IS AI SAFE FOR KIDS? What Every Parent Should Know
So here’s the question I hear from parents all the time:
“Is AI even safe for kids?”
It’s a good question—and one we need to answer without fear-mongering or blind optimism. As someone who lives in both the parenting trenches and the AI consulting space, I’m here to break it down with clarity, honesty, and some practical tools you can use today.
🔹 What Does “Safe” Even Mean When We’re Talking About AI?
When we say safe, we’re usually talking about a few different things:
Privacy: Is my child’s data being collected?
Accuracy: Can this AI give them false or harmful info?
Influence: Is it shaping the way they think or behave or impacting their ability to think critically?
Boundaries: Is it becoming a replacement for real connection or creativity?
These are valid concerns—and each one can be addressed. But it requires us, as caregivers, to get informed. Not panicked. Not passive. Just engaged.
🧠 What Most Parents Don’t Realize About AI
Here’s the thing: AI tools (like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and others) don’t “know” things the way we do. They pull from patterns in data—and while that’s powerful, it means they can also make mistakes, reflect biases, or sound confident when they’re totally wrong.
That’s why young children shouldn’t use these tools without guidance. And why teens need support in learning how to ask smart questions, fact-check answers, and use AI as a thought partner—not a brain replacement. When it really matters, I will make sure to include wording in my prompts like only use real, true data to respond to this prompt and cite your resources and references for me to check. Making it a habit of adding this to your communications with AI and just like Santa’s list, checking it once, and checking it twice, is a good practice to use.
❤️ Why I Don’t Fear AI for My Kids
I don’t fear AI for the same reason I don’t fear calculators, spellcheck, or graphic design apps.
Used well, AI can:
Help build social stories for your child
Create customized learning sheets to your child’s preferences and motivations (for my son that would be Trains, Godzilla and Spiderman themed work sheets)
Turn a rough emotion into a calming poem
Co-create a bedtime story or children’s book adventure
Bring imagination to life with image-to-video creation
Produce the craziest and funniest song mixes of operatic songs about your favorite pet
and most importantly, help them feel seen, supported, and curious—not stuck or “behind”
It’s not magic. It’s a tool. And we get to shape how they experience it.
🛡️ 5 Practical Safety Tips for Parents
Whether your child is 5 or 15, here’s what you can do right now:
Teach Your Kids To Think Critically and Examine Truth or Fake
Teach your kids to question anything that sounds “off” online—including deepfakes or impersonations. My kids are a bit oppositional so I have the most fun doing this by pretending something I know is outrageously wrong is real and have them work to convince and show me that what I’m reading or seeing is fake. It’s a fun twist on things where they research to prove me wron,g and that “Mom shouldn’t believe everything she sees or reads in AI.”Develop a family, secret safety code and practice it. I don’t know why no one else is talking about this but this is something I’ve been training my kids on for years. So, for us, a family safety code comes in handy in a few different ways. We talk about it in terms of if my kids are ever in a situation where they don’t feel safe or can’t communicate clearly, they can try to text or call me and use that code, and I will know it is an emergency and come and get them. It’s something we’ve been practicing for years and we pivoted it for AI safety. Now we practice it not just for them but for my husband and I. What if mommy called you and said something that seemed off and a bit outrageous, like I was in jail and needed you to send money via Venmo right away. What if it sounded like Mommy? We practice that they should ask me to tell them the family emergency /safety code and vice versa. We practice this pretty readily just like we would practice stranger danger when they were young. I really feel strongly that this is something every family should be aware of as a best practice and begin implementing. Whether it’s used because your child is in a situation they don’t feel safe in and need your help, or whether, sadly, someone tries to use a deepfake clone impersonation of you or your child, you’ll be prepared. And if you think this isn’t already happening, you’d be wrong.
Use Kid-Friendly AI Platforms
Try tools like Curipod (for educators), Suno (for music), or You.com with Safe Mode ON. Avoid letting younger kids use open chatbots unsupervised.Talk About How AI Works
Even younger kids can understand: “It’s like a robot that reads everything on the internet, but sometimes it gets things wrong.” Set realistic expectations.Review Privacy Settings Together
Most tools let you turn off data collection or delete conversations. Make this a shared activity so your child feels empowered.Make AI a Co-Creation Tool
Use AI to build a comic strip, write a silly bedtime story, or design a virtual pet together. Show them that creativity and connection matter more than speed.
💬 Final Thoughts: AI Doesn’t Replace Us—It Reflects Us
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this:
The more intentional we are, the safer and more enriching these tools become. Ignoring AI won’t make our kids or family safer. Empowered parents know we need to lead the way, be informed, and involved in the conversation so we can make the decisions we feel are best for our family situation.
AI can’t parent. It can’t love.
But it can be part of the toolkit we use to raise kids with confidence, compassion, and curiosity.
It can support personalization, creativity, learning, research, and connect us to information and resources faster than ever before.
I want to help build a future where these tools are leveraged in positive ways.
🔗 Want More?
I’m working on a full parent’s guide to AI, with free checklists, tool reviews, and safety tutorials.
👀 Stay tuned—or join our contact list to be the first to get it.