Ages 10–12

Kid drives, you're close by

Safety for this age

Common Sense Media still recommends limited chatbot use alongside a parent for ages 6–12.

Your child can drive more of the making (Scratch, Teachable Machine, a micro:bit) while you stay in the room. Chatbot use stays limited, and you are there.

Common Sense Media: AI chatbots and your child · Safety & Ages hub

Start here

Use the fair-test version. Your child can help write the prompt on your account, repeat the test, and look for one thing the AI got wrong.

Turn a “Why?” into a Kitchen Experiment

Projects for ages 10–12

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Science · Easy · Start here

Turn a “Why?” into a Kitchen Experiment

When your kid asks “why?”, skip reading out the AI's answer. Ask it to design a 20-minute kitchen experiment so your kid can see the answer happen in front of them.

3–5 (parent-run), 6–9, 10–12, 13+
About 30 minutes
Free–$5
Ends in a real thing: A filled-in scientist's notebook page

Games · Parties & Play · Medium

The “Level 10” Birthday Quest Game

Build a few tiny browser games around what your child loves. Each one reveals a piece of a code that leads to a present you hid.

10–12
The post says a few rounds of changes. It does not give a clock time.
The post does not say what Claude cost.
No physical result

Train-an-AI · Medium

Teach a Computer Rock-Paper-Scissors

Take webcam photos of rock, paper, and scissors, train a model, and play the game in Scratch. Variety in the photos matters more than how many you take.

10–12, 13+
The write-up does not give a clock time. Training can take a minute or two in his other examples.
Dale Lane does not name a price. We did not confirm whether a home setup needs a paid cloud key.
No physical result

Train-an-AI · Medium

Clap to Make Your Pet Jump: A Scratch Game You Train Yourself

Train a sound model to hear a clap, and make a pet in Scratch that jumps when a key is pressed. The source names both tools. It does not show how to wire them together.

9–12 in the source; listed here as 10–12
The article does not give a time.
The Teachable Machine homepage does not list a price. The Scratch parents page we read does not list a fee.
No physical result

Robots & Making · Medium

Build an AI Exercise Timer You Can Wear

Train a micro:bit to tell exercising from standing still, then wear it. Button A shows active seconds. Button B shows still seconds.

7+ (this site: 6–9 and 10–12)
The project page does not give a total time. It includes a 30-second check.
CreateAI is free with no login. The micro:bit, cable, and batteries are extra. No price is listed.
Ends in a real thing: A micro:bit you can wear

Robots & Making · Stretch

A LEGO Robot That Sorts Bricks from Minifigs

Train a phone to tell a LEGO brick from a minifigure, then let one motor point at the answer. This is a pointer, not a machine that drops bricks into bins.

10–12, 13+
The lesson does not give a clock time.
You need LEGO-compatible hardware and a phone. No price is stated.
Ends in a real thing: A motor that points to brick or minifig

Art & 3D · Stretch

Turn a Drawing into a 3D-Printed Figure to Paint

Photograph one drawing, turn it into a 3D model, and print a small figure you can paint. Mailed figures from one of the tools are not on sale yet.

6–9, 10–12
Insta3D says about a minute for the on-screen model. Printing time is not a single number.
Insta3D: first 3 drawings free, no card. A home print costs filament. Their mailed figures are not for sale yet.
Ends in a real thing: A small print to paint, if you have a printer or a print service

Music · Easy

Write a Birthday Song Together

Write a short birthday song with made-up details, then let Suno try the music. Leave out the child's name, age, school, town, and birthday.

All ages on this site (parent runs Suno)
The guide we followed does not promise a fixed production time.
Suno's download limits differ by plan. We did not copy a monthly price.
No physical result