Artificial intelligence is becoming an increasingly familiar part of children’s learning routine. Kaspersky explains how parents can help children use AI responsibly and highlights why children should verify AI-generated answers, recognise neural network “hallucinations” and avoid sharing personal or school-related data with AI services.
Kaspersky’s observations show that children’s interest in AI tools continues to grow as these technologies become more accessible and integrated into everyday learning. As children return to school, AI is likely to become part of their studies as naturally as search engines, online dictionaries and educational videos. Children may use AI assistants to explain a difficult topic, generate ideas for an essay, check a text, solve a homework problem or prepare a presentation.
Alongside its educational benefits, AI also creates new challenges. Neural networks can invent details that appear factual or produce deceptive images, leading users astray. This means that digital literacy today involves more than knowing how to search for information, children also need to learn how to question what they see, identify possible manipulation and protect the information they share.
Make AI a learning assistant, not a homework replacement
When a child can generate an essay or receive a finished answer to a math problem in seconds, it may be tempting to submit the result without understanding it. This can save time in the moment, but it prevents the child from developing the very skills the assignment is intended to practice. Parents can agree with their children that AI may help explain a concept, suggest a structure, provide examples or ask practice questions, but it should not complete the entire task on their behalf.
For example, instead of asking a chatbot to “write my essay”, a child could ask it to suggest several arguments, explain unfamiliar terms or point out weaknesses in a draft the child has written independently. When solving a math problem, the child can ask for an explanation of the method and then reproduce the solution without looking at the answer. It is also worth encouraging children to compare the AI-generated response with their textbook, class notes or trusted educational sources. This turns the interaction into an exercise in analysis rather than simple copying.
Explain that AI does not know what is true
One of the most common mistakes is to treat an AI-generated answer as though it came from a search engine or a qualified expert. In reality, a language model generates a response by predicting which words are most likely to follow one another based on the data used to train it. The answer may be accurate, but the model can also confuse facts, invent a source, refer to a study that does not exist or confidently describe an event that never happened.
These errors are often called AI “hallucinations”. Parents can explain the concept to children in simple terms: an AI system does not always provide information it genuinely knows to be true. When it lacks sufficient information, it may fill in the gaps with something that sounds convincing but is incorrect. Children should therefore learn a basic rule: the more important the question, the more carefully the answer should be checked.
Use five questions to check online information
A simple set of questions can help them pause before copying information into an assignment or treating it as fact.
The first question is: Who or what is the source? If an AI assistant mentions a book, study, quotation or historical fact, the child should check whether the original source actually exists and whether it is reliable.
The second question is: Does the answer match the task? AI may produce a polished response that sounds convincing but misunderstands the question, uses the wrong level of detail or gives an answer that does not follow the teacher’s instructions.
The third question is: Can I explain this in my own words? If a child cannot understand or reproduce the reasoning independently, they should not submit the answer as their own work.
The fourth question is: Where else can I verify it? Important facts should be checked against a textbook, class notes, an official educational resource or several trustworthy sources.
The fifth question is: Should I ask an adult? If the information concerns health, safety, a sensitive topic or simply seems confusing, asking a parent or teacher is a sensible part of the learning process.
Parents can practice this framework with their children at the start of the school year by reviewing an AI-generated homework answer together, checking its sources and discussing which parts are useful, inaccurate or need to be rewritten.
Do not let children share personal information with AI tools
Children may experience a conversation with a chatbot as a private interaction. They may feel that the AI is a trusted companion to whom they can disclose information about themselves, their family, their school or personal concerns.
Parents should explain that prompts and conversations may be stored and, depending on the service, used to improve or train AI systems. Children should therefore avoid entering their full name, home address, telephone number, school name, passwords, identity documents, bank card details, ticket photographs or any other confidential information. The same rule applies to other people’s data. Children should not upload someone else’s photographs, messages or documents without that person’s permission.
Protect devices as well as develop critical thinking
Critical thinking is the most important defence against misleading AI-generated content, but it should be supported by basic technical security measures. Two-factor authentication should be enabled on children’s accounts, and every account should have a strong, unique password. Applications should be downloaded only from official sources and kept up to date. A trusted security solution such as Kaspersky Premium can also help detect phishing pages, malicious files and other online threats. Parents can also review privacy settings together with their children and check how much personal information is visible to strangers.
Introduce children to cybersecurity basics using educational tools like the Kaspersky Cybersecurity Alphabet — a free downloadable book that explains key concepts, cyber hygiene rules, and how to avoid fraud. Parents can also strengthen their own digital skills by taking Kaspersky’s “Cyberhygiene” course. It explains the basic principles of online safety in an accessible format and can help adults feel more confident when discussing passwords, personal data, phishing, suspicious links and the responsible use of digital tools with their children.
“AI can be a valuable learning tool when children use it to explore a topic, test their understanding or improve a draft of an essay, rather than simply replace their own work. The key skill is learning not to accept every answer at face value. An AI-generated response may sound confident and well-structured while still containing invented information, false references or incorrect reasoning. Parents can help by encouraging children to check important information against textbooks and trusted sources, explain the answer in their own words and ask for help whenever something seems unclear. These habits will help children benefit from AI while developing the critical thinking skills they need throughout the school year”, comments Andrey Sidenko, Cyber Literacy Projects Lead at Kaspersky.
Image Credit: Kaspersky
Source: Tahawul Tech