In every lesson, some pupils are ready to move on.
Some are stuck but don’t say anything.
And one teacher can only be in one place at a time.

Even with great teaching, that gap’s always there.

Open Use is Willow’s most open-ended and flexible activity — designed to help with that exact problem. Below are two practical ways teachers are using Open Use in their classrooms.

1. Exploring at their own pace… while building AI literacy

Not all learning happens through direct instruction. Sometimes pupils need time to make sense of what they’ve been taught — to ask questions, test their understanding, and work out what they do and don’t yet know.

Open Use is designed for those moments.

Used deliberately, it becomes a low-stakes space where pupils can:

ask questions without fear
revisit ideas they didn’t fully grasp the first time
check their understanding and uncover gaps

In these lessons, Open Use is the activity.

For example:

“We’ve spent the last two lessons studying the causes of the French Revolution. Today, you can use Willow to explore anything you’re still unsure about, or anything you want to understand more deeply. I’ll put a few prompts on the board — but how you explore is up to you.”

Pupils take ownership of what they explore and the questions they ask, which naturally drives deeper engagement. They can check, challenge and refine their understanding at their own pace.

Crucially, they’re also learning how to use AI well - asking better questions, checking their thinking, and engaging critically with support rather than passively receiving answers.

That matters. This is the world pupils are growing up in — and Open Use lets you teach those skills deliberately, safely and in line with good pedagogy.

2. Support while pupils work

You run your lesson as normal. You set the task — a worksheet, writing task or group work.

The difference? When pupils get stuck, instead of waiting with a hand up, they can ask Willow.

Willow won’t give them the answer. It’s trained to support thinking, helping pupils to:

clarify what the question is really asking
surface and address misconceptions
think through next steps and strategies

While that’s happening, you’re free to focus on the pupils who need your human support most.

You also gain clear insight into which pupils are asking for help, what they’re struggling with and patterns across the class (common strengths and gaps), making it easier than ever to plan what comes next based on what really happened in your lesson.

You don’t need to change how you teach to use Open Use. You just give pupils somewhere to turn when you can’t be everywhere at once.

If that sounds useful, it’s ready to try - book a call.