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Getting Started with Gemini

Essential information for educators beginning their journey with Google Gemini.

🔗

Open The Full Document

Access the complete, unabridged guide in Google Docs.

🔗 Open Document

🔒 Privacy & Compliance

Protect student data - Follow these rules EVERY time

🔑 CHECK YOUR LOGIN

❌ WRONG

jsmith@gmail.com

Personal account = NO protection

✅ CORRECT

jsmith@ssdmo.org

Work account = FERPA protected

👁 QUICK CHECK: What account am I using?

  • I SEE THIS: Top right shows @gmail.com or personal email
  • I DO THIS: Click profile → Switch to work account → Look for @SSDMO.ORG or @ssd.k12.mo.us
  • I SEE THIS: "Gemini" logo with colored sparkle ✨
  • I DO THIS: You're in the right place! Now check your account.
📜 BEFORE EVERY PROMPT - Quick Visual Check
  • Account shows @ssd.k12.mo.us (NOT personal email)
  • Using "Student A" or "my student" — NO real names
  • NO birthdates, addresses, or ID numbers typed
  • NOT pasting full IEP documents into chat
  • Describing needs generically, not specific students

🚨 WHAT TO TYPE - Visual Examples

⚠ USE PII SAFELY

If using PII like names, DOBs, or IDs, you must be logged into your official SSD Gemini account.

"Write IEP goals for Johnny Smith, DOB 3/15/2015..."

This is only safe inside your @ssd.k12.mo.us account!

✅ SAFE — Type this instead

"Write IEP goals for a 3rd grader with autism who struggles with writing and needs visual supports"

✅ Generic description = Safe AND more useful!

🚀 TRY THIS NOW

"Create a behavior tracking chart for a 5th grader who frequently leaves their seat without permission"

💡 Notice: No name, no school, no identifying info — just the grade and behavior!

What NOT To Do

Vague prompts = Weak results. See the difference!

❌ VAGUE PROMPT — Weak Result

You typed: "Make it easier"

Gemini responds: "I'd be happy to help! Could you tell me what you'd like me to make easier? Please provide more details about the content, the audience, and what format you need."

⚠ Gemini doesn't know WHO, WHAT, or HOW — so it asks for clarification

✅ SPECIFIC PROMPT — Useful Result

You typed: "Adapt this to 2nd grade reading level with visual supports and shorter sentences"

Gemini responds: "[Immediately provides adapted content at the right level with pictures and simple language]"

✅ Specific details = Gemini can actually help!

💡 THE SPECIFICITY FORMULA

👤

WHO

Grade, disability, needs

📜

WHAT

Goal, lesson, email

HOW

Format, level, length

🌐

WHY

Purpose, use case

Include 3-4 of these in EVERY prompt for better results!

📈 MORE TRANSFORMATIONS

🚀 TRY THIS NOW

"Create a social story about raising your hand for a 4th grader with autism. Use simple sentences, include 5 steps, and add picture descriptions."

💡 See how specific details get you exactly what you need!

📚 AI Glossary

Essential terms for getting started with AI tools

📖 BASIC TERMS

Term Definition
Prompt The instruction or question you type to the AI. Better prompts = better results. Example: "Create a visual schedule for a student with autism"
Output / Response What the AI generates after you submit a prompt. Can be text, images, code, or documents.
Iterate Refining your prompt or asking follow-up questions to improve the output. Example: "Make it simpler"
Context Background information that helps the AI understand your needs. Example: "I teach 3rd grade, my student has dyslexia..."
Token The unit AI uses to process text. Longer conversations use more tokens and may hit limits.

🍀 GEMINI FEATURES

Feature Description
Gem A saved custom AI assistant with pre-loaded instructions. Create once, use forever. Example: "IEP Goal Writer Gem"
Canvas A visual workspace where you and Gemini can create and edit documents together in real-time.
Extensions Connections to other Google services (Drive, Docs, Gmail) that let Gemini access your files.
Deep Research Gemini's ability to search the web and compile comprehensive reports on a topic.
Multimodal AI that can understand and generate multiple types of content: text, images, audio, code.

🧠 AI CONCEPTS

Concept Explanation
Hallucination When AI generates information that sounds real but is actually incorrect. Always verify important facts!
Large Language Model (LLM) The technology behind AI chatbots. Trained on massive amounts of text to predict helpful responses.
Training Data The information used to teach an AI. Gemini was trained on books, websites, and other text.
Temperature How creative vs. predictable the AI's responses are. Higher = more creative, Lower = more consistent.
Fine-tuning Customizing an AI for specific tasks. Gems are a simple form of fine-tuning.
💡 REMEMBER
  • Prompt = Your question or instruction
  • Output = AI's response
  • Iterate = Keep refining until it's right
  • Hallucination = AI made something up — always verify!