Discover challenges for educators to effectively manage last-minute assignments and keep students engaged as the deadline looms.
The weeks leading up to the end of the semester and the start of the break are full of opportunities for growth and creativity. Final assessments, lesson preparation, and keeping students engaged as they eagerly await the upcoming break present creative challenges for educators. Whether you’re a classroom teacher, special education or learning support educator, paraprofessional, or librarian, Copilot helps you streamline your workload and keep students focused and engaged when the term is over.
Copilot offers innovative and efficient ways to manage last-minute tasks and create dynamic classroom activities – which can be especially useful during these transitional times of the year. Explore these challenges and see how Copilot can help you improve learning and increase efficiency to finish the term strong.
1. Create sentence triggers for student self-assessment
Offering students time to reflect on their growth amid end-of-semester tests can encourage self-evaluation, help them set goals, and provide valuable insights for your planning. Sentence triggers are a great way to guide students in thinking about their successes, challenges, and areas for improvement.
Copy and paste the following prompt into copilot.cloud.microsoft. You can adjust the prompt as needed to suit your age or class.
Create 12 starters for fourth graders to reflect on their academic progress, successes, and challenges during the first half of the school year. Group them into three categories: Academic Progress, Achievements, and Challenges.
Easily customize sentence starters by editing the prompt. For example:
- Ask Copilot to create sentence starters in a fun way – like imagining students as superheroes reflecting on their “learning superpowers” and “areas to strengthen.”
- Tell Copilot to create full sentences with spaces, offering Multilingual English Learners (MLE) extra support with clues to help complete the sentence.
Copilot can help you provide ways to improve student self-reflection that will encourage student agency in their learning and give you insight into their progress.
2. Develop multi-level tasks for frustration-free practice at home
When recess comes around, families often look for additional activities to reinforce learning at home. Creating multi-level assignments can help meet the different learning needs of your students. Copilot simplifies this process by quickly generating differentiated and engaging homework assignments. You can offer personalized and fun activities to students, even during breaks, without having to spend a lot of time planning.
Here is an example of a prompt to create a differentiated problem for a high school math class studying linear expressions. Consider how you might adjust the prompt to work for your area.
Create a fun winter break activity for seventh graders to find out if linear expressions are equivalent or not equivalent. Include 3-5 tasks using real-world applications, such as comparing prices or bidding on items, and show why the skill is important. Design a three-level task with both tasks at different levels of difficulty involving equivalent and nonequivalent linear expressions. List 3-5 practice expressions for each task.
Here are some ideas to further customize the task:
- Let Copilot create clear instructions that guide students to choose a level with problems they can confidently solve with minimal help.
- Ask Copilot to create a scenario where students act as “math detectives” and use linear expressions to solve puzzles—turning tasks into fun narratives where students follow clues and solve real-world problems.
Copilot saves time and helps you get started by generating ideas to help you create adaptable resources for different subjects and student needs.
3. Recommend another favorite book to your students
Breaks at school often involve passive activities such as watching television and playing video games. Offer students options for their free time by recommending books that match their interests. Simply share your student’s interests, preferred genres or authors with Copilot and get suggestions for personalized reading recommendations.
A call to recommend a book might start like this:
Recommends 10 science fiction novels for the tenth grader interested in computer science with a strong female protagonist. List the various authors and the title of the book, the author, and a short summary paragraph in the table.
Follow up on Copilot’s response with additional expectations that personalize book recommendations for individual students. For example:
- Create a “choose your own adventure” book list where students choose according to their mood: “Feeling adventurous? Try this book. Want a futuristic escape? Look at this!”
- Ask Copilot to add discussion questions or food for thought to each book to encourage critical thinking, such as, “How does the protagonist’s journey reflect real-world challenges?”
Copilot helps you quickly generate personalized learning ideas, making it easier to tailor activities to student interests and increase engagement.
4. Create fun images for engaging writing
As students count down the days until recess, encourage engagement with fun and creative learning experiences. Copilot helps by generating engaging visuals, enhancing activities and sparking inspiration.
Here is a prompt to create an image using Copilot:
Create a whimsical winter forest scene where animals like foxes, rabbits and hedgehogs are dressed in stylish human winter clothes. The scene should be snowy with tall, frosted trees and a path winding through the forest. Animals should engage in various activities such as ice skating, tea party, sipping cocoa and reading books.
Adding specific details will help Copilot create a more accurate and vivid image. Customize the image with these ideas:
- Direct Copilot will provide step-by-step instructions for a creative writing assignment that uses a generated image. For example: “Write a story about your adventure in this magical forest. What secrets of the forest do they share with you? How will you join in their winter festivities?”
- Ask Copilot to create an image in a completely different style, like a cartoon or a futuristic digital piece that inspires more creative writing.
Easily create interesting images with Copilot for your lessons to capture students’ attention and inspire creativity.
5. Draft a letter to show families how to use Copilot
Copilot is also a great tool for families. Ask Copilot for help designing a winter break letter that shows caregivers how to generate ideas for fun activities or ways to recharge over the school holidays using Copilot.
Try this prompt to get a starting point for your letter:
Draft a warm letter thanking families for supporting their students during the first part of the school year. Emphasize the importance of a balance between relaxation and continuous practice of skills in the classroom. Include a section explaining Microsoft Copilot with simple steps for using it on the web. Provide 3-5 quick starters for creating fun, educational home activities.
Be sure to adjust the prompt so that the letter reflects what you hope the students will be doing during recess. For example, you can:
- Let Copilot come up with jumpstarts in a specific area, such as math, language arts, science, or social studies, giving families targeted ways to continue building skills.
- Ask Copilot to come up with quick starters for family activities that encourage cooperation and collaboration, such as “Plan a science experiment together.”
Quickly design personalized communications with Copilot, making it easy to create messages that support families and save time during busy periods.
Integrate Copilot into your daily classroom routine
Copilot is here to support you as the school holidays approach. Use the prompts in this post as a starting point and adapt them to your unique classroom needs. If you’re new to Copilot and want to learn more about how to get started, check out these resources to get the most out of your AI assistant:
Not going to take a break? Copilot can still be a valuable everyday tool in your classroom. Explore these posts for more ways to incorporate it into your daily routine:
Discover the endless possibilities of using Copilot as your AI classroom assistant today!