Start with the rule
Nothing that could identify a pupil goes into an AI tool: no names, no dates of birth, no plan or report text, no photos. Describe the need, never the child.
A 2026 Royal Society survey of teachers in England found that staff with SENCO responsibility were the least confident with AI of any group it measured, and only about one in eight had been given structured support. That isn't surprising: the information you handle is the most sensitive in the school. Every prompt below works with a general description such as "a Year 4 pupil who reads at about a Year 1 level".
Use the tool your school has approved, follow its AI and data protection policies, and check the Department for Education's guidance. AI drafts resources. It doesn't assess pupils, and it doesn't write statutory documents.
Adapting resources
Rewrite a text at a different reading level
The class text is too hard for one group.
Rewrite this text for a pupil who reads at about a [Year 2] level but is in [Year 5]. Keep the same key facts and the age-appropriate topic. Short sentences, common words, and explain these terms in brackets the first time they appear: [key terms]. Text: [paste]
Tip: Paste text you're allowed to copy, such as your own worksheet.
Break a task into small steps
A pupil is overwhelmed by a multi-part task.
Break this classroom task into small, numbered steps for a pupil who finds it hard to hold several instructions at once. One action per step, each starting with a verb, no more than eight words per step. Add a tick box after each one. Task: [describe the task]
Three versions of one worksheet
You need the same learning at three levels of support.
Here is a set of questions on [topic] for [year group]: [paste]. Make three versions: 1. With sentence starters and a word bank. 2. With a worked example first. 3. An extension with one "explain why" question. Keep the learning aim the same in all three.
Words for a visual timetable or now-and-next board
You're making visual supports and need consistent wording.
Write short labels for a visual timetable for a [primary or secondary] school day with these activities: [list them]. Two or three words each, in the same pattern, starting with a verb where possible. Then suggest a simple picture idea for each.
Draft a social story
A change or a tricky situation is coming up.
Write a short social story in the first person about [the situation, e.g. going on a school trip by coach, a fire drill, having a supply teacher]. For a pupil aged about [age]. Six to eight short sentences, calm and positive, saying what will happen, what I can do if I feel worried, and who can help. No names.
Tip: Use "I" and a general situation. Add the pupil's name yourself, on paper.
Working with adults
A plain-English letter to parents
A letter to all parents is accurate but hard going.
Rewrite this letter to parents in plain English, at a reading age of about 11. Keep every fact, date and action the same. Warm and respectful tone. Put what the parent needs to do, and by when, at the top. Letter: [paste a general letter or template that has no details about any child]
Tip: Use this for whole-class or whole-school letters. A letter about one child stays out of AI, even with the name removed.
Explain a term to a parent
A parent asks what a word in a report means.
Explain the term "[e.g. working memory, phonological awareness, sensory processing]" in plain English for a parent, in under 100 words. Give one everyday example of what it can look like at home and one simple thing that often helps. Do not diagnose or give medical advice.
An agenda for a review meeting
You want the meeting to end with clear actions.
Write an agenda for a 45-minute review meeting about a pupil's support, with parents and staff present. Include time for the family's view first, what is working, what isn't, agreed next steps with who does what by when, and how we'll keep in touch. Use general headings only, with no pupil details.
For teaching assistants
Quick practice questions
You have ten minutes with a small group.
Write ten quick practice questions on [topic] for a pupil in [year group] working at about [level]. Start easy and get slightly harder. Put the answers at the end. Add two ways to make any question easier if a pupil is stuck.
Calm words for a hard moment
You want consistent language across the adults in the room.
Suggest five short, calm phrases an adult could use to support a pupil who is becoming overwhelmed in class. Each under ten words, giving a choice or a next step, not a telling-off. Then give five phrases to avoid and why.
Tip: Agree the final wording with the class teacher or SENCO before using it.
Check before you use it
- Is it accurate? AI makes confident mistakes, in maths especially.
- Is it right for this pupil? You know them. The tool doesn't.
- Does it follow the strategies already agreed for them?
- Would you be happy for the family to see how it was made?
Read more from the people who set the rules
- The Department for Education's guidance on generative AI in education
- Our checklist: What never to paste into AI
- For class teachers: AI for teachers: 12 prompts