How to: Fun Artificial Intelligence Activities for Kids under Coronavirus Lockdown

The Coronavirus is bringing the entire globe to a halt and since children will have ample time at home with their parents, why not use this time to try some fun activities whilst teaching them some Artificial Intelligence (AI)?

I know that AI can be daunting some times however the examples below were specifically chosen to be easy to use for parents. So what are you waiting for?

Eliza is one of the first chatbots ever created (1964). The chatbot works by typing something and it will give you a reply. The replies are somewhat limited; however, it is still fun and safe to chat with it. Because of this, it is highly recommended for children who are still learning how to read and write.

Eliza can be found here https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-Eliza

Mitsuku is one of the most advanced chatbots currently in existence. It won various prizes and can talk about most topics. Since it is an advanced chatbot, it is recommended for older children since it can deal with mature topics ranging from the coronavirus, world history and much more. Because of this, it is recommended that smaller children use it in the company of a guardian.

Mitsuku can be found here https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-Mitsuku

Sentence Generator gets an image as input and creates a caption for that image. It does so by understanding the objects which make up the image and giving them a label. However, the AI is not perfect and sometimes it makes some mistakes. The children can be asked to correct the captions of the Sentence Generator.

The Sentence Generator can be found here https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-See

Thing Translator takes a photo of an object and gives us a description of it using a natural language (such as Spanish, Italian, etc.) of our choice. It can be easily used by children to learn how to pronounce things found around the house using one of the foreign languages they are learning at school.

The Thing Translator can be found here https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-Translator

Emoji Scavenger Hunt uses AI to identify emojis in the real world using the mobile device’s camera. It starts by displaying a picture of a key, and the child has to go around the house looking for a real key. The AI will then verify, using the camera of the mobile device, whether he is correct or no. This game can help small children learn about different objects found around the house.

The Emoji Scavenger Hunt can be played here https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-Emoji

Quick, Draw! is a game whereby the user has to draw something, and the AI has to guess what it is. This game is ideal for children of any age.

Quick Draw can be played here https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-Draw

Shadow Art allows children to learn how to make shadow pupets just by using their hands. The AI will then look at their hands through the camera of your mobile device and decide whether its good or not!

Shadow Art can be used here https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-ShadowArt

Intelligent Piece of Paper shows how a program can play the game of Tic-Tac-Toe and win by following straightforward rules.

The Intelligent Piece of Paper can be found https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-TicTacToe

Semi-conductor allows you to manage a real orchestra just like a real-life conductor. All one has to do is look at the camera of the mobile device and move his hands!

The Semi-conductor can be found https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-SemiConductor

Freddiemeter is a karaoke AI which allows you to sing songs by Freddie Mercury and then rates how good you are. This game is not just fun for kids who are learning how to read but for all the family!

The Freddiemeter can be found https://tinyurl.com/AIEx-Freddy

Adults on the other hand can actually help scientists defeat the COVID-19 by playing a game. Press this link to learn out how.

by Alexiei Dingli

The original article can be found here: https://towardsdatascience.com/fun-artificial-intelligence-activities-for-kids-under-coronavirus-lockdown-7177969a2ba1