AI 101: What Counts as AI?
Module 2 · How AI Actually Works

2.2 Train Your Paper AI

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IN THIS LESSON

You'll train a tiny AI using paper and stickers

First, you'll follow a rigid rule and watch it fail spectacularly. Then you'll act like a real AI model—spotting patterns across examples, figuring out what matters most, and creating a smarter approach that actually works. By the end, you'll understand why AI learns instead of just following rules, and you'll have the vocabulary to explain it to your students.

What you’ll do.

Grab the kit

  • Download the Fruit-Sorter Sheet or open the Learning Like an AI app.

Fruit-Sorter

Think Like an AI

Round 1 – Follow the fixed rule

  1. Read the rule: “If the fruit is yellow, call it Banana; otherwise call it Apple.”

  2. Sort every fruit into the Banana or Apple column.

  3. Circle / highlight any fruit the rule gets wrong (e.g., a green banana, a yellow apple).

Round 2 – Train your own model

  1. Scan all fruits and note the features you notice (shape, colour, size).

  2. Place green tokens / drag green dots on fruits that share at least two common features.

  3. Write one smart rule. Keep it to one sentence (e.g., “Long + curved ⇒ Banana; round + small ⇒ Apple”).

  4. Re-sort every fruit using your new rule.

What's Next?

Lesson 2.3: Test Your Training
Now that you understand training, let's see if you can spot the difference between trained AI and rigid rules in real EdTech tools. Quick 5-question quiz that uses everything you just learned.

[Continue to Lesson 2.3 →]