Plan for Talk - Using AI to Build Better Group Tasks in Less Time
A practical guide to using AI to create structured, high-impact group tasks that build talk, thinking and collaboration.
Welcome to AI for Teachers, a 12-part series designed to help you plan smarter, teach better, and make your workload more manageable. Whether you’re new to AI or already exploring what it can do, this series will guide you step by step with real examples, practical tools, and research that matters.
🧭 This is not the only way to use AI in education; the possibilities are endless. This post is simply designed to show you one approach that might work for you, your learners, and your setting.
🧪 In this post, we’re focusing on converting individual tasks into structured group routines using cooperative learning strategies like Kagan. These structures increase engagement, deepen thinking, and improve peer accountability, but creating them from scratch takes time. With AI, you can design collaborative tasks in minutes, giving you more time to focus on modelling, questioning, and feedback.
Why This Matters: From Research to Practice
💡 Spencer Kagan – Cooperative Learning (2009)
Kagan structures increase accountability, interaction, and individual responsibility. They help every student participate meaningfully in group work.
How AI helps: With the right prompt, AI can instantly reformat solo tasks into clear peer routines with defined roles and turn-taking rules.
💡 Robert Slavin – Cooperative Learning Theory (1995)
Positive interdependence and structured collaboration significantly increase achievement and motivation.
How AI helps: By removing the burden of design, AI empowers teachers to embed these structures regularly without adding to workload.
💡 Lev Vygotsky – Social Constructivism
Students learn best in the Zone of Proximal Development, especially when supported by peers acting as more knowledgeable others.
How AI helps: Group structures like Rally Coach and Think-Pair-Share provide the scaffolding for peer-led support that accelerates learning.
🔍 A quick note on purpose: Not all group work is collaborative learning. Structure is the difference. Without it, some students hide while others dominate. With it, everyone has a role—and AI can help you build that structure in seconds.
Step-by-Step: Use AI to Create Collaborative Group Tasks
Let’s walk through how a Year 6 teacher used AI to convert a solo comprehension task into a high-impact Think-Pair-Share routine using a clear prompt and a trusted Kagan structure.
Step 1 – Start with a Task You Already Use
Start with something simple, maybe a written response, a problem-solving exercise, or an open-ended quiz. It should already be aligned to your curriculum intent.
Why this matters: Starting with an existing task means you’re not adding planning time, just enhancing what’s already working.
What to watch for:
✅ Choose a task with flexible or open responses
✅ Tasks that invite discussion or debate work best
❌ Avoid tasks with binary or factual answers only (e.g. retrieval quizzes)
Step 2 – Match the Task to a Kagan Structure or Collaborative Approach
Different collaborative structures suit different thinking goals. Choosing the right one helps AI build a task that’s structured, not just social.
Not all collaborative tasks serve the same purpose. Different Kagan structures are designed to support different types of thinking. The key is to pick the structure that best fits what you want your students to do with the content.
Here are four common task types and the structures that work best for each:
If you’re brainstorming ideas or generating quick thoughts, Rally Robin is ideal. It gets all voices heard in rapid succession and builds energy around divergent thinking.
If you’re aiming to deepen comprehension, encourage discussion, or surface misconceptions, Think-Pair-Share works brilliantly. It allows for private thinking, peer dialogue, and public sharing—perfect for building confidence and clarity.
For tasks where students are practising writing or constructing extended responses, Round Table is a strong fit. It allows students to contribute one sentence or idea at a time, encouraging shared ownership of the task.
If your lesson includes problem-solving, revision, or skills practice, try Rally Coach. In this structure, one partner solves while the other coaches and checks, then they switch roles—supporting metacognition and peer feedback.
By choosing the structure to match the goal, your group work becomes focused and purposeful rather than just cooperative.
Why this matters: Matching structure to task makes collaboration purposeful and predictable for learners.
What to watch for:
✅ Choose one structure and explain it clearly
✅ Ensure learners understand their role and turn
❌ Avoid unstructured “group work” with unclear expectations
Step 3 – Use AI to Convert the Task
Now prompt AI to rewrite the task using your chosen Kagan structure. Ask it to build in clear instructions, defined roles, and student-friendly outputs.
