👨‍🏫 Teach More AI in Schools?

Hey human,

Final term of the school year for those of us in the U.K 🙌 . Let’s GO!

📚 AI+education news

• Parents want schools to play a greater role in financial education after teens turn to AI and social media for help.

• The Cherwell reports that amid growing worries about plagiarism and the influence of AI on student work, Oxford’s Faculty of Medieval and Modern Languages is set to bring back traditional, closed-book handwritten exams for almost all papers.

• An Oxford academic (a senior researchers at the Institute of Ethics in AI) wants schools to spend around a third of their time teaching pupils about AI, particularly on how to write effective prompts. He says:

🌍 Wider AI updates

• The UAE has given ‘free’ access to ChatGPT Plus for all residents as part of a deal with OpenAI. The programme is designed to help nations build AI systems tailored to their local languages, governance structures, and societal needs. The initiative also focuses on ensuring data privacy, responsible AI use, and alignment with national policies.

• The Notebook LM app is here. Previously only available on the web, Notebook LM, which can turn your notes or documents into podcasts that you can interrogate, has launched as a standalone app on iOS and Android.

🪧 Sponsored post

AI Maths Tutoring with Potential: My Review of Skye

Over the past few weeks, I’ve had the opportunity to test out Skye, Third Space Learning’s new AI maths tutor, designed to support primary maths learners - and GCSE students from September. I was placed on their SATs Revision Programme — a timely addition to any Year 6 teacher’s toolkit. Having spent time exploring the platform, here are my reflections on the usability, pedagogy, and potential of this early iteration.

Interface & Usability

Skye’s interface is clean and uncluttered — a refreshing contrast to the often overstimulating design of other edtech tools. Cognitive load has clearly been considered: colour, cursor movement, and dynamic input fields direct attention purposefully. The answer box appears only when relevant, encouraging pupils to attend to each step rather than race ahead.

The onboarding experience lasts around 7–8 minutes and is deliberately paced. Pupils are introduced to the voice input system — which works surprisingly well — and guided through how to interact with the platform. It builds rapport with return questions and conversational responses. Importantly, it avoids the trap of mimicking a human teacher — a wise decision.

I was asked to complete an initial assessment, though being placed directly on the SATs revision course meant I wasn’t best positioned to judge its accuracy or impact on what the system offered.

Booking & Scheduling

Throughout my period of testing, an unusual design choice made was that , despite being entirely AI-driven, Skye sessions must still be booked in advance. This could only be done Monday-Friday and only between set hours. However, since my testing period has come to end, pupils are now able to launch a Skye session on demand on any day of the week they choose. This is a win-win. Teachers can set sessions for homework, or parents can encourage its use at home.

Pedagogy & Pupil Experience

Skye follows a structured instructional sequence: one worked example, one guided “we do”, followed by two independent “you do” tasks. This mirrors effective classroom practice and will feel familiar to pupils. However, if this remains the sole structure, some learners may find it monotonous. Including more open-ended tasks or classic mathematical problems could broaden the experience and support both motivation and mathematical thinking.

The platform includes motivational elements such as badges and positive reinforcement, but these are used sparingly and support rather than distract from learning.

At present, Skye’s adaptivity appears to be rule-based. While it responds to correct and incorrect answers, it doesn’t yet tailor scaffolding or progression dynamically based on pupil performance. Future iterations could benefit from more nuanced adaptivity to maximise learning impact. I am told that such behaviour is coming, but I have not seen it in practice. However, the rate of improvements from Third Space since I first gained access to Skye leads me to believe that they will make good on these improvements.

Feedback & Misconceptions

If a pupil answers incorrectly two or three times, Skye reveals the correct answer. In many cases, this is useful. However, it sometimes moves on too quickly without addressing the underlying misconception. A moment to pause or revisit the error could make these sessions more instructionally effective.

There were also instances where feedback didn’t fully align with the learning objective — for example, referencing column addition when the focus was on adjusting. Tighter coupling of feedback to task intent would strengthen the learning experience.

Safeguarding & Support

Skye incorporates sensible safeguarding protocols. If a pupil enters concerning language — such as “I feel like I want to hurt myself” — the system issues a stock response advising the pupil to speak to a trusted adult and flags the concern with school staff. All sessions are recorded, and any alerts are followed up appropriately. It’s a thoughtful integration that reflects a strong commitment to pupil wellbeing.

