Celebrating educators’ creativity this Teacher Appreciation Week

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Many of us hold memories of educators who showed us our hidden potential and saw us for who we could become. Teacher Appreciation Week offers us a meaningful opportunity to celebrate how these dedicated professionals guide students toward discovering their purpose.

For 16 years, I've grown as an educator, first as a middle-school band director, then as an elementary music teacher in Arkansas. Today, I'm honored to continue that journey as the 2026 Arkansas Teacher of the Year. This path has been a constant reminder that we as teachers must be lifelong learners ourselves, and I'm inspired daily by my colleagues' ability to make learning an exciting and engaging experience for their students.

With the help of new tools, we can engage our students in ways that weren't possible before. Earlier this year, Google introduced me and my 55 fellow State Teachers of the Year to vibe coding with Gemini. With just a few prompts, I was able to create a tool that helps my students with complex learning needs create music based on their intuitive physical movements detected by a built-in webcam.

Witnessing my students explore music in a new way brought joy to my heart, and gave these students greater opportunity for musical independence. This project shows how AI can create a bridge for every student, regardless of physical boundaries, to explore music.

As AI grows, it's understandable to worry that it might create a distance between us and our students. But I have found the opposite to be true. AI actually expanded my reach in the music room.

This Teacher Appreciation Week, I celebrate the endless creativity of my fellow educators with this message: While nothing can replicate the love and connection we make with our students on a daily basis, you are the creative director of your classroom. Tools like AI are most powerful when placed in your hands. I hope my story inspires fellow educators to vibe code a classroom tool of their own with this step-by-step guidance. I can't wait to see what you build.

• Learning & Education