A few weeks ago, my 9-year-old asked me, “What does AI do?”
Not a casual question I could dodge with a quick “we’ll talk later.” He wanted real answers.
Let’s be honest—I’m not a tech-free mom. My kid has an iPad, and yes, it comes out at dinner sometimes. But I also don’t want him seeing AI as some magical shortcut or a way to avoid actually learning things.
But I didn’t want him to see AI as the magical solution to everything or—worse—a reason to skip actually learning things. So I did what any writer and marketer who loves overthinking things would do: I made a plan.
Here’s how I’m teaching my 9-year-old about AI in a way that encourages curiosity but keeps critical thinking front and center.
Step 1: Start with Analogies
“Imagine AI as a super-library,” I told him. “It has a lot of books, and it’s really good at pulling out the information you need. But it doesn’t actually know anything. It just guesses based on patterns it has seen before.”
That made sense to him. Kids understand guessing games, and explaining that AI isn’t actually smart helped him see it as a tool—not a person.
Step 2: Show Its Strengths and Weaknesses
We played around with ChatGPT together. I had him ask it some questions about things he loves—like how fast a tornado could go. (Spoiler: AI got creative but wasn’t always accurate.)
I pointed out that while AI can give you ideas or quick answers, it doesn’t always get things right. “You still have to double-check,” I said. “And sometimes, you’ll learn more by finding the answer on your own.”
Step 3: Keep It Collaborative
One day, he wanted help writing a story about a superhero who saves a dog from a burning building. Instead of having AI write it for him, I asked: “What do you think happens first? Let’s brainstorm with AI and use its ideas as inspiration.”
The result? He got a spark of creativity from AI, but the story was all his.
Step 4: Set Boundaries Without Killing Curiosity
We talked about when it’s okay to use AI and when it’s not. Homework? Nope, that’s for learning. But brainstorming ideas for a science project or looking up a fun fact? Go for it.
I explained that AI is like a calculator: useful for certain things, but you still need to know how to do math on your own.
Step 5: Model Responsible Use
Kids pick up on everything. So when I use AI, I show him how I use it as a helper, not a replacement. “I asked AI for ideas,” I’ll say, “but I still wrote this myself because that’s the part that matters.”
Why It Matters To Talk to Your Kids About AI
Teaching my son about AI isn’t just about the tech itself—it’s about giving him the tools to navigate a world where automation and algorithms are everywhere. It’s about helping him stay curious, ask better questions, and think critically about what’s real and what’s not.
Because AI isn’t going anywhere. And if he can learn to use it as a tool—without losing the joy of discovery or the value of hard work—I think we’ll be okay.
Now, if only I could explain the Instagram Algorithm as easily…
