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Artificial intelligence has become an incredibly polarizing topic, with one side eager to integrate it into every aspect of life and the other side running from it as fast as they can. Is this new technology an existential threat or a transformational opportunity? According to Pew research from September, “Americans are more concerned than excited” about the proliferation of AI and want to exert more control over its use.
About 62% of U.S. adults report interacting with AI several times a week, and adults and children alike engage on a regular basis with AI without even realizing it. Children are growing up in a world where this technology is unquestionably a part of daily life, shaping their lives in ways no one can yet fully understand. Giving them a clearer understanding of how AI works has never been more important.
This fall, the three of us met at an event at the National Children’s Museum which brought together technology leaders, museum educators, policymakers, teachers and academic researchers focused on guiding our kids safely and productively into our technology-driven world.
Our key takeaway? Regardless of where you stand on this issue, a common ground must be forged now. Constructive dialogue must happen, and it needs voices from both sides to produce a healthy outcome for our children. Helping kids understand AI means being both optimistic and cautious, recognizing its promise while acknowledging its shortcomings and risks.
What if, alongside helping our youngest learn to use AI, we placed greater emphasis on teaching them how it works? By nurturing children’s critical thinking skills, we give them the power to understand it as a tool—where it can augment human effort, and where it fails miserably.
AI is ushering in a new wave of innovation, but it is also enabling new forms of deception and manipulation. It provides access to a wealth of knowledge and opportunities, but the resulting information overload can undermine learning, cognition, creativity and human connection.
Society as a whole, from educational institutions to policy makers to parents at the dinner table, need to invest in children’s AI literacy now. In doing so, we can instill some of the most important lessons: how to be creative and discerning in the world in which we live, preparing them for a future full of new opportunities.
According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report, employers expect that 39% of workers’ core skills will change by 2030, with technological skills gaining importance most rapidly. AI will open up new fields of biomedical research. It will help us feed our growing global population. But it will also force many of us to rethink our jobs and educational pathways.
So, on a global scale, an investment in our children’s AI literacy not only ensures a competitive workforce but also safeguards national prosperity, security and the responsible use of powerful technologies. Whether you think AI is exciting or threatening, children must be introduced to age-appropriate concepts about it so that they can build fluency and prepare for the future.
Another takeaway from our conversation? Adults must learn alongside — and sometimes from — our kids. As adults, we have the responsibility of fostering children’s safe use of this powerful tool. But let’s give ourselves the grace to acknowledge that we don’t understand AI either. We didn’t grow up with it, and experts and technology leaders believe that generative AI has surpassed the understanding of its creators.
There is a window of opportunity to bring everyone to the table. As parents, educators and lifelong learners, we need to have deeper conversations about AI — especially how it shapes children’s learning, development and daily lives. We don’t have to fully comprehend it or agree with all its intended uses; we just have to be open to talking about it and taking action. By approaching this with curiosity, we can thoughtfully consider appropriate uses and guardrails for kids—something we didn’t do early enough when America’s children first began using online tools like social media.
There are organizations starting to address AI literacy and technology education for families. Sesame Street and Google collaborated to release a series on the healthy use of digital technology. Common Sense Media, with support from the National Parents Union and EDSAFE AI, has a series of lessons about digital citizenship and AI arranged by grade level and a resource for parents as well. The website Children and Screens provides research-based articles, podcasts and other resources to help parents navigate age-appropriate technology use. Children’s museums are developing hands-on, screen-free experiences to help demystify the processes underlying AI. There needs to be more of this, supporting children’s understanding of the fundamentals, not just how to use its applications.
AI’s purpose is not to replace human life, but to enhance it. Yet, the current conversation — especially around children’s use of AI — is too passive, treating these complex systems as inevitable rather than intentional creations. Educators, industry leaders and policymakers need to insist on a richer, more engaging dialogue about how it shapes kids’ learning, choices and experiences.
Whether it’s the weather report from a smart device or personalized help from a chatbot, AI literacy is now essential for young people to navigate civic life. No matter your viewpoint, it is time to embrace AI literacy. The stakes are too high for anything less than universal, active participation in preparing children for the world they’re inheriting and will soon lead.
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