AI in Action for Educators

Welcome back to AI in Action for Educators!

Today, we’re focusing on creativity — how AI can help us come up with fresh ideas when our brain is tired, busy, or blank.

AI doesn’t replace creativity… it jump-starts it.

Why Creativity Matters
Teachers need to be creative to keep students engaged, foster crucial skills like critical thinking and problem-solving, and make learning more meaningful and effective. Creativity allows teachers to adapt lessons to diverse student needs, improvise when challenges arise, and find innovative ways to connect new information to students' existing knowledge, ultimately leading to deeper and more confident learning.
But everyday teaching is full — sometimes we need something to spark that new angle, that fun twist, that better hook.
AI can offer options — fast.

Stretch • Shift • Spark
One simple framework to think about creative prompting :

• Stretch — Ask AI to show you possibilities you wouldn’t have thought of.
Give me 10 ways to intro fractions without a worksheet.
List 8 different ways students could demonstrate understanding of photosynthesis using everyday objects.

• Shift — change tone, format, or medium.
Explain the water cycle as a comedy skit.
Present the causes of the Civil War as a news report from 1860.

• Spark — small idea that adds excitement or engagement.
Give me a story that sets up this math problem.
Start this science experiment with a surprising ‘what if’ question to hook students.

You don’t have to start from scratch — just decide what you need:

• Something bigger? → Stretch

• Something different? → Shift

• Something simple but fun? → Spark

Then let AI help with the first draft.

This approach helps us remix content with creativity — while still using our professional judgment to choose what fits our students best.

What AI Can Help You Create
For teachers:
These are the kinds of things AI can help generate quickly — so you can save time and focus on teaching. For example:

• Hooks — ideas to grab students’ attention at the start of a lesson

• Exit ticket prompts — quick ways to check understanding at the end

• Gamified versions of lessons — turning a normal activity into a game or challenge

• Anchor chart language — ready-to-use text for visual supports

• Station rotation versions of worksheets — create multiple formats so students can work in small groups or rotate through activities”

For students:
“And AI can also spark their creativity directly:

• Story starters — to get them writing without staring at a blank page

• Debate topics — interesting prompts that encourage critical thinking

• Alternate endings — for literature or history scenarios

• Inquiry prompts — questions that encourage curiosity and exploration

• Creative constraints — fun challenges like ‘Write a paragraph using only one-syllable words,’ which make them think in new ways”

Here’s how AI works inside Brisk or Google Workspace to spark creativity:

• Highlight → Brainstorm ideas in Docs
  Select any text and ask AI for multiple ways to present it. For example, a paragraph about fractions could turn into a fun story, a real-life example, or a challenge question.
  

• Remix text (tone, audience, style)
  You can make something funny, dramatic, or suitable for a younger audience. AI adapts your content for different contexts.
  

• Multiple versions (funny, serious, cross-curricular)
  Need a serious explanation for math plus a playful science twist? AI can create both in seconds.
  

• Turn concepts into:
  Puzzle · mystery · riddle · scavenger hunt · boss battle
  You can gamify a lesson by turning an ordinary topic into a challenge students actually want to solve.
  
  

The key idea: AI gives you starting points. You decide which one fits your students best and add your own twist.”

If you only take one thing today, take this:

Ask AI to:
• Make it funny
• Make it visual
• Make it active
• Make it collaborative
• Make it student-led
• Make it relevant to a 14-year-old today”

What AI Can Help You Create

For teachers: hooks · exit tickets · gamified tasks · anchor charts · station rotations
For students: story starters · debate topics · alternate endings · inquiry prompts

This approach helps us remix content creatively — while keeping teacher judgment central.

Check out a great long list of creativity prompts in this newsletter.

Try It This Week

My challenge to you this week is to give it a try. See how AI tools can increase your creativity.

Pick one upcoming topic. Then challenge ai with this type of prompt:

“Give me 5 surprising ways to introduce ___ to grade ___.”

Choose one — and use it tomorrow!
Small sparks → big creativity habits.

Next up… Lesson 8: Remixing lessons + ethical creativity.

Thanks for watching!