AI Unlocked: Practical Skills for Beginners

AI Unlocked: Practical Skills for Beginners

Type: Erasmus+ Training Course for Adult Learners, Educators, General Public 

Duration: 5 days (4-6 hours per day) 

Location: Vilnius, Lithuania 

Target Audience: Teachers, Adult Educators, NGO Staff, School Leaders, Adult Learners, General Public 

Focus: Digital skills, Artificial Intelligence, Creativity, and Productivity with AI

Course Objectives

• Build foundational understanding of Artificial Intelligence and its applications in education and everyday life.

• Enable participants to confidently use AI tools for writing, design, planning, and communication.

• Empower educators to boost lesson design and student engagement using AI-enhanced content.

• Provide practical AI tools to streamline research, content creation, and task organization.

• Equip learners with a personalized AI toolkit for continued use after the course.

Course Structure

Day 1 – Meet Your AI Co-Pilot (4-6 hours)

• Topics:

  • What is AI and its role in everyday life?

  • Exploring chatbots and smart assistants

  • How to write clear, effective prompts

• Activities:

  • Interactive Icebreaker: “Where is AI in your life?” – Participants share AI examples they’ve encountered.

  • Tool Walkthrough: Live demonstration of ChatGPT and Perplexity – differences, interface, what each is good for.

  • Prompt Writing Workshop: Participants practice short prompts and improve them for clarity and tone.

  • Hands-on Lab:

    • Task 1: Use ChatGPT to summarize a news article.

    • Task 2: Use Perplexity to ask a factual question and evaluate the sources.

    • Task 3: Draft a professional email or lesson description using AI.

  • Reflection & Save: Save best prompt examples + results in a shared folder or Notion space.

• Tools Used:

  • ChatGPT

  • Perplexity

  • Grok (optional)

• Output:

  • Personal chatbot assistant with 3–5 go-to prompt templates, uploaded to Padlet.

Day 2 – From Idea to Image (4-6 hours)

• Topics:

  • Text-to-image generation

  • Visual content for class, events, or social media

  • AI design support for non-designers

• Activities:

  • Visual Brainstorm: Discuss types of visuals educators/staff need.

  • Live Demos:

    • Canva Magic Design: Turn words into layouts.

    • Leonardo.AI and DiffusionBee: Generate visual scenes from simple prompts.

  • Hands-on Creation:

    • Task 1: Create a class event poster using AI-generated layout.

    • Task 2: Create 2 images with Leonardo.AI (e.g., “joyful classroom”).

    • Task 3: Combine visuals into an Instagram/Facebook post, using ChatGPT for captioning.

  • Pair Feedback: Share visuals on Padlet and offer peer feedback.

  • Export & Organize: Download visuals and save them into personal folders.

• Tools Used:

  • Canva (Magic Design)

  • Leonardo.AI

  • DiffusionBee

  • Manus AI

• Output:

  • 2–3 creative visual assets ready for publication or classroom use.

Day 3 – Search Less, Learn More (4-6 hours)

• Topics:

  • AI for smart research and academic writing

  • AI summarization and synthesis

  • Drafting professional content with AI

• Activities:

  • Tool Tour: Difference between Google, Elicit, and Consensus.

  • Case Simulation: Research a small topic using Elicit.org, Consensus, and Notebook LM.

  • Hands-on Research:

    • Task 1: Use Elicit.org to gather supporting arguments or academic sources.

    • Task 2: Use Consensus to compare summarized study results.

    • Task 3: Use Notebook LM to build a personal knowledge space and draft a short write-up.

  • Writing Challenge: Draft a one-page article, blog post, motivation letter, or professional bio.

  • Editing with AI: Use ChatGPT to rephrase, proofread, or optimize clarity.

  • Peer Share: Swap writing pieces and give structured feedback using AI tools.

• Tools Used:

  • Elicit.org

  • Consensus

  • Notebook LM

• Output:

  • One polished piece of writing (article, letter, or bio) with source links and AI edits.

Day 4 – Your AI Productivity Partner (4-6 hours)

• Topics:

  • AI-assisted planning and scheduling

  • Managing tasks and routines with AI

  • Simple automation tools for beginners

• Activities:

  • Scenario Setup: Organize a school week, trip, or course using AI tools.

  • Live Tool Demo:

    • ChatGPT for planning daily schedules or lesson structures.

    • IFTTT for beginner-friendly automation.

  • Hands-on Planning Session:

    • Task 1: Create a 5-day plan for a real event or weekly routine using ChatGPT.

    • Task 2: Build a personalized to-do list with recurring tasks in Notion or Google Sheets.

    • Task 3: Optional – Automate a basic workflow using IFTTT.

  • Group Reflection: Discuss how these tools could save 30 minutes of work per week.

  • Save & Export: Export planners and automations into toolkits.

• Tools Used:

  • ChatGPT

  • IFTTT

  • Google Colab (optional)

• Output:

  • Personal AI-assisted planner or tracker (editable, reusable).

Day 5 – Your AI Backpack (4-6 hours)

• Topics:

  • Wrapping up: Tool review & best-fit use cases

  • Creating your personalized toolkit

  • Presentation and sharing of individual workflows

• Activities:

  • Toolkit Mapping: Reflect on which tools work for which tasks and how to use them.

  • Notion Workshop: Build a personalized dashboard or AI hub to store prompts, tools, and favorite outputs.

  • Final Project Time:

    • Option A: Combine visual + text + planning into a final mini-project (e.g., campaign or course page).

    • Option B: Refine a previous day’s product and present it.

  • Show & Share: Present your favorite tool and explain its real-life application (max 2 minutes).

  • Feedback Circle: Reflect on what you loved, what you’ll continue using, and what’s still confusing.

• Tools Used:

  • Notion

  • ChatGPT

  • Canva

• Output:

  • Final AI dashboard (Notion or other)

  • Final mini-project combining learned tools

  • Shared toolkit & prompt sheet for future use

Additional Information

• Methods Used:

  • Hands-on labs, peer collaboration, step-by-step tool walkthroughs, direct creation tasks

• Certificate:

  • Certificate of attendance aligned with Erasmus+ requirements

  • Europass-compatible learning outcomes available upon request

Expected Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Understand the basic concepts of AI and prompt design.

• Use AI tools for writing, design, research, and planning.

• Choose the right tool for the task (image, text, plan, research).

• Apply AI to their work as educators or project leaders.

• Continue learning using their customized AI toolkit.

Please note that each program can be changed and adapted to the group's needs. The course duration can be made shorter or longer, and the content may also be adjusted. All the details can be discussed via email at info@ivaigo.lt.