Gemini in Classroom brings free AI tools and over 30 new features to educators worldwide

Gemini in Classroom: Free AI Tools to Enhance Teaching and Learning

Google is expanding access to Gemini in Classroom, a suite of AI-powered features integrated within Google Classroom. Available now at no cost for educators using Google Workspace for Education accounts, Gemini in Classroom offers over 30 tools designed to simplify routine teaching tasks and foster more engaging learning experiences.

Alongside tools for educators, new teacher-led AI experiences for students will also roll out soon, helping students learn in ways that suit their individual needs.

Boost Teaching Efficiency with AI-Powered Content Creation

Teachers can now generate lesson plans, brainstorm ideas, and customize content with the help of Gemini directly from Google Classroom. Simply input the target grade and topic to receive a first draft of a lesson plan, suggestions for relevant videos, quizzes, or hooks to kickstart lessons.

Early users report significant time savings. For example, language and robotics teacher Mariam Fan notes that Gemini "saves me hours on planning and support, fostering a more inclusive and engaging classroom." Math teacher Chris Webb praises the rubric generation feature for transforming a repetitive task into a quick process that integrates seamlessly into Classroom.

Teachers can also collaborate with Gemini using starter prompts to generate real-world examples that resonate with their students. Quizzes generated based on learning objectives can be easily exported to Google Forms for student use.

Educators interested in exploring features like AI-generated feedback for writing assignments can join the Google for Education Pilot Program’s AI track.

Teacher-Led AI Experiences for Students: NotebookLM and Gems

In the upcoming months, educators will have the ability to create interactive AI experiences for their students using NotebookLM and Gems within Classroom.

NotebookLM Study Guides and Audio Overviews

Teachers can select class resources and instantly produce interactive study guides and podcast-style audio summaries. These tools are based solely on materials provided by the educator, ensuring relevance and accuracy.

Custom AI Experts with Gems

Gems allow educators to build AI “experts” tailored to support students in specific subjects or skills. For example, a teacher can create a "Quiz me" Gem linked to a biology reading assignment to reinforce comprehension.

Classroom offers four starter Gem templates: Study partner, Quiz me, Brainstorm partner, and Real-world connector. These provide quick ways to build AI tools that encourage student engagement and deeper learning.

Educators can feature NotebookLM resources prominently on the Classwork page, making them readily accessible for extra practice and review.

Data-Driven Instruction and Differentiation Made Easier

Google Classroom will soon include new tools to help educators track student progress against learning standards and skills. Coursework can be tagged with relevant standards, and analytics dashboards will provide insight into student performance.

Initial support will include U.S. K12 national and state standards from the 1EdTech Consortium's CASE® Network 2, covering frameworks like NGSS, ISTE, and ACT. Additional countries’ standards will be added based on educator interest.

Institutions can publish custom learning standards to the CASE Network 2, ensuring their specific frameworks are supported in Classroom.

G Giovanni Benincasa from Chicago Public Schools highlights how tagging assignments to CASE® standards adds clarity and purpose to student learning, helping families support skill development more effectively.

Class Insights for Differentiated Instruction

A new “Analytics” tab in Classroom will give teachers a centralized view of student engagement and performance, including which students may need extra support. Actionable insights will also appear on the Classwork page to help teachers monitor assignment progress and send reminders.

Expanded Read Along Features

Read Along in Classroom now lets educators upload their own content or generate stories with Gemini. Students get real-time assistance from an AI reading buddy tailored to relevant material.

New reading modes include silent reading and, soon, listening mode, both supported by comprehension analytics. The library of decodable books is growing to over 100 stories, with performance tracking included. Additional languages will be supported in the coming months.

Getting Started and Additional Resources

Teachers can tag assignments with learning standards, create standard-specific rubrics, and view learning goal analytics to monitor progress. Custom stories generated by Gemini help tailor content to student needs, supported by AI-powered reading tools.

For more details on these features and others—such as expanded language support and grading improvements—educators can explore the Complete AI Training guide to new Classroom tools.