AI in the Classroom - Daily
Jim Bentley on AI, Curiosity, and the Classroom as a Laboratory
21 July 2026 30:21 Dan Cogan-Drew
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About this episode
In this episode we speak with Jim Bentley, a fifth- and sixth-grade teacher in Elk Grove, California, who is entering his 31st year in the classroom. We examine how Jim has begun using AI with students.
Topics covered:
- The classroom as a laboratory for curiosity, experimentation, and productive mistakes
- How project-based learning shaped Jim’s teaching philosophy
- An AI image-generation project connected to Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo
- Prompt writing, revision, and healthy skepticism toward AI-generated results
- Media literacy, lateral reading, and fact-checking AI responses
- The difference between using AI as a productivity tool and using it as a learning tool
- What it means for students to do “real work,” not merely “schoolwork”
- Rubric design, teacher judgment, and the risk of overvaluing polished final products
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