Why this matters: This is where AI becomes your co-designer. It automates the structure so you can focus on delivery and adaptation.
What to watch for:
✅ Include student-friendly language and clear steps
✅ Add role definitions (e.g. speaker, recorder, coach)
✅ Build in output expectations—summary, response, chart
Sample prompt:
“Here is an independent comprehension task for Year 6 English. Please convert it into a Think-Pair-Share task using the Kagan structure. Include instructions for each phase, define roles, and describe how students should record their shared answer.”
💡 Want to level up? Try this follow-up:
“Now differentiate the same task for three levels of readiness. Keep the structure but adjust vocabulary and support.”
Step 4 – Edit and Adapt for Your Classroom
Review the AI output. Tweak for your students, context and classroom language. Add scaffolds or visuals as needed.
Why this matters: You know your students best. AI gives you a draft; your professional judgment turns it into a great task.
What to watch for:
✅ Adjust tone and vocabulary for age or EAL learners
✅ Check timing fits your lesson structure
✅ Add any sentence starters, images or worked examples
Examples across subjects:
• KS3 Science: Convert hypothesis-writing into a Rally Coach routine for peer coaching
• KS4 Geography: Use Round Table to co-construct case study summaries
• Primary PE: Try Rally Robin to name and demonstrate skills in small teams
• KS2 Maths: Use Think-Pair-Share to discuss different ways to solve a multi-step word problem
Step 5 – Save and Reuse the Format
Once you’ve got a great example, save it. You can ask AI to replicate the format for new topics or tasks in future lessons.
Why this matters: This is where time-saving compounds. One prompt becomes a reusable framework.
What to watch for:
✅ Store by subject, year, and structure type
✅ Build a “collaboration task bank” for your department
✅ Use the same structure weekly for fluency
Challenge: Step It Up
📝 Convert a solo task – Pick something from this week’s lesson. Ask AI to rewrite it using Think-Pair-Share or another Kagan structure.
🤖 Refine with a follow-up – Prompt AI to add scaffolds for EAL, embed peer feedback steps, or stretch the challenge.
📂 Start your collaboration bank – Save and tag your output. Build a growing collection of group tasks for future use.
📚 Resources to Support You
🆓 Free Resource
Kagan structure converter + editable group task examples
Includes Think-Pair-Share, Rally Coach, and Round Table templates you can adapt and use straight away.
🔐 Paid Subscriber Exclusive
AI-Generated Group Task Bank + Editable Kagan Planner
A complete pack of AI-ready tasks across subjects and phases, each structured for peer accountability and classroom delivery.
🎓 Available in your subscriber dashboard
💬 Reflect and Share
How often do you reuse your best solo tasks by converting them into collaborative formats? Could AI help you increase peer talk, deepen thinking, and still save time?
Try it this week—then tag a colleague and share what you created.
AI for Teachers – Blog Series
You’re currently reading Post 6 in the AI for Teachers series – a 12-part guide to help you plan smarter, teach better, and save time with real-world AI strategies.
You are here:
1. Planning with Purpose – AI and the Curriculum Map
2. Designing for Progression – Spot Gaps and Next Steps
3. Localise Your Curriculum – Adapting Content with AI
4. From Idea to Impact – Planning Lessons with AI
5. Stretch and Scaffold – Differentiated Tasks with AI
6. AI-Powered Kagan and Collaboration Tasks – Use AI to turn solo tasks into structured group learning with maximum impact
6. Picture It – Visuals, Diagrams and Dual Coding with AI
7. Formative in a Flash – Low-Stakes Checks with AI
8. Mastery Matters – Designing Summative Assessments
9. Feedback Fast – Personalised Marking with AI
10. Data Talks – Analyse Student Work and Trends with AI
11. The AI Planning Workflow – From Intent to Impact
📅 Coming Next:
Picture It – Visuals, Diagrams and Dual Coding with AI
Discover how to use AI to create custom diagrams, labelled images, and concept maps that boost comprehension—especially for visual learners and EAL pupils.