AI Utilized to Assist in Organizing Lesson Plans

As an educator, I’ve always found that creating lesson plans is a time-consuming task that requires a lot of preparation.

Fortunately, advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) now allow teachers to utilize AI capabilities through innovative apps like ChatGPT and Education Copilot to streamline the process of instructional design preparation. AI technology has become faster and can be used as a highly intelligent personal assistant and time-saving tool.

Before my encounter with Elizabeth Peña, a business marketing coach, I was unaware that AI could enhance collaborative lesson planning with the teachers I coach or my own lessons at Old Dominion University. Elizabeth introduced me to the power of ChatGPT, and I was amazed by its capabilities.

Here are two efficient ways you can utilize ChatGPT to assist with your learning plans in the classroom.

Utilizing ChatGPT for Research

Let’s clarify the difference between ChatGPT and Google. Google is primarily a tech-based search engine, while ChatGPT is a conversational AI model or chatbot that responds like a human to the questions we ask. With ChatGPT, we can avoid clicking through multiple links to find the information we need. It retrieves data it’s trained on and improves over time, allowing us to personalize our search requests.

Recently, I developed a unit plan that required students to write a personal narrative about their experiences with leadership and service. I used ChatGPT to instantly retrieve vital information by inputting specific queries.

For teachers looking to increase their lesson planning productivity, there isn’t a single method to map and align curriculum and instruction. Feel free to continue using your own methods and templates and adapt these questions to better suit your own lesson ideas:

My middle school students need to write a personal narrative about their experience with leadership and service. Which two or three Common Core State Standards are relevant to this task?

Now rephrase those standards into three to four “I can” statements. Although the chatbot can provide a starting point, you may need to reword them to better align with your students’ learning goals.

What are some formative assessments (both formal and informal) that I can use to check my students’ understanding of these standards?

Given your “I can” statements, what lessons can I teach to help my students write their best personal narratives?

Which effective strategies can I use to teach these lessons while engaging all my learners and improving academic achievement?

You mentioned using “differentiated instruction.” What methods can I employ to support my English language learners in improving their narratives?

Please provide the sources you used for your responses, including websites.

To demonstrate the power of the AI assistant, I’ve included screenshots of our interaction in this document. After reviewing the link, you’ll notice how ChatGPT’s responses can be detailed, coherent, and relevant, tailored to the user’s needs. While the answers may not always be perfect, you can use the thumbs-up and thumbs-down features to help the AI model improve its future responses.

Utilizing ChatGPT for Activity Planning

Many teachers strive to enhance engagement and real-world application by incorporating project-based learning and passion-driven activities into their instruction. However, complex tasks requiring expert guidance often hinder the implementation of great ideas. ChatGPT can quickly provide critical steps, necessary resources, budget recommendations, and timelines to support these endeavors.

For example, I recently developed a project-based learning unit where the main student project was designing a class mural. Although I had no experience in mural design, ChatGPT provided fantastic and reliable feedback, helping us move forward with our project plans.

Here are some revised queries for you to tailor to any new activity:

I’m having my _____-grade class design a _____ to be displayed in our school, but this is the first time we’ve attempted it. What are the appropriate steps to take?

I teach _____-grade _____. Which specific ELA and math Common Core State Standards apply to this activity?

Please rephrase these standards into “I can” statements within the context of designing a _____.

What tools and resources will we need to plan and design the _____?

Please organize the categories and budget amounts in a table, specifying the medium for each projected amount for each category. I need to provide it to our budget coordinator.

I have 50 minutes of class time with my students every day. Approximately how many weeks will the _____ design take?

We are located in _____. Please provide local _____ we can contact for further guidance. Include their websites and social media accounts if available.

Please provide the websites and sources you used for the _____ design steps and standards.

As you work with AI models, you may need to rephrase questions in order to improve the results. While more advanced AI models are on the horizon, it’s important to remember that they can never replace the human touch. Therefore, I encourage you to embrace technology alongside our human ingenuity.