Free lesson for Grades 4–6. Time: about 20 minutes, with a parent.
What is AI?
AI (artificial intelligence) is when a computer or phone learns from lots of examples so it can guess, sort or suggest things, a bit like how you learn to recognise your friend’s voice. AI does not think or feel like a person. It spots patterns.
Activity: AI hunt at home
- Walk around the house with a parent and a phone, TV or radio nearby.
- Look for things that guess or suggest. Examples: the phone keyboard suggesting your next word, YouTube suggesting the next video, a phone camera finding faces, Google Maps guessing traffic, voice typing.
- Draw a table with two columns: “Uses AI” and “Just a machine”. A torch, a kettle and a calculator go in “Just a machine”. The keyboard suggestions go in “Uses AI”.
- Find at least 3 things for each column.
Try it: be the AI
Parent: type “I am going to” on the phone and let your child read the three suggested words. Ask: “Why do you think the phone chose these?” (Because it has seen many people type them.) Then the child predicts what the phone will suggest next before tapping.
Talk about it
- Was the phone ever wrong? Why?
- Name one way AI helps your family, and one thing a person should always check.
Well done! You can now spot AI at home. In the full AI Starter course your child goes further and builds small AI projects. See the AI Starter holiday course.
Optional: get the next free AI lesson by email.