Diffit: an IA free tool to easily create resources for differentiation and inclusivity.
I’ve been meaning to write about this website for a few months. To be honest, it is not just this website I’d like to write about but some others as well. The problem with me is always lack of time. Juggling being a full-time teacher, a part-time tech coach, mum, housewife, friend, daughter, and blogger is difficult. You can relate, can’t you? Every time I swear I am going to write about them all, something comes across, and I feel I must write about that “something” first.
But today I have decided to forget about all the other things and write about Diffit. Why? Because I think it is a great tool and can help reduce your workload a lot, especially if you are a primary or secondary teacher and have students with different learning needs.
So, What is Diffit, and how can it help you? To put it simply, Diffit tailors learning for every student and easily convert any content to all reading levels.
It generates texts in three different ways:
By searching for a topic, theme or question
By pasting a URL of an article in a website or a YouTube Video
By copy/pasting a text
By uploading a PDF
You, then, choose
the reading level (from 2nd grade to 11+ grade-you can also keep the original text)
the language
More about Diffit to keep in mind
It has a very generous free version and works in 68 languages
Diffit magically adapts any text, topic, article, YouTube video with a URL to any reading level.
Besides the reading text, it also provides:
a summary of the text
key vocabulary words
multiple choice questions about the text (by default 3 questions) but you can add more) and the answers to the questions
short answer questions (again, by default it creates 3)
open-ended prompts
You can edit, add and copy the generated text and resources.
You can translate the adapted text into 68 languages, making your classroom more accessible to all students.
You can get the student activities in PDF format for free.
Picture this. Me announcing to my C1 students that the next lesson in the textbook was going to revolve around Politics. To be honest, any other year, I would have probably shared my students’ feeling of apathy or disinterest. But this year I was really looking forward to this lesson as AI is shaking things up in my English class!
Imagine my students’ jaws dropping when I announced a class debate featuring… wait for it… virtual versions of Biden and Trump! And both using the vocabulary we have been studying, revising and reinforcing.
In this lesson for C1 students, you will find
Tailor-made texts using specific vocabulary
Talking avatars reading these texts to create a listening comprehension activity
Mediation activity using the talking avatars and the texts
Speaking activity using target vocabulary
How I Did it
Using ChatGPT to Generate Text Using Target Vocabulary
Prompt: You are an English teacher. Write a text divided into paragraphs. Each paragraph should be preceded by a heading. The headings should be: economic policies and immigration policies. Write it from a Republican point of view. Write a short paragraph for each heading, using C1 English and include such as the verbs benefit, trigger, boost, undermine, bankrupt, to earn peanuts, to be into, compound, combat, and lead
I repeated the same prompt but asking ChatGPT to generate the text from a Democrat point of view.
Listening Comprehension: creating talking avatars to read the text
I created two separate talking avatars. I created Joe Biden and uploaded the text generated by ChatGPT, and then did the same for Donald Trump, and uploaded them to YouTube. This step was important as I wanted to use Twee.com to generate the comprehension questions, which you can find here.
And … we shouldn’t let the visit of these two politicians to our class go to waste, so the next step will be to use these talking avatars for a mediation activity, hitting several birds with one stone.
help students boost pronunciation
help students boost speaking and mediation skills
Steps:
Note:The day before, I asked my students to bring their earbuds and mobile phone s with a QR Code reader installed for the next class.
During the class, I organized the students into two groups – Republicans and Democrats – and paired them up accordingly. I handed out copies with Joe Biden to the Democrats and photocopies featuring Donald Trump to the Republicans.
Aim: engage in a mediation activity by conveying the information to the other candidate using your own words.
Instructions:
Scan the QR code to listen to the candidate reading the text. Repeat as many times as necessary until you feel confident in pronouncing the vocabulary correctly.
Take notes of what each candidate says. Note: You don’t have to copy word by word.
Time allotted for individual work in this part: 15 minutes
Finally, pair up students and ask them to retell their part, trying to use the target vocabulary. This part might take another 15 minutes.
Speaking: Retrieval Practice
Give students one minute to write in their notebooks all the vocabulary words they remember from this unit.
When the minute is up, ask the students to say their words and write the most interesting ones on the board.
Put the students in pairs or groups of three, underline two/three words and ask students the first questions, asking them to try to use all or some of the words underlined on the board.
How important is it for individuals to stay informed about current political events?
Do you think there’s a growing sense of disconnect between politicians and the people they represent? Why or why not?
What do you think are the most important qualities for a good leader?
Do you think that social media can be used to trigger political polarization? If so, how?
What are the most important factors that people consider when casting their vote?
Does the current political landscape adequately represent the diverse voices and needs of society? If not, what needs to change?
Are there particular areas of policy you’re interested in, like education, healthcare, or the environment?
Artificial Intelligence- you can choose to embrace it or ignore it, but I assure you it is not going anywhere. It is here to stay, so I choose to love it and use it, to squeeze it and to have fun with it.
