Introduction to AI · Grades 6–8
Introduction to AI pairs a creative project with a question worth investigating. Designed for grades 6–8, the course moves from giving clear instructions to evaluating results, protecting privacy, and explaining the relationship between a student’s choices and AI assistance.
Looks introduces asking, predicting, and checking. Behaviors explores art, feedback, and patterns. Rules investigates logic, memory, and fair tests. Design turns attention to fairness, truth, privacy, and creative credit. Each chapter contains four lessons.
Students encounter an AI concept, discuss it, and apply it in a creative activity. They customize pre-written games through supported settings and components, play their versions, and reflect on the results. Sessions are designed for 60–90 minutes and include time for exploration and discussion. Materials are available in English and Spanish.
Ask students to show a precise prompt, compare a prediction with a result, or describe evidence for a design choice. Later lessons add source checking, privacy decisions, and attribution. The final project and WOW Expo bring together what students made, how they tested it, and where AI helped.
Scope and sequence
Lesson 1
Give your snake a signature look, then test its food, speed, and rules.
Your first custom Snake game
Prompts · variables · values
Lesson 2
Turn a vague idea into a specific request. Design a cruise that follows your words.
A coastal cruise with your style
Clear instructions · strings · numbers
Lesson 3
Create a flyer, experiment with gravity, and check what AI says against what actually happens.
A flight challenge you have tested
AI mistakes · evidence · booleans
Lesson 4
Create a match-three puzzle and explore how AI predicts from patterns and context.
A match-three puzzle with your choices
Prediction · context · game loops
Lesson 5
What does “harder” mean? Change a precise setting, test a bounce, and refine the challenge.
A brick-breaking challenge
Ambiguity · coordinates · velocity
Lesson 6
Explore AI image styles and bring your color choices into a desert adventure.
An adventure with your art direction
Image prompts · pixels · RGB color
Lesson 7
Customize a drone, test real deliveries and improve one setting using your observations.
A delivery route you have tested and refined
Feedback · input events · debugging
Lesson 8
Design a space mission and use examples to help AI understand a pattern.
Your own space-defense mission
Examples · patterns · lists and loops
Lesson 9
Make, bake and deliver pizzas while comparing fixed game rules with learned AI patterns.
A pizzeria with your own design choices
Rules vs. learning · conditionals
Lesson 10
Build a climbing challenge and explore the difference between chat context and saved game state.
A sky-climbing game
Context · memory · program state
Lesson 11
Build a stunt race and compare one setting at a time to investigate speed, landing and hazards.
A stunt race tested with evidence
Fair tests · collisions · hitboxes
Lesson 12
Give your AI coach a role, compare its explanations, and explore routes through a maze.
A maze and a clearer way to ask for help
Roles · functions · parameters
Lesson 13
Test a falling-block game. Investigate piece patterns before deciding what feels fair.
A falling-block game with tested rules
Fairness · probability · sample size
Lesson 14
Customize a racer and investigate image sources. A realistic picture still needs evidence.
A racer with your design decisions
Media literacy · sources · simulated motion
Lesson 15
Create a pinball table, choose a fictional nickname, and practice what is smart to share.
A pinball table with a personal touch
Privacy · stored data · score multipliers
Lesson 16
Polish a final obstacle run, show your project, and explain your ideas, tests, and AI assistance.
Your capstone and WOW Expo presentation
Creative credit · JSON · reflection
Before you begin
The course has 16 lessons designed for 60–90 minutes per session. Discuss how to fit the sequence into your school or after-school calendar during a demo.
It is an introduction to AI through creation. Students explore computing concepts by customizing pre-written programs, assembling components, and changing supported settings with AI.
Share your grade levels, calendar, and program goals. We’ll walk through the course and the next steps with you.
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