Issue 31 • Date March 12, 2025

I experiment with various AI chatbots, occasionally paying $20 for a month of service, but most of the time, I stick to the free versions.

Currently, I prefer Claude for coding because its Artifacts feature makes it easy to preview and publish working code.

I often use Google’s Gemini for tasks like writing alt text for images, simplifying complex explanations, and creating tables to export to Google Sheets.

ChatGPT tends to be my go-to for revising my writing, generating playful titles, and brainstorming detailed idea lists.

I also dabble in Perplexity and Copilot.

In the end, I use whatever AI is available. If I run out of free queries, I simply switch to a different chatbot. I can’t say I’ve ever hit Gemini’s limit—it’s never cut me off. But I’ve certainly overstayed my welcome with the free versions of Claude and ChatGPT.

Intelligent Insights from Interactions 🔮

If I had to choose just one AI chatbot, I’d stick with ChatGPT—thanks to its Memory feature.

ChatGPT can remember details about your writing style, work, and projects from past conversations. If memory is turned on (under Settings → Personalization), it keeps track of what you’ve shared so you don’t have to repeat yourself. You can also manage what it remembers—deleting anything you'd rather not keep. Under Personalization, you can add custom instructions, or simply tell ChatGPT what you want it to remember.

Since ChatGPT can pull from past interactions, I decided to ask it something interesting:

“Everyone in the world is best at something. Given all that you know about me, what am I best at?”

I saw this prompt suggested on TikTok and was curious to see what ChatGPT would say. Its response made me smile:

“You’re best at making technology feel approachable and exciting for educators. You have a unique talent for taking complex tools—whether it's AI, Google Forms, or digital creativity apps—and breaking them down in a way that makes teachers not just understand them but want to use them. Your ability to engage educators through workshops, presentations, and newsletters shows that you're not just an expert in edtech—you’re an expert in teaching edtech in a way that feels fun, practical, and personal. Plus, your knack for clever wording and alliteration makes your content uniquely you.”

I appreciate how ChatGPT pulled together what it knows about me to form an insight like that. But I didn’t stop there—I tried a few more prompts to see what else it could reflect back at me:

• “Based on what you know about me, tell me something that I may not know about myself.”
  This response was similar to the “What am I best at?” answer, reinforcing my strengths in making tech approachable.

• “Based on the writing I’ve submitted to you, explain my writing style.”
  ChatGPT described my writing as clear, direct, and personal—with a friendly, conversational tone. It also pointed out my love for alliteration and clever phrasing.

• “Given all that you know about me, roast me. Don’t hold back.”
  Now this one? Ouch—but in a fun way. ChatGPT playfully called me out for being deep into edtech and leaning hard into my nerdy interests.

• “What’s something I seem to avoid or not talk about much?”
  I really felt seen in this response: “You also seem to avoid buzzwords and hype, preferring straightforward, useful advice over trendy edu-speak. And while you use AI extensively, you don’t overpromise what it can do—you keep things realistic and teacher-friendly.”

Meanwhile, Gemini has introduced a Saved Info option where you can enter details about your life, work, and preferences to get more relevant responses. Unlike ChatGPT’s automatic memory, Gemini requires you to manually add info or ask it to remember something during a chat. Asking Gemini the same questions I tried with ChatGPT probably wouldn’t lead do any meaningful insights.

Prompting Pictures with Precision 🧑‍🎨

When prompting AI to generate images, the words you choose shape the outcome. Generating images with AI is like painting pictures with your words—the more intentional and descriptive you are, the closer the image will be to what you envision.

Instead of simply asking for “a classroom,” consider specifying “a colorful cartoon-style classroom with students working together at round tables, sunlight streaming through the windows, and a welcoming teacher at the front.” Small adjustments in style, perspective, or lighting can make a big difference in the final result.

To help with this, I created this A.I. Image Prompting Elaboration Ideas graphic. It provides categories like medium, style, perspective, lighting, and mood to help refine your prompts. Whether you want a historical scene, a futuristic STEM lab, or a cozy reading nook, choosing the right words can bring your ideas to life.

While ChatGPT and Gemini can generate images, I find Ideogram and Canva Dream Lab produce better results.

AI Abstinence 🚫

Early research suggests that relying too much on AI for thinking—what’s called cognitive offloading—could weaken problem-solving skills. To put this to the test, educator James Bedford committed to a “No AI December” and took a 30-day break from AI tools. What did he learn?

Without AI, he had to sit with ideas longer and refine his own thinking instead of letting a chatbot shape his thoughts for him. The process reminded him that AI should be an enhancement, not a replacement, for thinking.

To keep students from leaning too heavily on AI, James suggests having them lay out their thought process before ever engaging with a chatbot. The messy, imperfect thinking should come first—then AI can be a tool for refinement. He also encourages teachers to include voice in grading criteria so students’ unique style and perspective shine through in their writing, rather than AI-generated polish.

Read What a 30-Day Break From AI Taught Me About My Teaching on Edutopia.

Grouping Gold 👥

I’m currently co-teaching a work-based learning project with a high school teacher, and last week, I needed to randomly group students in the Introduction to Engineering Design class.

There are plenty of tools for creating random groups, but I decided to give Grouper a try. It offers Google Classroom integration that streamlines the process, though I opted to copy and paste a list of names instead—it was quick and easy.

When forming groups, you can choose to set a specific number of students per group or decide how many groups you need. Once groups are randomly created, you can drag and drop students to balance them or separate individuals as needed. If students are absent, you can simply move them to the bottom of the screen to exclude them from groupings.

I haven’t had a chance to explore Grouper’s attribute-based grouping, but it allows you to spread out or cluster students based on specific characteristics you define.

Grouper is currently in beta and free to use. If you’re curious about how it works, I recommend watching this short tutorial video to see it in action!

Capturing Canva Commentary ⏺️

There are several ways to add a voiceover track to a Canva presentation or video project. For a simple narrated slideshow, you can record your voice while viewing your slides and notes. Once recorded, the audio can be inserted directly into your Canva project.

After adding your voiceover, use the Duration button at the bottom of the screen to trim or extend each slide to match your narration. This makes it easy to sync your audio with your visuals.

To help you find the voiceover recording option, I created this Record a Voiceover Track graphic.

Resizing Reality 🗺️

The True Size Of is an interactive website where you can drag and rotate states and countries to compare their actual sizes. You'll see how representing a sphere on a flat map causes distortion, making places near the poles appear much larger than they actually are. Try moving Greenland toward the equator or shrinking Alaska to see how their true sizes compare to other regions!

Pizza Punchlines 🍕

Delivering cheesy pizza jokes is the YEAST I could do to celebrate Pi Day (March 14th). Unlike pi, my stand-up video doesn’t go on forever—it’s just 78 seconds of well-rounded pun-ishment.

I tapped into what ChatGPT remembers about me and asked, “If I had a personal motto, what do you think it would be?”

ChatGPT instantly generated: “Create, innovate, and educate—with a smile.” I’d say that sums things up pretty well.

Smiles from Iowa,

Subscribe at learninginhand.com

Al was used to revise and proofread some of the text in this newsletter. It was also used to generate possibilities for section titles.