Project Title: AI Friends?
Mission:
Can AI ease loneliness without making us more alone?
Culminating / Take Action Project
Students design and test their own AI Friend, then use evidence from testing to decide whether to launch their bot as a way to address loneliness or to share what they learned about why human connection may be more effective than AI.
What Kids Learn
Get students ready to tackle one of today’s biggest questions: Can AI really understand us? In this Rock by Rock project, students explore how the nervous system processes inputs, feelings, and responses, and why human connection matters for empathy and well-being. They investigate AI tools designed to respond to emotions, compare artificial and human empathy, and use a human-centered design process to create and test their own AI Friend. Through testing and reflection, students decide whether AI is an appropriate way to address loneliness and share their conclusions through a design launch or learning showcase. This project builds science understanding, critical thinking, and ethical decision-making while helping students think carefully about the role of AI in our lives.
Overview
Life Habit Focus: Empathy
Subject: Life Science, Engineering Design, ELA
Grade: 6-8
Topic: Nervous System, Artificial Intelligence
Project Materials
Project Module
Student Notebook
Teacher's Guide
Materials List
Project Texts
Virtual Field Trips
One of our goals is to help kids connect what they are learning in our projects to the real world beyond the classroom. To do that, we’ve partnered with experts to help students learn from and virtually visit with experts from around the world. The “Sugar, Sugar Everywhere project partners with:
Zolli Candy CEO, Alina Morse
In this module, students meet Alina Morse. She is the founder and CEO of Zolli candy. Alina got the idea for Zolli Candy – a zero sugar candy, when she was just 7 years old. Alina shares her experience as a CEO of Zolli Candy, why she thinks zero sugar candy can make a difference to our health and gives advice on how every youth can make change in this world.Â
Author, Caron Levis
In their Take Action Project, students meet author and children’s book writer Caron Levis. Caron will teach students about what it means to be a author, how to think about writing a powerful story by showing not telling and picking the right words to describe your story.Â
Aligned Standards
Common Core Reading (CCSS):
- Informational/Nonfiction Standards R.I. 1-10 for grades 6-8
- Reading Literacy Standard L 5 & 6 for grades 6-8
- Writing Standards W. 1,4,5 for grades 6-8
- Listening and Speaking Standards SL. 1-6 for grades 6-8
NGSS Standards:
Performance Expectations (PE):
- MS-LS1-3. Use argument supported by evidence for how the body is a system of interacting subsystems composed of groups of cells.
- MS-LS1-8. Gather and synthesize information that sensory receptors respond to stimuli by sending messages to the brain for immediate behavior or storage as memories.
- MS-ETS1-1. Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution.
- MS-ETS1-2. Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to determine how well they meet the criteria and constraints.
- MS-ETS1-3. Analyze data from tests to determine similarities and differences among several design solutions.
Science and Engineering Practices (SEP):
- Asking questions and defining problems
- Developing and using models
- Planning and carrying out investigations
- Analyzing and interpreting data
- Engaging in argument from evidence
- Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information
Disciplinary Core Ideas (DCI):
LS1.D: Information Processing
Each sense receptor responds to different inputs and sends signals to the brain.
The brain processes information to create responses, including emotional and social responses.
Understanding how people process feelings helps explain empathy and connection.
- ETS1.A: Defining and Delimiting Engineering Problems
A design problem must consider criteria for success and constraints such as safety, cost, and ethical impact.
Problems involving human well-being require careful consideration of emotional and social needs.
- ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions
Different solutions can be designed to solve the same problem.
Some problems may not be best solved with technology.
- ETS1.C: Optimizing the Design Solution
Designs can be improved through testing, feedback, and iteration.
Sometimes optimization reveals that a solution is not appropriate, which is a valid design outcome.
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