Smart AI Today

Overview

Students are introduced to what AI is, how it can help, and how to use it responsibly. They practise simple thinking strategies for questioning AI outputs and protecting personal information.

Learning intentions

• Students will be able to explain, in simple terms, what AI is and what it does.
• Students will recognize that AI can make mistakes and outputs may be biased or inaccurate.
• Students will identify safe ways to ask for help from AI without sharing personal information.
• Students will practise checking an AI response using common-sense and class-made questions.

Success criteria

• I can describe AI as a computer system that learns patterns and makes predictions.
• I can say at least two ways AI can help and at least two limits or risks.
• I can use a “check it” routine to decide whether an AI answer seems trustworthy.
• I can state a personal information rule for using AI safely.

Curriculum links

• Digital Citizenship: safe, responsible use of digital tools and online information
• Information and Communications Technology: using technology to create and communicate ideas appropriately
• Media Literacy: recognizing that information can be created or influenced by tools and sources
• Critical Thinking and Problem Solving: using strategies to question and verify information

Lesson structure (30 minutes)

1. 2 min – Hook and discussion

• Show a short, kid-friendly example of an AI-style response (teacher reads it aloud). Ask: “What makes you think this is made by a computer?”
• Students turn and talk: “Where have you seen AI—in games, videos, or apps?”

2. 5 min – Teach: What AI is (and isn’t)

• Explain: AI is a computer program that learns from examples to make predictions (like suggesting words, images, or answers).
• Clarify limits: AI does not “know” the truth the way people do; it can be wrong or sound confident even when it’s not.

3. 6 min – Responsible use rules

• Co-create a class “AI Safety” mini-chart with three rules:
• Never share personal information (full name, address, school details, passwords).
• Ask for help with ideas, not to replace thinking.
• Check information before trusting it.
• Use a quick scenario: “Should we ask AI to write a message that includes a child’s address?” Students answer and justify.

4. 7 min – Check-it routine (guided practice)

• Introduce a simple routine students can remember:
• Does it answer the question?
• Does it make sense (common sense)?
• Can we verify with another source or teacher/class knowledge?
• In pairs, students get a teacher-provided AI-style answer (possibly contains a small error). They use the routine to decide: “Seems right / maybe wrong / wrong.”

5. 7 min – Create: AI question writing

• Students write one “good prompt” for a safe task (e.g., “Give me three ideas for a poster about recycling for a Grade 3 classroom,” with no personal details).
• Volunteers share prompts. Teacher models improvement by making the request clearer and safer.

6. 3 min – Exit ticket

• Students complete a short oral or written exit ticket:
• “One thing AI can do is…”
• “One limit of AI is…”
• “One safety rule is…”

Resources

• Teacher-made slides or spoken examples of AI-style responses (age appropriate, no personal data)
• Scenario cards for the safety rules (e.g., “includes address,” “includes password,” “asks for ideas only”)
• “AI Safety” mini-chart paper or board space
• Check-it routine poster with the three questions
• Student prompt-writing worksheet (one page)
• Pair discussion roles (reader, checker) to support participation
• Pencils, crayons, and optional highlighters for organizing exit ticket responses

Assessment

• Teacher observation during pair work using the check-it routine (listening for “common sense” and “verification” language).
• Review of student prompt-writing for safe requests (no personal information) and clarity.
• Exit ticket responses: accuracy about AI limits and a clear personal information rule.

Differentiation

• Support:
• Provide sentence starters for the check-it routine (e.g., “It answers because…,” “It doesn’t make sense because…”).
• Offer a word bank for limits (wrong, guess, may not be true).
• Extension:
• Challenge students to add a second verification method (ask a trusted adult, check a book, compare two answers).
• Ask students to rewrite a prompt to make it clearer or safer.
• EAL:
• Use visuals for “Safety rules” and “Check-it routine.”
• Allow oral exit tickets or matching activities instead of writing all responses.
• SEN:
• Provide a reduced worksheet version (choose from options: safe/unsafe, right/maybe wrong/wrong).
• Use structured pair roles and shorter tasks with clear time cues.