How to Adapt Teaching Methods for AI Integration

We are excited to announce the release of our "Guide to Integrating Generative AI for Deeper Literacy Learning" - a collaboration between AI for Education and Student Achievement Partners. We co-developed the guide with SAP, experts in high quality instruction, with an understanding that both the technology and its educational applications are at it's earliest stages. We also know that many teachers, leaders, and students are concerned about the impact the tools will have on learning. We want this guide to act as a jumping off point for educators that are trying to determine if GenAI can positively intersect with high quality instruction in the literacy classroom. The Key Principles of the Guide: •  GenAI tools should support, not circumvent, productive struggle for students •  AI literacy should come before the Integration of GenAI tools •  GenAI should augment educators’ pedagogical expertise, content knowledge, and knowledge of students •  Integration when appropriate should enhance, not replace, proven instructional practices •  Usage should align with students’ developmental readiness and literacy goals Highlights: • A framework for distinguishing productive vs. counterproductive struggle in literacy classrooms • Practical strategies for using AI to enhance student engagement without replacing critical thinking for students •  Best practices for enhancing cognitive lift and what strategies to avoid that offload cognitive lift • Detailed GenAI use cases across foundational skills, knowledge building, and writing instruction • Elementary-specific guidance emphasizing teacher-led AI implementation and modeling • Comprehensive worked examples with Chatbot transcripts that illustrate these practices This is just the beginning, which is why we're actively gathering educator feedback to refine and expand these resources through a survey in the guide. Thank you so much to Carey Swanson and Jasmine Costello, PMP from SAP for being such wonderful partners in this work! You can access the full guide or watch the accompanying webinar in the link in the comments! #ailiteracy #literacy #GenAI #K12

If you’ve found yourself caught in the swirl of catastrophic headlines — “AI will kill critical thinking.” “Screens are ruining childhood.” “Teachers will be replaced by 2030.” Take a breath. Get above the silo. The truth is: education isn’t ruined, it’s being rewritten. And the best way to shape what’s next isn’t panic. Its purpose. You don’t need to overhaul everything overnight. But you do need to start taking intentional steps now. Here are five actions you can take today to design for balance, equity, and human connection before reaction becomes policy. Problem → Purpose → Solution: Don’t Let Curiosity Be Collateral Problem: We’re fast-tracking AI into schools without asking: Whose dreams are we designing for? Too often, we focus on teaching how to use tools before we've given the space to imagine why they might need them. Purpose: To ensure that the tools we adopt amplify curiosity, not replace it. To remember that the spark begins with a question, not an answer. Solution: Actions That Protect Curiosity and Build Capacity 1. 𝐀𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐮𝐦 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐠𝐚𝐩𝐬 → Identify where students are being asked to consume vs. create. → Integrate inquiry-based learning models where students investigate real-world careers and questions before applying AI tools. 2. 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞 “𝐃𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦-𝐭𝐨-𝐓𝐨𝐨𝐥” 𝐦𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 → Have students first identify a career or passion, then explore how AI might enhance their journey. → Reinforces purpose-first learning rather than tool-first exposure. 3. 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐲 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬 → Move beyond “how to use AI” to “how to use AI with intention.” → Frame tech skills within a context of self-awareness, ethics, and ambition. 4. 𝐇𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭-𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐬 → Let students present how they’d use AI in the job of their dreams, whether it’s an astronaut, artist, or activist. → Support them with mentorship and interdisciplinary exploration. 5. 𝐄𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 → Involve students in reviewing and giving feedback on AI tools your school is considering. → Teach civic engagement that ensures AI decisions are grounded in lived experience. Protect open-ended inquiry in curriculum design. Center student voice in AI adoption strategies. #EducationalLeadership #AIinEducation #EthicalAI #FutureofEducation #Superintendents #Teachers #Edtech #Strategy #Implementation #Purpose #BrightMinds

Today, I witnessed something extraordinary in my classroom that challenged everything we think we know about AI in education. Instead of handing students a rigid playbook of dos and don'ts with AI, I decided to flip the script entirely. Since summer, I've watched the endless parade of methodological frameworks and usage guidelines sweep through education. Each promising to be the "right way" to integrate AI into learning. But today, we tried something radically different. I simply asked my students to use AI to brainstorm their own learning objectives. No restrictions. No predetermined pathways. Just pure exploration. The results? Astonishing. Students began mapping out research directions I'd never considered. They created dialogue spaces with AI that looked more like intellectual partnerships than simple query-response patterns. Most importantly, they documented their journey, creating a meta-learning archive of their process. What struck me most was this: When we stopped fixating on the tangible "products" of AI interaction and instead centered on the mental maps being developed, something magical happened. Some might say this approach is too unstructured, too risky. But consider what we're gaining: 1. Metacognitive development: Students are thinking deeply about their own learning process 2. Agency and ownership: They're designing their own educational pathways 3. Critical navigation skills: Learning to chart courses through AI-enhanced knowledge spaces 4. Creative confidence: Freedom to experiment without fear of "wrong" approaches 5. Future-ready adaptability: Building skills to work with evolving AI systems We're not just teaching students to use AI – we're empowering them to design their own learning ecosystems. The focus isn't on what appears on the screen, but on the neural pathways being forged, the cognitive frameworks being built. Watching these students navigate this space, I'm reminded that the future of education isn't about controlling AI use – it's about nurturing the wisdom to use it well. We need to trust our students' capacity to be architects of their own learning journeys. The real breakthrough happens when we stop seeing AI as space to be contained and start seeing it as a landscape to be explored. Our role as educators isn't to build fences, but to help students develop their own compasses. #AIEducation #FutureOfLearning #EducationalInnovation #StudentAgency #EdTech #CognitiveDesign #GenerativeThinking Amanda Bickerstaff Stefan Bauschard Dr. Sabba Quidwai Mike Kentz David Gregg David H. Doan Winkel Jason Gulya Dr. Lance Cummings. Alfonso Mendoza Jr., M.Ed.