Teachers looking to introduce students to the world of artificial intelligence (AI) have a new resource to help them get started: Thinking with KIBO, a free curriculum from KinderLab Robotics.
Thinking with KIBO is designed specifically for children in grades 1-3 and is perfect for a 5-6 week unit in computer science or technology/media schools, as well as afterschool programs, enrichment centres, libraries, and maker spaces. It includes four 60-minute lessons and a fifth lesson that can be extended to two hours.
The lessons are designed to help students understand how AI tools work and think critically about how these tools can improve lives in their communities. By using hands-on and screen-free KIBO robots, students explore core notions about AI and learn the “Five Big Ideas in AI”: Sensing, Representation and Reasoning, Learning, Natural Interaction, and Social Impact.
To help demystify AI, students will learn that AI is just a tool created by people, and that it doesn’t think like humans do. They’ll also understand that AI systems rely on the “sense – think – act” cycle, and how humans design the sensors, rules, and actions.
KinderLab Robotics is dedicated to promoting universal STEAM literacy and is doing so by providing research-based robot kits. KIBO was developed by Dr. Marina Umaschi Bers of Boston College and is now used in over 70 countries. The robot has demonstrated efficacy in helping youngsters in pre-k-5th grade learn STEAM topics.
With Thinking with KIBO, teachers have a great opportunity to introduce their students to the world of AI and help them see the potential of this technology.
