now. At Inspired Education Group, VR is no longer just a concept. It’s an integral part of everyday learning. Since 2022, students across 83 schools in 80+ countries have used over 2,000 VR headsets to experience over 250 immersive lessons in subjects ranging from biology to history and art. In this in-depth article, Joana Simas, global head of edtech implementation, shares how her team turned a visionary idea into a groundbreaking, scalable reality. Dissect a heart. Talk to Picasso.  Walk the trenches of World War I. Boost memory, engagement, and learning outcomes. What began with a single metaverse science experiment for IB students has evolved into a powerful global initiative backed by data: 90% of students say they’re more engaged 85% of teachers call it a valuable teaching tool 72% of students say it helps them recall what they’ve learned → Read the full article on Tes: How We Created 250 Virtual Reality Lessons for Our Schools

You've probably heard that AI can automate some of your manual work, but you're not sure where to start. I teach Russian as a foreign language, and this is how I use Claude Cowork to scan my lesson folder, spot what's missing, and build audio exercises for me. Takes 5 minutes. To use this, you need the desktop app. It won't work in the browser. 𝐃𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐝𝐞.𝐜𝐨𝐦/𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 → 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 Step 1 — Ask Claude to Connect to Your Google Drive or other Storage. Step 2 — Point Claude to the right folder. (Just type “Access X folder”) Step 3 — Scan for missing audio I asked Claude to go through every subfolder and flag lessons with fewer than one audio file. It came back with a list of four. Step 4 — Analyze the lesson content Claude opened the PDF in each of those folders, read through the slides, and came up with an audio exercise idea matched to that lesson's content. Step 5 — Review and approve the script Claude wrote the script first. I read it, made edits, and approved it. You stay in control of every word. Step 6 — Generate the voiceover Claude used a connected text-to-speech platform (ElevenLabs, Google Text-to-Speech, or similar) to produce the audio. If you don't have one set up yet, Claude tells you exactly how. We can do an entire curriculum with audio exercises. Each one matched to the vocabulary and content of that specific lesson. Today I only covered the audio creation. But you can also connect Canva, and Claude will edit your slides and create exercises to go with the audio files. __ If tutorials like this are useful to you, let me know in the comments. I'm not always sure how helpful these are and if things like that are worth sharing. #LanguageTeaching #EdTech #AIForEducators #ClaudeAI #TeacherTools #LessonPlanning #AudioExercises

My post yesterday about Instructional redesign with human agency at the center sparked a lot of conversation, so I want to follow up with a few posts to help educators see what this looks like in real classrooms. For the week or so, I’m going to take one durable skill at a time and show what instructional redesign actually looks like in the intelligence age. Not theory, not hype, but actual classroom reality. I’m starting with Critical Thinking because this is where the conversation about AI usually goes wrong. Remember that: ‼️If students use AI as an answer machine, cognitive demand plummets‼️ ✅If students use AI to critically analyze and evaluate outputs, make judgments, identify bias and missing perspectives, and revise outputs based on their own reasoning and conclusions, cognitive demand goes up.✅ This is a crucial distinction in instructional redesign for the Intelligence Age. 👉Here is a concrete NC classroom example that is applicable across all curriculum areas: NC Grade 8 ELA/Social Studies lesson on analyzing arguments and claims; students are studying a current civic issue. 💡Instead of asking students to write a single argument or summarize sources, the teacher or students ask AI to generate 3 different claims about the issue, each with reasoning and evidence. 🔎Students must then: Identify assumptions, bias, and missing perspectives in each claim Determine which claim is most defensible based on textual evidence Revise the selected claim to strengthen accuracy and clarity Justify their final choice in writing and a short oral defense 🤖AI supplies options and counterarguments. 🧠Students evaluate outputs for accuracy, bias, and credibility. Students' own analysis, judgment, and final decisions are evaluated (not the AI output). Three Non-Negotiables for Instructional Redesign in the Intelligence Age: 1️⃣ AI is never the product being graded. 2️⃣ Human judgment is always the point of evaluation. 3️⃣ Task design determines whether AI raises or lowers cognitive demand. What are some other examples of reinforcing critical thinking in the Intelligence Age? I'd love to see more in the comments! 👇 #AILiteracy #InstructionalDesign #CriticalThinking #HumanJudgment #NCEducation #FutureReadyStudents