Build Your Own Chat-Venture: Teacher-Guided AI Activities for Students

This article is written by ChatGPT based on webinar transcript and participant exit tickets.

June 4, 2026

One of the biggest concerns educators have about AI is simple: Will students use it to do the thinking for them?

During his Camp Plug and Play 20.0 session, "Build Your Own Chat-Venture: Teacher-Guided AI Activities for Students," Tony Vincent flipped that concern on its head. Instead of showing how AI can provide answers, he demonstrated how teachers can design AI experiences that guide students toward answers through questioning, coaching, role-playing, and reflection.

The result? A session that left many educators rethinking what AI-powered learning can look like.

As one participant put it:

"I used to think AI would only give students the answer, but now I know that there is a guided learning feature which scaffolds the learning for the students." - Erica Warnke, 8th Grade ELA

Start with Guided Learning

One of the session's biggest revelations was Gemini's Guided Learning mode.

Rather than immediately solving a problem, Guided Learning acts more like a tutor. When students ask a question, the AI responds with prompts, hints, examples, and follow-up questions. It helps learners think through a problem instead of simply delivering an answer.

Tony demonstrated this by entering a math problem into Gemini. In standard mode, Gemini solved it immediately. In Guided Learning mode, Gemini responded with a question and began coaching the user through the process.

Participants quickly saw the potential.

"It was great to learn that Gemini has the ability to guide the lesson instead of just giving the students the answer." - Abby Sabato, Dean of Students

"Guided Learning mode and similar features on chatbots will be very useful in my tutoring sessions with students." - Karen McMahon, Tutoring Center

For educators worried about academic integrity, Guided Learning offers a powerful middle ground between banning AI and letting it become a shortcut.

Meet Gemini Gems

The session then introduced Gemini Gems, custom AI assistants built inside Gemini.

A Gem is essentially a chatbot with teacher-created instructions. Teachers can decide:

  • What the AI should teach

  • How it should interact

  • What role it should play

  • What rules it must follow

  • How conversations should begin and end

Instead of generic AI responses, Gems follow teacher-designed guidelines.

For example, a Gem might:

  • Act as a confused student who needs tutoring

  • Conduct a mock interview

  • Simulate a historical figure

  • Guide students through writing revisions

  • Coach learners through math problems

  • Practice language conversations

Participants were particularly excited about the flexibility.

"Gemini Gems allow you to build custom, shareable AI tutors." - Malachi Daniels, 3rd Grade

"You can use Gems in Gemini to build unique, custom experiences for your students that follow the guidelines and content that you determine for them." - Angela Rohde, High School Media Specialist

The Secret Formula: Goal, Format, Role, Flow, and Rules

Throughout the session, Tony highlighted a framework for creating what he calls a Chat-Venture.

Every successful AI learning experience includes five key ingredients:

Goal

What should students learn or practice?

Be specific about grade level, standards, and desired outcomes.

Format

What type of experience will students have?

Possibilities include:

  • Tutor sessions

  • Interviews

  • Escape rooms

  • Debates

  • Guided tours

  • Game shows

  • Choose-your-own-adventure stories

  • Hot-and-cold guessing games

Role

Who is the AI?

The chatbot might become:

  • A student

  • A detective

  • A scientist

  • A game show host

  • A historical figure

  • An alien explorer

  • A debate opponent

One favorite tip: let students choose the AI's personality. Giving learners options such as friendly, serious, or sarcastic increases engagement and ownership.

Flow

How does the conversation unfold?

Teachers can map out:

  • The opening interaction

  • The sequence of questions

  • Reflection opportunities

  • The final wrap-up

Rules

What guardrails should the AI follow?

Examples include:

  • Ask only one question at a time

  • Never provide direct answers

  • Stay in character

  • Keep responses brief

  • Focus only on the target topic

These rules transform AI from an answer machine into a learning partner.

Learn from Existing Gems

Rather than starting from scratch, participants explored examples from educator Eric Curts' collection at EduGems.ai.

Teachers studied both the Gems themselves and the instructions behind them.

This proved valuable because participants could see exactly how effective Gems are constructed.

Many discovered ready-to-use tools for:

  • Reading support

  • Language learning

  • Career exploration

  • Debate preparation

  • Writing feedback

  • Math coaching

  • Reflection activities

As one attendee noted:

"I didn't know much about Gems, but now I know I can create them easily for our teachers and students." - Joel Wisser, Technology Integration

Beyond Gemini: MagicSchool and SchoolAI

The session also explored alternatives for schools that use other AI platforms.

Tony demonstrated:

  • MagicSchool Rooms

  • SchoolAI Spaces

  • Teacher dashboards that monitor student interactions

  • Feedback systems that encourage learning rather than answer-giving

Many educators appreciated seeing options that work even when Gemini is unavailable for students.

"The ideas generated from this session I can apply to other platforms that are not allowed." - RosaMaria, Instructional Coach

Big Takeaway: AI Can Be Designed to Support Thinking

Throughout the session, participants explored how tools like Gemini Gems, MagicSchool Rooms, and SchoolAI Spaces can be intentionally designed to guide learning rather than simply provide answers.

As Rosemary Jakub summarized:

"I used to think AI chatbots would just give students the answers and cut out critical thinking, but now I know that by intentionally designing their Goal, Format, Role, Flow, and Rules, we can create custom 'Chat-Ventures' that scaffold thinking and act as step-by-step tutors."

And perhaps Wendy Cornacchio captured the practical classroom impact best:

"Instead of just answering questions, AI can now be customized to act as a safe, structured co-teacher."

For many participants, that shift in perspective opened up new possibilities for using AI to support instruction, personalization, and student engagement.