Teaching prompts and activities
MENU of teaching prompts & activities
Follow the links below for teaching prompts and activities for using our AI resources in your classroom.
1. Roots & fruits of AI (infographic)
2. Simple machines & machines that think (graphic story)
- Simple machines
- Wedge
- Inclined plane
- Lever
- Wheel & axle
- Screw
- Pulley
- Machines that think
- Can machines think?
- Developmental robotics
- How machines see our world
- Reinforcement learning
- Supervised learning
- Unsupervised learning
- Can a machine have a personality?
3. Bots & bees (graphic story)
- Where have the insects gone?
- Bees do the waggle walk
- Sensors, data & machine learning
- Animal communication
- Robot bees
- New bees (spoof)
4. Talking to whales (graphic story)
- About sperm whales
- Whale communication
- Whale songs
- Whale language
- What would you say to a whale?
5. AI & society
- How AI can help tackle environmental challenges
- UN environmental program
- Democracy, social media & AI
- The factory of lies
- Regulating AI
- Potential dangers of AI
- Regulation of AI
6. Indigenous Knowledges
- Context
- Colonialism & climate change
- Natural law
- How we lived
- Relationship with the land
- The good life
- AI and Indigenous Knowledges
- An app
7. Apps
- Real world vs abstract view
- Decision trees
- Automata
- Simulating forest fires
1. ROOTS & FRUITS of AI
Our Roots & Fruits of AI infographic provides an overview of the origins of AI (roots) and its use and implications for society (fruits).
You may download ($0) and print the PDF of the infographic as a 22 x 17 inch poster.
ROOTS OF AI
What led to the development of AI?
Below we identify 4 elements that played important roles in the development of AI:
- Human imagination
- The development of mechanical automata
- The development of formal mechanical reasoning (computational thinking)
- Technological progress
1. Human imagination
Humans use their imagination to envision what might be. There is a long history of mechanical beings in myths and legends. Robots with human form have been imagined in works of fiction.
Thinking/discussion prompts:
- What mechanical beings have you comes across in stories or movies?
- What were they designed to do?
- What was their role in their story or movie?
Activities:
- Design a robot.
- What does your robot look like? Draw your robot.
- What can your robot do? What can’t it do?
- Where will your robot live?
- What will change in your life because of your robot?
- Predict the future.
- Imagine our world 20 years from now.
- What might be the relationship between humans and robots?
- How might our society be different? How might it be still the same?
- Imagine a society that abandoned its technology.
- What technology do you think our society should abandon?
- Why?
- How would our society change?
- What technology do you think our society should never abandon? Why?
- What technology do you think our society should abandon?
2. AUTOMATA
Technological progress increased an interest in engineering automata: mechanical devices that mimic some aspect of life.
Thinking/discussion prompts:
- What are some mechanical or electronic devices in your home or in your neighbourhood that mimic some aspect of daily life?
- Teacher note: a washing machine (washing clothes) and a traffic light (directing traffic) are two examples.
Activities:
- Design an abstract automaton.
- View and discuss the Abstract Automata video.
- Work in pairs to create the abstract automaton for a vending machine where snacks cost 25 cents.
- Cellular automata
- Run the Python code for producing Cellular Automata.
- Edit the code to produce new variations.
3. Computational Thinking
How did computers become “thinking” machines?
Thinking/discussion prompts:
- Do machines think?
- In what way is machine thinking different than human thinking?
- In what way is it similar?
- Are machines better at thinking than humans?
- In what way are they are they not?
Activities:
- Historical developments in computational thinking.
- With your partner, select and research a historical person who contributed to the development of machines that “think”. For example, Ada Lovelace, Charles Babbage, and Alan Turing.
- Create in infographic about their life and contributions.
- Or, author the dialogue for an interview skit with a person who contributed to the development of machines that “think”.
- With your partner, select and research a historical person who contributed to the development of machines that “think”. For example, Ada Lovelace, Charles Babbage, and Alan Turing.
- Recent developments in AI.
- With your partner, select and research a recent AI development.
- Create in infographic about this AI development.
- How might this development change our lives?
- With your partner, select and research a recent AI development.
4. Technological progress
Technological advances have helped accelerate the development of powerful computers and the development of AI.
Thinking/discussion prompts:
- What technological advances have you seen in your lifetime?
- For cellphones?
- For automobiles?
- For appliances?
- What else?
Activities:
- Research the history of computer development.
- How are today’s computers different from the earliest ones?
- How has the use of computers changed over time?
- How has AI developed over time?
- How has the use of AI changed over time?
FRUITS OF AI
Thinking/discussion prompts:
- Which “fruits” of AI have the greatest impact on society? Why?
- Autonomous vehicles?
- Smart homes?
- Personal assistants?
- Surveillance?
- Manufacturing automation?
- Medical diagnosis
- Something else?
Activities:
- Research and develop an infographic for a “fruit” of AI of interest to you.
- What is its function?
- What is its effect on society?
- How might it evolve in the next 10-20 years?
2. FROM SIMPLE MACHINES TO MACHINES THAT THINK
Our graphic story provides an historical overview of simple machines and an overview of the development for thinking machines.
You may download ($0) and print the PDF of the graphic story.
SIMPLE MACHINES
1. WEDGE
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2. INCLINED PLANE
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3. LEVER
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4. WHEEL & AXLE
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5. SCREW
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6. PULLEY
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MACHINES THAT THINK
7. CAN MACHINES THINK?
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8. DEVELOPMENTAL ROBOTICS
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9. HOW MACHINES SEE OUR WORLD
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10. REINFORCEMENT LEARNING
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11. SUPERVISED LEARNING
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12. UNSUPERVISED LEARNING
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13. CAN A MACHINE HAVE A PERSONALITY?
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3. THE BOTS & THE BEES
You may download ($0) and print the PDF of the graphic story.
4. TALKING TO WHALES
You may download ($0) and print the PDF of the graphic story.
5. AI & SOCIETY
1. AI & ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES
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2. DEMOCRACY, SOCIAL MEDIA & AI
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3. REGULATING AI
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6. INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGES
… coming soon …
7. APPS
1. REAL WORLD VS ABSTRACT VIEW
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2. DECISION TREES
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3. AUTOMATA
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