What is Aila?
Aila is an AI lesson assistant from Oak National Academy, the UK body that provides free curriculum resources for schools. It is built for teachers and draws on Oak's national curriculum-aligned content, with the aim of cutting the time it takes to plan lessons. Oak describes its AI experiments as freely available to teachers.
To create a lesson, you start with a learning outcome and Aila builds a lesson plan, slide deck, quizzes and a worksheet step by step. You stay in control throughout: you can add or remove content, lower the reading age, change the context or ask for different activities, then download editable files. A second tool creates teaching materials such as glossaries, tasks and quizzes for a lesson you have already planned. Aila is in beta, it cannot create images or diagrams, and Oak notes it can make mistakes and is stronger in some subjects than others.
Main Features
- Builds full lessons from a learning outcome
- Lesson plan, slides, quizzes and worksheet in one flow
- Adjust reading age, context and activities as you go
- Creates glossaries, tasks and quizzes for existing lessons
- Downloads editable resources
- Based on Oak's curriculum-aligned content
How to Get Started with Aila
- Go to labs.thenational.academy and sign in.
- Choose Create a lesson or Create teaching materials.
- Describe your learning outcome or the material you need.
- Review each step, adapt it, then download the editable files.
Aila Pricing
Aila is free. Oak National Academy offers its AI experiments freely to teachers, with no paid plan.
Who Should Use It?
- UK primary and secondary teachers
- Trainee teachers planning lessons
- Heads of department building schemes of work
- Supply and cover teachers who need resources quickly
- Tutors who follow the national curriculum
Aila Alternatives
- MagicSchool: AI toolkit that helps teachers plan lessons and resources.
- Brisk Teaching: Browser extension that helps teachers create and give feedback with AI.
- TeachQuill: AI assistant for teachers that drafts lesson materials.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Aila free?
Yes. Aila is a free tool from Oak National Academy, made available to teachers at no cost.
What can Aila create?
A lesson plan, slide deck, quizzes and a worksheet, plus glossaries and tasks for lessons you have already planned. It cannot make images or diagrams.
Is Aila only for UK teachers?
It is designed for UK teachers and based on Oak's national curriculum-aligned content.