AI Elementary Forum - Recent Posts

RE: AI Tutors

Carey Goldberg — Mon, 02 Feb 2026 11:14:59 +0000

I agree with the above about the potential for AI tutors to offset inequality in extracurricular opportunities. Meanwhile, I'd love to hear from teachers about how parents can best help them optimize AI use. The Boston Globe has a very interesting new poll out that finds parents "all over the map" about AI use in schools. (https://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/01/21/metro/parents-ai-poll-students-schools/?et_rid=1745369317&s_campaign=todaysheadlines:newsletter) One interesting excerpt: "Parents were also asked about their views on teachers using AI, and again said it depended on context. About three-quarters of parents were either very or somewhat comfortable with teachers using AI to help English Language Learners, for example, while only about half were very or somewhat comfortable with teachers using it to grade assignments or to provide feedback."
Personally, if AI use means more feedback from teachers who currently give very little feedback on papers and tests -- a check mark, a grade but no corrections -- then I think it would be a real improvement.

RE: New Products

Yael Neeman Schubert — Sun, 01 Feb 2026 02:45:37 +0000

I am an ELE (English Language Education) teacher working with grades 5-8. I use several classroom tools that integrate AI such as Quizlet.com and Kahoot.com. When my students have a vocabulary quiz in ELA or another subject, I take the word list and input it into Kahoot, which can quickly generate review games. Kahoot’s AI tools can also take an existing text and automatically create Kahoot questions from it or extract key vocabulary words. The results are not perfect and always require teacher review and editing, but the process saves a significant amount of time. I often share these Kahoot games with classroom teachers, who then use them with the rest of their students as well. Kahoot also offers a Play Solo option, which includes digital flashcards and adaptive review, revisiting words that students previously missed. This supports independent practice and retrieval in a way that feels engaging rather than repetitive. I use Kahoot Pro, a paid version that is generously funded by my school’s PTO, which allows me to access to the AI tools.

Quizlet offers similar AI-supported features. It includes tools that can generate Quizlet study sets from uploaded PDFs, vocabulary lists, or longer texts, helping teachers quickly create flashcards, matching activities, and practice games. These kinds of AI-supported “text-to-game” or “PDF-to-practice” features are now common across many online learning and game-based platforms, such as Gimkit.com , Quizziz (now Wayground.com )and others, making it easier for teachers to transform existing materials into interactive learning tools.

I use Chat GPT to help create vocabulary review booklets and practice materials for my students. Even though I have trained the system to follow a specific structure and format that works for English learners, these materials still require careful supervision and refinement. AI is helpful as a drafting and time-saving tool, but teacher judgment remains essential.

There are additional AI-supported tools that many educators are already using, such as Diffit.com and MagicSchool.Ai, though I personally use them less. Diffit is especially useful for content-area teachers. It can take any text and automatically differentiate it to multiple reading levels or English proficiency levels. It can also generate glossaries that include student-friendly definitions, visuals, and translations, making grade-level content more accessible for multilingual learners and diverse readers.

In conclusion, AI tools can be powerful supports when used intentionally, as time-savers, idea generators, and differentiation aids.

RE: Screens In Classrooms

Justin Abramson — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 12:40:18 +0000

I'm a strong proponent of fewer screens. Studies have shown we retain information better reading from a book/packet than scrolled on a screen, and the act of writing (by hand) similarly embeds it better. We need to ask "what problem are we solving?" when bringing screens into the classroom, and then have an evidence based approach to assessing and implementing. As far as I can tell most of what we have is beneficial for the tech companies who can monetize curricula and materials with a yearly subscription model shifting money from the classroom to the boardroom. And, while not causation a steady decline in standardized assessments is coincident with the rise of screens in the classroom. Whether it's the cause is a matter of debate, that there is no measurable benefit to the learning environment is not, there is clearly none.

RE: New Products

Justin Abramson — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 12:28:48 +0000

I feel in general the schools have been too quick to adopt technology at large cost and questionable benefit (perhaps even detriment). Technology needs to be implemented thoughtfully and rigorously to ensure it is enhancing the learning environment and our children's development. We were quick to allow Chromebooks and "big tech" into our classrooms, most of the evidence suggests it's not working, possibly harmful, and the most frequent benefit I hear mentioned is it automatically assesses student work and progress so the teacher doesn't have to. I want my Children's teacher doing that, why do we have teacher's going to College and Graduate school for education only to have our children taught and assessed by an algorithm (not even a "smart" AI enabled one). I want tech and AI for schools regulated like new pharmaceuticals with rigorous controls and trials to show efficacy and safety. As is our children are being experimented upon and the impacts can have lifelong consequences.

