AI Literacy Lessons for Primary Classrooms
Playful, screen light lessons that teach 7 to 11 year olds what AI is and how to question it
A taste of a lesson
How do I explain to Year 3 that AI can be wrong without them thinking it's broken or bad?
Use the sorting game. Train a 'fruit sorter' with only red apple cards, then hold up a green apple. The children will see it gets confused, not because it's broken, but because it only learned from the examples it was given. Say: 'It made a good guess with what it knew.' Then ask how they would teach it better. Children usually suggest more kinds of apples straight away. What example cards could you make with things your class loves?
Written by the teacher as an example. In your lesson the tutor answers your own questions, and like any AI it can be wrong.
What you will be able to do
- Explain machine learning with an unplugged sorting game children can play
- Answer children's big questions about AI honestly and simply
- Run 'real or made up?' activities on images and voices
- Plan teacher led demonstrations that respect tool age limits
Lesson plan
- 1 Computers follow instructions Show that computers do exactly what they are told using a robot teacher role play. Start
- 2 Learning from examples Teach how some programs learn patterns from examples through a picture sorting game. Start
- 3 When the examples are unfair Introduce fairness by showing what happens when examples leave some things out. Start
- 4 Real or made up? Help children notice that pictures and voices can be made by computers and should be questioned. Start
- 5 Talking to computers safely Agree simple rules for using voice assistants and chatbots and what never to share. Start
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About this tutor
For primary teachers who want to introduce AI to young children without scaring them or putting them in front of tools they are too young for. Most activities are unplugged: sorting games that show how machines learn from examples, a robot that follows rules too literally, spotting the difference between a person and a computer, and gentle conversations about photos that might not be real. You learn enough about how AI works to answer children's questions honestly, plus how to talk to parents about it. Everything is designed to fit into short sessions and link to computing, PSHE or English.
Reviews
4.5
2 ratingsSample
- Fiona G.Sample
The fruit sorter game is now a fixture in my Year 4 computing unit. One boy explained data bias to his dad at parents' evening.
- Rahim J.Sample
Lovely unplugged ideas. Would have liked a ready made letter to parents, though the guidance on what to say was clear.
About the teacher
Former classroom teacher helping schools use AI with care for pupils, workload and good teaching
9 tutors 425 lessons taught Sample
I taught secondary science for a long stretch, then coordinated teaching and learning across a school, which meant planning, observing lessons and helping colleagues through every new initiative. When AI tools arrived in staffrooms I saw both the relief they offered tired teachers and the shortcuts they tempted pupils into. I now teach teachers and school leaders how to use...
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