GenAISiS T.R.A.I.N. The Instructor Guide

GenAISiS T.R.A.I.N. The Instructor Guide

The GenAISiS T.R.A.I.N.  instructor guide brings together a comprehensive set of activities, guidance materials and pedagogical insights designed to support the delivery of generative artificial intelligence lessons to young people in an engaging and accessible way. The enthusiasm and capability of young learners, their creativity and curiosity, along with the engagement of families, played a central role in bringing these activities to life. Across our activities, ranging from foundational concept exploration to creative engagement, learners are encouraged to think critically, recognise opportunities and risks and develop informed, ethical perspectives on the AI technologies that are shaping our world.

Overall, the guide is designed to equip future facilitators with the tools, confidence and pedagogical strategies needed to deliver meaningful AI literacy experiences. It combines structured and playful activities with reflective practice, aiming to support the development of informed, responsible and empowered young people who can navigate and shape the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence.

Unique aspect of the work

What differentiates this work is the principle of co-creation. The programme incorporated empirical data gathered from school-based engagements and public sessions, allowing for continuous refinement of both content and delivery methods. Young participants were actively involved in shaping the learning materials, contributing to the design of narratives, visual assets and activity structures. This participatory approach highlights the authenticity and relevance of the outputs, as the activities reflect the lived experiences, concerns and perspectives of young people in relation to AI technologies. As a result, the materials move beyond abstract or purely theoretical representations, embodying a grounded understanding of how AI intersects with everyday digital practices, including issues of misinformation, bias and data privacy.

The activities were further strengthened through a multimodal design, combining visual storytelling, interactive gameplay and reflective discussion. For example, the integration of cartoon-based narratives, co-created with students, provides an accessible entry point into complex concepts, such as algorithmic bias and AI hallucinations. These narratives are linked to structured activities, which encourage learners to interrogate AI outputs, identify inaccuracies and reflect critically on the underlying mechanisms of generative systems. This reflects a deliberate pedagogical strategy to enhance both comprehension and retention.

The structured progression across the six activities also illustrates a coherent pedagogical trajectory, moving from foundational knowledge acquisition to higher-order critical and ethical reasoning. Initial activities, such as AI Fact Cards, establish core conceptual understanding, while subsequent activities progressively develop analytical skills (e.g., identifying bias and hallucinations), evaluative judgement (e.g., distinguishing human and AI-generated content), and ethical reasoning (e.g., through the AI Ethicopolis game). This scaffolded design ensures that learners not only acquire knowledge but also develop the competencies required to engage responsibly and critically with AI technologies.

Finally, the activities are explicitly aligned with national and international policy frameworks, including the Scottish Government guidelines on AI in education and broader ethical principles relating to trustworthy and responsible AI. This alignment enhances the strategic value of the project, positioning it as a relevant and timely contribution to ongoing efforts to embed AI literacy within formal and informal education systems. The team was delighted that the work was acknowledged as a trusted resource in schools by the Scottish government with its inclusion in Artificial Intelligence (AI) in schools: guidelines and guardrails - gov.scot.


Access points for the material

A full instructors’ guide including all the material that was developed as part of this project can be accessed via this link.

The four lessons’ material (videos and slides) as part of the course that was delivered can be accessed via this link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SAI_x3blpFiSnmpNZ5CMVi82ja8vEmeR?usp=drive_link


Dissemination

We presented a webinar as part of Artificial Intelligence and Multilateral Governance, delivered in collaboration with the Academic Council on the United Nations System (ACUNS).

We have also been accepted to be part of Tech Fest in May 2026 TechFest in Aberdeen and, so far,  we have presented our tools and resources to different primary schools in Aberdeen.

Video testimonials of participants can be accessed via this link.

Looking into the future

We would like to translate the resources and the instructors guide to other languages. We would be delighted if anyone interested gets in touch to discuss this idea and share thoughts for potential routes for funding and collaboration: tomaddieonline@gmail.com 

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Responsible AI UK for their support of this work, and to Aberdeen Science Centre for their collaboration. We also extend our gratitude to the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals in Scotland (CILIPS) and the School Librarians, Emma Grey (Forfar Academy), Diane Scott (Hazlehead Academy) and Ioannis Panayiotakis (Eastwood High School) for their valuable contributions and support throughout this project. Sincere thanks to the families who took part in the activities and whose engagement made this project possible, as well as to the young people whose creative talent originally brought this project to life.

Thank you to Mr Tim Marsh for allowing us to use the beautiful art piece ‘God of the Upper World’ and to Ms Alexandra Gapski (Rowan Lewgalon AI Art) for the fascinating art piece of the jaguar.

Finally, thank you so much to Anthony Lawson from Wolf & Thistle (Email: hello@wolfandthistle.co.uk, Instagram: @wolf.thistle) who, so generously donated their creative expertise to produce the project dissemination videos.


This research was supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council [grant number EP/Y009800/1], through funding from Responsible Ai UK (RAI-SK-BID-00024 & CC-00111). The author gratefully acknowledges their support. This project makes use of animated tools developed by Plotagon https://www.plotagon.com/. We gratefully acknowledge Plotagon for their support and for enabling the creative adaptation of their characters and scene assets within this educational material. All Plotagon-related content is used with permission and in accordance with agreed terms, with full respect for the intellectual property of Plotagon.