I am so into it that if I see something AI-related that seems like it can remotely be useful for my classes, I want to try it straight away. So, I had been experimenting with chatbots for a while but being a simple English teacher, all the platforms I tried were either too difficult, not free or not student friendly. And these things were essential not only for me, but also for the teachers I train. So, when I read about language chatbots in Lana Kandybovich’s blog ,ELTcation,I told myself “Let’s dive right in”. And I did.
You cannot believe how easy it is. It took me less than 30 minutes to create two chatbots, though I have to say that I had my buddy ChatGPT to lend me a helping hand in crafting the instructions.
Safe and Student-friendly as they don’t have to register, and it doesn’t share students’ data. Students can interact with text and audio.
Shareable. The chatbot can be shared with everyone, or you can create private sessions, just for your students, for example it can be set as homework. In this case, their interactions will be graded, If you wish so, and feedback offered. The interactions will never be shared with anyone but the owner of the chatbot.
Multipurpose. You can create a chatbot for almost anything you can think of and in ; you just need to write the right instructions and be specific about what you want your chatbot to do. You can even upload a document or your rubric so that the feedback is based on it.
Multilingual. It supports 50 languages
Customizable. You can personalize its appearance to match your classroom style. You can build your chatbot from scratch or have AI assist you.
It might not be perfect, but it certainly works for me.
So, to address one of the main problems my students have, I have created
1.Chatbot Magic: Boost Your Writing Skills,
In this tool, Cabal Scribe, the chat assistant, will help students enhance their writing. It analyses their text and provides feedback on grammar mistakes, spelling errors, and other identified issues. Its goal is to assist students in improving their writing. While it may not be as effective as a teacher, it can certainly be helpful when a teacher is not available. Feel free to click on the link to try it yourself and/or share it with your students.
2. Miss ChatAI: an English Language Practice Partner.
The aim of this chatbot is to interact with students by asking questions and providing answers on any topic they wish to discuss. The chatbot will also offer feedback on grammar and vocabulary mistakes or any other kinds of errors and suggest alternatives when necessary. Students can write sentences, questions, or paragraphs, and the chatbot will provide personalized feedback while continuing the conversation. In its initial interaction with a student, the chatbot will inquire about their English level to tailor its questions and responses appropriately. Once the conversation topic has been established, the chatbot will suggest vocabulary that is both related to the topic and appropriate for the student’s level. Feel free to click on the link to try it yourself and/or share it with your students.
First off, Happy New Year! Fresh starts and the time of the year when you start thinking about New Year’s Resolutions.
I always try and think of some New Year’s Resolutions to accomplish but, let’s face it, I don’t have enough fingers or toes to count the number of times I have broken them, and then I think why bother? Do you know anyone who keeps their New Year’s resolutions? Or even remembers them after January 15? I sure don’t.
Anyway, let’s begin this new year with a post on New Year’s resolutions. To be honest, I just wanted an excuse to create some beautiful images using AI. They are so beautiful and so much fun to create!
In this post, aimed at B1- C2 students, you will find
Fun warm-ups including a small challenge playing against ChatGPT.
Some structures you might need to revise/learn when discussing New Year’s Resolutions.
Speaking practice with beautiful images created by AI.
A fun listening exercise with a song.
A written assignment created with AI based on one of the images above.
Warm-up (10 minutes)
Icebreaker 1: The video clip.
Start by writing on the board New Year’s Resolutions and ask students if they are familiar with the concept.
Ask students if they have made any New Year’s Resolutions, either this year or in the past. Some might say they have never bothered with resolutions, and that’s when you play this clip by the adorable little Charlotte A Tucker claiming” I don’t have any New Year’s Resolution, you don’t need one when you are perfect”. Share some laughs, and then get back to the original question:Have they ever made any resolutions in the past? If so, did they actually stick to them? What challenges did they face?
Icebreaker 2: ChatGPT Challenge: Have a fun activity! Invite students to jot down their thoughts on the most common New Year’s Resolution. Then, check with ChatGPT for its take. Give a round of applause to students whose responses coincide with ChatGPT’s answer.
Vocabulary building. (5-10 minutes)
1. Go through the list below, commenting on the expressions you can use to express your resolutions. Say the resolution is “to stop smoking”. Ask students to write down, in their notebooks, two or maybe 3 of these expressions.
Ten expressions to use in speaking and writing
1. I guess I’d better stop smoking
2. I suppose I really ought to stop smoking
3. I really should stop smoking, but then again…
4. I am determined to stop smoking
5. Never again will you catch me smoking.
6. No matter what happens, I’m going to stop smoking
7. Come hell or high water, I’ll stop smoking
Tell them you are going to show them some popular New Year’s Resolution. In their groups, they should talk about all or some of the following questions and try to use some of the expressions above, as well.