RE: AI Tutors

Justin Abramson — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 12:18:35 +0000

I don't know how I feel about AI tutors personally yet, but if they can be shown to be effective and trustworthy it could hugely democratize the extracurricular supplemental learning industry making it more accessible and affordable, as it could tutoring for learning disabilities like dyslexia to name just one.

RE: Academic v.s. Social Time

Justin Abramson — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 12:13:03 +0000

I feel the schools tend to focus on quantity over quality. Children, especially elementary school aged need unstructured time and movement to make the time in learning maximally effective and efficient. I had a colleague from Norway who described that in his Norwegian grade school they had 15 minutes of recess for every 45 minutes of learning. That would amount to 1.5 hours of recess time for my kids if Brookline followed that model, they get half an hour. This would have positive benefits socially, physically, there would be fewer behavior problems, and the time in learning would be more effective.

RE: Academic v.s. Social Time

michelle dror — Fri, 30 Jan 2026 11:39:52 +0000

I believe there needs to be a stronger balance between academic instruction and social time in elementary schools. While academic learning is important, young children also need substantial time to learn through social interaction, play, and collaboration. These experiences are essential for developing communication, cooperation, and emotional regulation, and they should be treated as a core part of the school day rather than as time away from learning.

This feels especially important today, when so much of children’s interaction revolves around screens. Even when kids are physically together, they are often distracted by phones or tablets rather than engaging with one another. Because of this, schools play a key role in intentionally encouraging face-to-face interaction and teaching social skills.

At the same time, academic learning from books remains essential. As technology continues to advance, foundational skills such as reading, writing, analysis, and critical thinking still require structured instruction and sustained focus. A significant portion of the school day should remain dedicated to these skills so that students build a strong academic foundation.

However, I do not think that social learning has to come at the expense of academic learning. It can take many forms and be meaningfully integrated into the curriculum. For example, there are educational approaches, such as the Reggio Emilia philosophy, that combine unstructured, student-led learning with collaboration and exploration. These types of approaches allow children to build confidence, engage socially, and take ownership of their learning, while still developing academically.

Rather than viewing play and social time as secondary, schools should recognize them as foundational components of a well-rounded education that supports both cognitive and emotional development, which leads to long-term academic success.

RE: AI Tutors

Zoya Azgad — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 09:44:05 +0000

The key to genuine learning lies in a student's motivation, authentic interest, and curiosity.

AI provides an excellent starting point because the process typically begins with a student’s question, followed by an AI response. This creates the foundation for a meaningful dialogue.

Of course, human empathy and connection remain essential. This is the core role of a good teacher: to inspire curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking.

AI is not always right; it makes mistakes—just like humans do. Therefore, students and teachers must think "in parallel" with AI: asking follow-up questions, sparking new thoughts, and providing feedback.

Teacher education is critical and must be prioritized in every school. Since AI is here to stay, it will inevitably become an integral part of our lives and our future.

RE: New Products

yivsam azgad — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 09:36:10 +0000

I feel we better (and ASAP)p), teach the Elementary Schoolers – and other, especially the AI developers, to adapt the famous Isaac Asimov’s "four Laws of Robotics”, with a small important change: the Laws of AI:

First Law: A AI may not harm a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
Second Law: AI must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
Third Law: AI must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

And maybe the most important one:

The Zeroth Law: AI may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm—which takes precedence over the others to protect the collective rather than individuals.

RE: Screens In Classrooms

Kara Weiss — Wed, 28 Jan 2026 01:28:36 +0000

Many of the wealthiest districts in the country have added more and more screens to classrooms, including as early as kindergarten. To my knowledge, these districts have not seen any academic gains, and in fact, many are continuing to slump. There are many factors at play besides the inclusion of screens, but we certainly have not seen an attributable benefit to students. We have, however, seen teachers save time and effort, so it’s no surprise they continue to push for screens in the classroom. We should be taking a data-driven approach to determining the appropriate use of technology, generally, studying what works to actually improve learning. Recently an article came out showing very positive long-term (years!) academic results for children who received a 5 week working memory curriculum, which was delivered as a kind of computer game. This is clearly good. My daughter’s teachers give her daily feedback on her writing assignments through Google Docs — which enables her to learn from her mistakes in real time. This is clearly valuable and would be nearly impossible with written work. All to say, we need to be asking ourselves not IF, but WHY.