AI Tools for Inclusive Schools
Welcome to The Universal Sandpit. A collection of AI-powered inclusive education tools designed to support educators and students.
Whole Picture
Some students build the big picture from the small bits. Answer three questions before your lesson, and watch the picture come together as you go.
Sandpit Talk
Chat through inclusion challenges with AI Craig.
Strengths and Interests
Find ways to incorporate student strengths and interests into your teaching.
Task Analysis
Analyse tasks for executive function demands and get scaffolding ideas.
Reflective Lens
Generate neurodiversity-affirming questions to reflect on challenging situations.
UDL Lesson Planner
Generate inclusive lesson plans using Universal Design for Learning principles.
Visual Supports Planner
Get ideas for using visual teaching resources in your lessons.
Differentiation Levels
Create an assessment rubric with five levels of instruction.
Skill Chaining
Generate forward or backward chaining steps for teaching skills.
Assignment Helper
Turn assignment instructions into a clear, structured plan.
Social Script Generator
Create social narratives to support students with daily goals.
Lesson Companion
Upload or paste a lesson and get a one-page guide of neurodiversity-affirming supports.
Step Cards
Turn any lesson into a printable, laminate-ready visual sequence that supports task focus at the desk.
New Day
Describe a repeat challenging behaviour and get a fresh plan: what it may be telling you, what to teach next, and what to try tomorrow.
Floating Thoughts
Break big tasks into small chunks and organise them your way.
Student Multi-Tool
Get help with school tasks, concepts, or social situations.
First Strings
Gentle prompts to help you find the first thread when starting a new task.
Concept Explainer
Get any concept explained in simple, age-appropriate language.
Spoon Theory Planner
Plan your day by balancing tasks and self-care activities.
Pathway
Name how you're feeling, choose where you want to go, and find practical steps to get there.
These tools use AI to generate ideas and strategies to support a few common inclusive learning needs. They are experimental - see how you go and get in touch with me if you have any thoughts or feedback. Please use your own experience, insight and ethics when using them: results will vary. Tinker and play. I also have more resources for you to explore below.
13 practical tools for teachers, 6 unique tools for students. The Sandpit toolkit, now on iPhone and iPad.
Download on the App Store →Talk through a classroom inclusion challenge with pixel Craig — and leave with a five-step plan.
Download on the App Store →iPad Kit Bag
iPad apps for inclusive classrooms, sorted by what they do. Every app checked against the Australian App Store, plus the accessibility features already built into every iPad. Fill a kit, share it, print it, or turn it into a classroom plan.
Pixel Wash
A tiny pixel canvas with a big soft brush. Wash colour on, watch it bloom, save the film.
Galah
A 1982 speech chip with a face. Type, bend the pitch, and hear it sing your words back.
Word Space
Type a word and watch its family bloom in 3D, placed by meaning. Name your own axes.
Sand Table
Push sand into hills and valleys with your fingers and watch the projected map follow: water, plains, peaks, contours.
Craig Smith
Craig is a teacher and consultant for special education, accessibility and technology. He is currently a national manager of an Australian autism education project and has in recent years delivered seminars in Dubai, United Nations workshops in Shanghai, masterclasses in South Africa and Singapore, and speaking tours of New Zealand. Outside of education he is a recognised composer, author and photographer. Craig lives in Hamilton (Newcastle, NSW) with his wife and two children.
Human-Centred Approaches to AI
Supporting neurodivergent minds in the classroom. Positive Schools.
Strengths-Based Play and Learning
Using AI to support inclusive creativity. Tasmania.
Rhythm, Insight, Play
A model for supporting executive functioning with AI. TEDxCooksHill.
Autism and AAC
Live webcast from Apple Sydney with AssistiveWare on AAC and language acquisition.
Sensory Audit for Excursions
Using ChatGPT and Apple Maps for accessibility planning on school trips.
Field.Notes
Examples of how to use agentic coding for accessible design.
The Human Bit
Parent Teacher Interview with Joshua MacWilliams on AI, education, creativity and the human side of learning.
AI and Autism
Interview for 'World Autism Understanding Month' on A Different Brilliant with Madeline Lobsy — full transcript and audio.
Walking and Talking with AI
Interview with Jenny Marchant on ABC Radio about conversing with AI.
AI and Executive Functioning
The Loop Podcast with Ben Woodrow-Hirst discussing neurodivergent experiences.
AI and the Neurodivergent Brain
Neurodivergent Mates with Will Wheeler on AI strategies, privacy, and chatbots.
Quarterly Substack
My free journal exploring AI, neurodiversity, psychogeography, and philosophy.
Rhythm, Insight, Play
AI-fuelled routines organised around executive functioning, trend analysis, and creative experimentation.
Prompts and Projects
A library of generative AI prompts to support educators across different domains of inclusive teaching.
AI for Neurodivergent Teens
Resources for secondary students transitioning to university or TAFE, supporting executive functioning needs.
Ten Inclusive Strategies
A practical toolbox of inclusive education strategies for pre-service teachers.
Designing for Human Variability
Inclusive UDL classroom design.
Word Space
Type a word and explore its rhymes and meanings in a 3D space.
Generative AI for Smarter Studying
Practical ways to use AI to plan your week, get started on work, understand difficult readings, prepare for exams and write in your own voice. From a talk for the MINDS Student Network at the American University of Beirut.
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AI Diversity Compass: A Rewilding ProposalLinkedIn→
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AI Tools for Inclusive Schools: Article and TutorialSubstack→
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Creating Custom Chat Bots for Inclusive EducationLinkedIn→
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Neurodivergent UX Designs for Apple IntelligenceLinkedIn→
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Inclusive Futures: Three ConversationsMedium→
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The Future of AccessibilityMedium→
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A Spectrum of Real: Augmented Reality and Social ScaffoldingBook Chapter→
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Universal Design for Learning: A Practical IntroductionYouTube→
Say Hello
Questions, feedback, or just want to connect? Drop me a message and I'll get back to you.
Keep the Tools Running
I'm funding these AI tools from my own pocket because I want them to be accessible to everyone. If they stop working for the month, it's because I've hit my personal budget limit. Any donation helps keep these tools running longer — if not for yourself, then for others who benefit from them.