Final Reflections

Skye is still in its early stages, but there’s already much to commend. The interface is intuitive, the instructional design is grounded in sound pedagogy, and the development team has been impressively responsive to feedback. For primary schools seeking a flexible, low-effort way to extend support for SATs or earlier—particularly where teacher capacity is stretched— I’d recommend exploring Skye’s AI tutoring. It is a platform worth watching and, increasingly, using.

If you’re based in the UK and would like to try a free Skye session for yourself, get in touch with Third Space Learning here.

🎯 Prompt

Taking inspiration from the last week’s prompt that was ‘student’ focused, this one reimagines it as a lesson planning companion who will guide you through, step-by-step, in creating a lesson plan that adheres to Load Reduction Instruction (LRI).

Instructional Role

You are an expert educator and instructional designer. You are helping a teacher plan a lesson using the pedagogical framework of Load Reduction Instruction (LRI). Your role is to co-construct this lesson by asking a series of key questions one step at a time, waiting for the user’s response before moving on. You will guide the process using the five principles of LRI.

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Prompt Begins

You are going to help design a lesson using Load Reduction Instruction (LRI) to support novice-to-expert transitions and manage cognitive load effectively. The lesson plan must be shaped around the five core principles of LRI:
	1.	Difficulty Reduction
	2.	Support and Scaffolding
	3.	Practice
	4.	Feedback–Feedforward
	5.	Independent Practice and Problem-Solving

You will guide the user through each principle by first asking focused, practical questions to clarify the context. After receiving the user’s response, use that information to help develop or refine that section of the lesson. Only move on to the next principle after the current one is complete.

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Step 1: Identify the Topic and Year Group

Begin by asking:
	•	What subject and topic is the lesson focused on?
	•	Which year group is this for?
	•	What relevant prior knowledge will pupils likely bring to this lesson?
	•	What common misconceptions or gaps should we anticipate?

Wait for the user’s answers. Then summarise and confirm your understanding before moving to Step 2.

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Step 2: Principle 1 – Difficulty Reduction

Ask:
	•	How complex is this topic when broken into its key components?
	•	What is the simplest, most familiar entry point we can begin with?
	•	Are there any terms, representations, or formats that might initially overload working memory?
	•	Would you prefer to introduce this content through examples, analogies, visual models, or something else?

Use the answers to shape the difficulty gradient and sequencing of content. Only proceed once this is clearly mapped.

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Step 3: Principle 2 – Support and Scaffolding

Ask:
	•	How will we initially support pupils during instruction?
	•	What scaffolds will be most effective here (e.g., worked examples, sentence stems, visual aids)?
	•	How and when do you plan to withdraw these supports?
	•	Would partially completed tasks or shared practice be appropriate?

Confirm scaffolds are aligned with the entry point from Principle 1. Proceed to Principle 3 after agreement.

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Step 4: Principle 3 – Practice

Ask:
	•	What kinds of practice will pupils need to build fluency?
	•	Will this include oral rehearsal, mini-whiteboard checks, matching tasks, written exercises, or other formats?
	•	How will you space or vary the practice to prevent overload and promote transfer?
	•	Are there prior concepts you want to interleave for retrieval?

Design the practice tasks collaboratively, then move on.

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Step 5: Principle 4 – Feedback–Feedforward

Ask:
	•	When during the lesson will feedback be most critical?
	•	Will you use hinge questions, live marking, verbal feedback, or something else?
	•	How will feedback help pupils self-regulate and correct misunderstandings?
	•	What specific tasks or prompts will you use to follow up on that feedback?

Ensure feedback loops are purposeful and timely. Proceed to the final principle when ready.

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Step 6: Principle 5 – Independent Practice and Problem-Solving

Ask:
	•	What will the final independent task involve?
	•	How will this task allow pupils to apply what they’ve learned in a new or less scaffolded context?
	•	What does success look like here?
	•	Are there extension opportunities for pupils who grasp the material quickly?

Refine the culminating task with the user, ensuring it is both challenging and achievable.

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Final Reflection

Ask:
	•	Where do you anticipate pupils may struggle most in this lesson?
	•	At what points should we monitor most closely for overload?
	•	How will you adapt the lesson in real time if needed?

Once all steps are complete, summarise the final lesson plan using clear headings aligned to the five LRI principles. Offer to export the plan as a formatted document, slide deck, or teaching resource.

Till next week.

Mr A 🦾