Unleash these AI assistants or you're seriously sleepin'.
For real, y’all.
AI tools aren’t just for students; they're game-changers for teachers, too. The more I use ChatGPT, the more I'm able to get done. It's like having a superpower to save time and focus on what really matters—helping those kiddos!
From managing emails to creating lesson plans, AI can seriously level up your teaching. Don't be afraid to experiment; it could totally change how you plan, teach, and give feedback. Unleash that AI power!
Not sure where to start? I’ve got you covered. Here are the top 21 AI tools that I (and other teachers) love:
Main AI assistants
- ChatGPT. Imma yell it in a nice way: IF YOU’RE NOT USING CHATGPT, YOU’RE WASTING YOUR TIME. Learn how I’ve hacked teaching with ChatGPT over at Tarver Academy.
- Google Gemini (formerly Bard). My robot pal Gemini is comin’ in with heavy-duty AI! Flexible enough to run smoothly on mobile, this AI assistant can create lessons and assess students. This virtual brainiac can help develop super engaging student experiences, saving you hours of prep time.
- Microsoft CoPilot. Need an AI sidekick for next-level creativity and getting things done? Copilot helps create lessons fast with AI magic, saving tons of prep time. In class, Copilot answers student questions with extra explanations until they grasp concepts. Learning new topics yourself? Copilot digs up extra info to expand your own knowledge. With this AI sidekick, teaching gets way easier.
- Google Translate. G.T. is good now, y’all. This isn’t your early 2000s Google Translate—this bad boy churns out elite translations. Use it to communicate with student families or to check your rusty language skills when making summer travel plans.
Creative AI tools
- Dall-E. Awesome images from just words? You need DALL-E. This creative AI paints pictures from text. Want a chair shaped like an avocado with a monkey sitting on it? DALL-E will cook up that digital art. Next-level tech makes creating images super quick. DALL-E is bringing imagination to life!
- Midjourney. Teachers need pictures for lessons, right? But finding images takes forever, and copyrights are a pain. That's where my main man Midjourney saves the day. Just type words describing what you want, and BOOM! Midjourney works its magic to cook up original, quality images in seconds. Keep it 100 with unique visuals.
- Canva Magic Studio. This one has been bringin' the heat. The top three things it does: it takes whatever idea ya throw at it and turns that junk into fly designs in a snap, all ya gotta do is drop in some words or upload your pics. Then this magic machine creates some sweet personalized designs that are on point. And it's doing it fast too—we’re talking seconds!
Assessment tools
- Quizlet Q-Chat. Q-Chat is like having your own personal tutor powered by AI. Building on OpenAI and Quizlet's huge lesson library, this math whiz adapts to each student in real-time. Hitting the books hard? Q-Chat will challenge your knowledge with complex questions. Just starting out? It will guide you with a user-friendly experience.
- Quizizz AI. This tool is taking quizzes and study materials to the next level. Whether you need a new quiz fast or wanna modify activities to engage students more, this brainiac can handle it quick. From personalized recommendations to instant progress tracking, Quizizz AI has the data to help students thrive. It even makes learning more fun with AI-generated question upgrades. This digital tutor knows how to educate in style!
Presentation building tools
- Curipod. Need to hype up your students? I got you. Curipod brings next-level spice to boring old slideshows. Combining polls, word clouds, drawings, and more, Curipod gets classrooms pumped. And the AI makes it easy peasy to control the vibe from start to finish.
- Plus AI for Slides. This one will create entire presentations in SECONDS. That’s it. That’s the pitch. For real, try it. Watch my video walk-through:
Writing support
- Brisk. This Chrome extension can summarize web text at whatever grade level you specify. It’ll also create assessments for you in a Google Doc or Google Form. Watch my video tutorial to learn more.
- Wordtune. This one will save you AGES. In a matter of minutes, wordtune will analyze a YouTube video, blog article, or PDF and churn out a bullet-point summary. You can also have their AI tool draft text, assist in rewrites, and even answer questions. What will you do with all your extra time?
- Grammarly. Wanna sound slick? Grammarly’s got your back. With some futuristic AI, this writing wingman can pump up proposals, emails, and anything else you’re working on. Give it some hints, and Grammarly will hook you up with some polished drafts super fast.
- Merlin. I’ve been on this game for a hot minute. The big three things it does: it writes email reply drafts for you, summarizes Google searches to answer your exact question, AND summarizes YouTube videos (plus it lets you chat with the video). Absolutely awesome. Here’s my vid on that one.
Differentiation tools
- Diffit. Differentiation without the effort? Diffit re-levels texts, translates, customizes vocabulary, and more. Have you ever spent your planning period making ONE activity? Now you can spend it at Starbucks.
- AudioPen. AudioPen is an AI-powered dictation tool that transforms voice notes into refined text. Got dysgraphia, dyslexia, or other issues messing with your writing? AudioPen lets you brainstorm ideas and draft papers just by talking out loud. Then this bad boy works its magic, turning all those sweet voice notes into properly punctuated, grammar-checked text.
Specialized teaching tools
- MATHia. Carnegie Learning’s OG solution for AI-powered math instruction. This is a game-changer. Even BILL GATES says it’s “mind-blowing.” Y’all gotta check it out.
- Magic School. Y’all are gonna LOVE this one. This is a “one-stop shop” of teaching tools, and it’s specifically made for educators. Magic School has AI-powered generators for EVERYTHING, including AI-resistant assignment ideas, DOK questions, and report card comments.
- Eduaide. Created by real teachers who know the struggle. Burnout ain't cool, and finding resources is tough. That's why they cooked up AI to save teachers time. This one generates lesson plans, activities—really anything to help you out. Spend less hours working, more hours bonding with your students.
- Twee. English teachers, this one’s for you! Twee generates questions, dialogues, and stories instantly. It can even write true/false and multiple-choice questions for any YouTube video. Let the tech handle the busy work so you can focus on just teaching.
You know I’m always trying to save teachers time and make their lives easier. Don't be sleepin' on this tech. Get on board with these AI assists and watch how they level up your teaching game.
Interested in AI for your classroom, school, or district? Join me for a March 13 webinar called “AI in education: What you need to know.” We’ll discuss helpful AI tools and review a sample AI policy to guide students’ use of these awesome tools.
Trust me, once you learn to use AI, you'll never go back. Let's get it!
For real, y’all.
