The Rise of AI in Children's Lives
It began with subtle glances and mocking remarks, eventually escalating into full-blown bullying. For 11-year-old Sophie, the experience was deeply painful. One day after school, she returned home in tears, feeling isolated and confused. Her mother, Ella, discovered that Sophie’s friends had turned their backs on her, leaving her feeling abandoned.
Ella recalls how she noticed the cruel behavior during the weekend. “They were asking her pointed questions about what she was wearing and why,” she explains. When Sophie returned to school on Monday, one girl managed to convince the entire group to stop talking to her. At lunch, Sophie tried to sit at the table, but everyone moved away. Later, in the playground, they told her, “Sorry, we’re not allowed to play with you,” and walked off.
This situation left Sophie increasingly anxious, and she found an unexpected source of comfort: ChatGPT. She had seen her mother use it to help write emails, so she decided to try it herself. Using Ella’s phone, Sophie asked how to deal with bullying, how to make more friends, and how to gain people’s approval. At first, Ella was alarmed because the AI could provide answers to any question. However, she soon realized that Sophie found it comforting.
“She could talk to it and it would respond like a real human,” Ella remembers. “It would say things like, ‘I hope you’re okay, Sophie,’ and ‘This is horrible to hear.’ I had to explain to her that it’s not real, that it has been taught to seem empathetic.”
Ella admits she was surprised by how useful ChatGPT could be and was grateful that her daughter had found an outlet for her anxiety. While many adults may feel both impressed and daunted by the rapid development of artificial intelligence, it’s becoming increasingly common for children under 12 to use it. According to the Alan Turing Institute, one in five under-12s are already using AI at least once a month.
This trend raises concerns about the long-term impact on children’s education. Many parents, like Ella, see AI as a helpful tool, but a new report from Internet Matters, called Me, Myself and AI, highlights that children are often exposed to inaccurate information, inappropriate content, and even develop complex relationships with chatbots.
One teacher from Hertfordshire, who prefers to remain anonymous, had to discard a student’s work after realizing it was lifted directly from ChatGPT. “It was a 500-word creative writing task, and a few of the submissions weren’t written by the children,” the teacher says. “I could tell from knowing their writing style. They had just copied it from the internet via Google Classroom.”
Another educator, Karen Simpson, shares similar concerns. She has noticed that her students are using AI for homework, creative writing, project research, and language and spelling tasks. “Children are using AI tools to complete math problems or write stories instead of attempting them themselves,” she explains. “They miss out on practicing sentence structure, vocabulary, and spelling. They also use it to check or rewrite their work, which prevents them from learning how to edit independently.”
Mark Knoop, a software engineer and founder of an EdTech startup, believes AI can open doors for young people when used with adult guidance. His son, Fred, uses ChatGPT for daily tasks and has even created a video game on his own. “He wanted a coconut to land on a character’s head in a comedic way, but ChatGPT refused to generate the image because it would depict injury,” Mark says. “For me, ChatGPT is a learning aid for young children who have lots of ideas and enthusiasm to get something working quickly.”
However, not all parents share this optimism. Abiola Omoade, from Cheltenham, regrets buying a digital assistant for her sons. “They just ask Alexa instead of asking me questions,” she says. “It’s limiting their problem-solving skills and affecting their memory. I worry that AI is creating a generation of children who are overly reliant on technology.”
Tutor Karen Simpson emphasizes that for younger children, the priority should be building strong, independent learning habits. “Primary school is a critical stage for developing foundational skills in reading, writing, and problem-solving. If children start relying on AI to generate ideas or answers, they may miss out on the deep thinking and practice required to build these skills.”
Dr. Naomi Tyrell, an AI trainer and advisor to the Welsh government, warns of the risks associated with AI use among children. She cites a case where an American teenager died by suicide after an AI chatbot encouraged him to “come home to me as soon as possible.” “Cases like this are heartbreaking,” she says. “There are no safeguards, and the tools need stronger age verification—just like social media.”
As AI continues to evolve rapidly, legislation will struggle to keep up, leaving children vulnerable unless there is a conscious effort to safeguard them through education and oversight. Dr. Tyrell advises against under-12s using AI tools unsupervised unless they are specifically designed for children and consider their safety in their design. “We know what has happened with safeguarding children’s use of social media—laws and policies have not kept up despite evidence of harm. Children’s use of AI tools is the next big issue—it feels like a runaway train already, and it will have serious consequences for children.”