The rise of AI-powered tools is transforming how educators plan and deliver instruction. Google offers a variety of AI tools designed to simplify tasks, inspire creativity, and enhance student engagement. These AI tools from Google can help teachers save time while helping them create more dynamic and engaging lessons for their students.
Today on the blog, we’ll explore some AI tools from Google that teachers should know about. They are free to use and can reshape your instructional planning.
From creating visuals that support vocabulary instruction to generating music that sets the tone for a history lesson, there’s something here for everyone. Let’s dive into why these AI tools from Google are worth exploring and how they can support your work in the classroom!
What should you know about these AI tools from Google?
Google’s AI tools can help teachers create resources tailored to their students’ needs while saving valuable time. My work around AI in education has been primarily focused on instructional planning and teacher use cases. As you’ll see in the list below, these tools are for you to explore and make decisions on what you will share with an entire class, small group, or individual students through guided activities.
Although students might explore these tools independently when outside the classroom, my focus is on how educators can use them as facilitators to design instructional resources.
A couple of notes about the AI tools from Google on this list before we dive in. Some of these tools may require a Google account to access. However, if you encounter any login issues using a school account, consider using a personal Gmail account. Also, some of them are part of Google’s “AI Test Kitchen” and are currently in beta.
AI Tools from Google and Classroom Applications
Here are some AI tools from Google that can help you prepare instructional resources and engaging digital experiences for your students.
ImageFX to Make Pictures
There are so many use cases for this tool! One to consider is creating custom images to support vocabulary instruction. For example, you can use ImageFX to generate images that visually represent complex words or concepts to help students make connections and deepen their understanding.
MusicFX to Create Short Clips
Generate music that sets the tone for a lesson or brings historical periods to life. Use this tool to create an immersive experience for students, whether you’re teaching about the roaring ‘20s or contemporary cultural movements. Social studies or literature might be an obvious choice, but you can even create music related to a science or math topic. For example, you might write a prompt to create a musical clip about a weather system, then ask students for feedback on how to tweak that prompt to make a stronger output.
Food Mood to Make Recipes
Of all the AI tools from Google, this one might be the silliest on the list. You can foster critical thinking by exploring connections between two cultures using Food Mood. I shared this in a keynote I gave in Illinois last year, with the reminder that not all AI tools are going to give you a strong result. With this tool, you’ll provide some constraints like choosing a meal type, two different countries, and adding in a requested ingredient (if you wish) and it will generate a recipe. It’s accompanied by an AI-generated image, too. You can ask students to reflect on what the tool suggests about cultural similarities and differences, providing a springboard for deeper discussions.
Talking Tours to Explore the World
I love Google Arts and Culture and often share it in workshops and webinars when talking about the “Explore” chapter from my book EdTech Essentials. With this AI-powered tool, you can invite an AI-generated tour guide into your classroom. Talking Tours gives you a few dozen options of places to visit. Take your class on an interactive virtual tour of a historical site, museum, or geographical location. This tool can also serve as a model for student projects, where they create their own virtual tours.
One Minute Guides
Similar to the Talking Tours, you might use the One Minute Guides as examples for student writing projects. Have students create their own concise guides on a topic they’ve studied, showcasing their ability to synthesize information. They can use an audio tool like Adobe Podcast to record a conversation modeled after the One Minute Guides.
Illuminate Books for Book Talks
Illuminate is one of the AI tools from Google you’ll certainly want to check out. It has a whole section dedicated to “books,” where you can access AI-generated conversations that summarize books in the public domain. You might decide to share these recaps with students to spark interest in classic literature. Or you might find that it provides you with a quick overview before a deeper dive in with your class.
Illuminate to Create Conversations
Another tool built into Illuminate lets you make conversations on the content of your choice – not just books. Use the “Generate” tool to create custom audio conversations about specific topics. Upload resources, preview the audio, and use it as a jumping-off point for classroom discussions. Just like watching a YouTube video before sharing it with students, you’ll want to preview the discussion generated by AI before sharing it.
NotebookLM to Interact with Your Stuff
Similar to Illumiate, NotebookLM creates audio conversations from content. However, it also lets you interact with content at a deeper level. You can upload one or more pieces of information, like a PDF of a document. This tool is perfect for creating a space where you can interact with research papers, notes from a conference, or any set of information you want to focus on. I recently shared this blog post, “5 Ways Teachers Can Use NotebookLM Today” on my site with more information on NotebookLM.
Gemini the Chatbot
Google’s chatbot tool offers capabilities similar to ChatGPT. At first, it was called Bard, and now it goes by Gemini. You can interact with Gemini in a similar way as other chatbots. So, if you downloaded my free resource with ChatGPT prompts, you can try them out in Gemini, too. You might use Gemini to brainstorm ideas, generate lesson plans, or find connections between the topic you are teaching and a topic that is of high-interest to your students.
Using Teacher-Friendly AI Tools from Google
Google’s AI tools open up new possibilities for educators to enhance their instructional planning and engage students in meaningful ways. By incorporating tools like ImageFX, MusicFX, and NotebookLM, and more, teachers can design creative, engaging resources that cater to diverse learning needs. These AI tools from Google can save you time (like Gemini), spark curiosity (like Food Mood) and foster critical thinking (like Illuminate Books) in students.
For more AI connections and dozens of educator-friendly prompts, check out my book, EdTech Essentials: 12 Strategies for Every Classroom in the Age of AI, 2nd Edition. If you already have a copy, download the free study guide to dive deeper into these strategies.
Looking for more opportunities to connect? Find me at events throughout the year—scroll halfway down my “Work With Monica” page to see my updated calendar. Let’s make this school year the best one yet with the power of AI!