1. Have you ever considered making a similar resolution for yourself?
2. How might incorporating this resolution into your life positively influence you?
3. Are there any specific steps you would take to implement this resolution?
4. Can you share a personal story related to this type of resolution?
Display the first slide with a popular New Year’s Resolution ask them to comment on it, elaborating on the answer.
Tell students each slide will be on display for 4 minutes and then a new one will be shown. There are 8 slides containing New Year’s Resolutions. Feel free to use as many or as few of them as you like.
NOTE: the images have been created using AI (have I already told you how much I love creating them? hahaha! I know. I have)
A bit of fun with listening?
Tell students they are going to listen to a funny song about resolutions. They will listen to it once. This is what they have to do:
1. Predict 5 New Year’s Resolutions they might hear in the song and write them down on a separate piece of paper
2. Exchange papers with the student beside you.
3. While the song plays, indicate on the exchanged paper which Resolutions correspond to the ones mentioned in the song.
To check the answers, enable the captions on YouTube
Writing Assignment using AI
Writing assignments are a fantastic opportunity for students to hone their creative writing abilities and writing skills, both of which are vital for learning. However, students are essentially cheating themselves if they just use AI to accomplish their homework. One way to prevent cheating is to assign writing prompts that are open-ended and require critical thinking and creativity, but clearly, the most effective way to stop cheating would be to create a culture of academic integrity in the classroom. Easy, as we all have beautiful students!
On the other hand, AI can help us a lot as teachers and reduce our workload. In this case, I have used Bingchat, uploaded one of my slides and asked to create a writing prompt based on the picture. Have a look!
Here’s one of them
As the clock struck midnight, ringing in the New Year, Alex made a resolution to step out of his comfort zone and travel more. With a world map spread out on the table, he closed his eyes and pointed to a random location - that would be his first destination. The next morning, with bags packed and passport in hand, Alex found himself at the airport for the first time in years. A mix of anxiety and excitement surged through him as he boarded the plane. Little did he know, this journey would not only take him to uncharted territories on the map but also within himself.
Some tips for writing a good narrative are:
Use descriptive language to create vivid images in the reader’s mind.
Use dialogue to show the character’s personality and interactions with others.
Use a clear structure with a beginning, middle, and end.
Use transitions to connect the events and show the passage of time.
Use varied sentence structures and vocabulary to avoid repetition and monotony.
Use feedback and revision to improve your writing.
I hope you enjoy this writing prompt and have fun with your creative writing.
A talking avatar + cleft sentences? Yes and yes!!! It only got better when one of the available options was a Santa Claus. Lucky chick!
The words “artificial intelligence” have become a constant hum in the background of our teaching world. But let’s get real – AI isn’t a magic wand. It might help you capture the interest of the students the first time you use them, but if they don’t learn anything from it, the interest will quickly fade.
Playing around with AI can be a blast, but the real payoff comes when learning and enjoyment are combined. Talking avatars are not new in the class and I have been using them on and off to spice up my lessons for a long time ( remember Voki or ChatterPix) but now…, now they have reached a new level. Our options are limitless when it comes to what we can do with them and how they can benefit students.
Let me share with you how I am going to use talking avatars with my students today.
In my C1 class, and in the last two sessions, we have been working with Cleft Sentences. Remember Cleft Sentences? Yes, those we use to emphasize or correct information. Well, so let’s ask a Santa Claus male and a Santa Claus female to help us with an exercise on Cleft sentences. Are you in? Follow me, then.
What I did and how I did it
Think about your previous lesson with the specific class you are going to give the exercise to; think about things you or your students did or said and then, feed the talking avatar with some wrong information. For example:
Information to feed the talking avatar. I have highlighted the inaccurate information so that my students can create cleft sentences.
On Tuesday, Cristina, our English teacher, decided to wrap up Unit 4. We revised Conditional sentences and then talked a bit about unusual people in our Spanish homes. Cristina invited Aisha to leave the class because he was not feeling very well. The class finished with a listening exercise.
Now go to D-ID and sign up to create your talking avatar.
Note: I have gone the extra mile and used Canva.com ( I am a Canva Addict) to put together a more beautiful exercise, but don’t follow me here if you don’t feel like it. Creating the avatar should be enough.
Done!!!! Use the computer to display the avatar and have the students generate the cleft sentences, correcting the information.
Note: Although students might be tempted to correct more than one piece of wrong information at a time, instruct them not to. You want 5 cleft sentences.
For example: It was on Monday that Cristina decided to wrap up the lesson ( not on Tuesday)
More fun? Yes!!!!
I created a QR code with the URL generated in D-ID of the avatar. I use this one
I asked students to form groups of three or four and asked one student in the group to scan the code.
Groups listened to the talking avatar and generated 5 cleft sentences, correcting the information.
The winning group is the first to get them all right. The rest of the groups will have two more minutes to complete the exercise. Add a bell for more fun – and more noise.
