In the previous articles in this series, I’ve explored three related questions.

First, whether learning to code still matters in the age of artificial intelligence.

Second, why many children already seem worried about AI and the future.

And third, whether our education system is preparing young people for AI - or primarily trying to protect them from it.

Those conversations inevitably lead to a bigger question:

If the future is uncertain, what should we, as parents, actually focus on when raising children today?

Life isn’t binary

At the end of many of my coding sessions with children, we play a simple game.

It’s a binary game - heads or tails. The children act out their choice, the coin is flipped, and we see who guessed correctly. Those that predicted correctly stay standing and you continue until one child remains!

It’s a fun way to end a session and a simple way of reinforcing the concept that computers traditionally operate using binary - ones and zeros; on and off.

But life, of course, is rarely binary.

The future our children will grow into certainly won’t be.

In fact, if quantum computing develops in the way many researchers expect, even computing itself may no longer be strictly binary. Systems may increasingly operate on probabilities rather than simple yes-or-no states.

In other words, the world our children will inhabit may be far more complex and unpredictable than the one we grew up in - which makes predicting that future extremely difficult.

I’m not a futurologist

Children currently in primary school will not begin entering the workforce until around 2034 at the earliest.

By then, artificial intelligence will almost certainly be far more capable than it is today, and no one can say with certainty what that world will look like.

Some thinkers are deeply optimistic.

Ray Kurzweil, in The Singularity Is Near, argues that technological progress may accelerate so dramatically that humans and machines could eventually merge capabilities in extraordinary ways.

Others are more cautious.

Mustafa Suleyman, co-founder of DeepMind and author of The Coming Wave, describes artificial intelligence as one of the most powerful technologies humanity has ever created - capable of enormous benefit but also profound disruption. 

And then there are voices that sound far darker warnings. I recently read If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies. I’ll say, it’s not the most comfortable or relaxing read - although the title does warn you!

Whether any of these views are realistic or not, the narratives capture the scale of uncertainty that surrounds artificial intelligence.

I can’t predict what the world will look like in 2034.

But I do know we can think carefully about how we prepare children for that uncertainty.

A lesson from the early days of Think Big

When I first started Think Big almost ten years ago, I originally had called it a Computational Thinking Club.

That, after all, was the real idea behind it.

But a headteacher I knew well - someone who understood exactly what I was trying to do & I respected a lot - gave me some very good advice.  She said that while computational thinking might be the right concept, most parents would have no idea what it meant.

“Call it a Code Club,” she suggested. And so I did.

But, as I have mentioned in previous articles, in truth, what we were - and are - trying to teach was never just coding.

It was, and is, how to think.

Three things that matter

When I think about preparing children for an AI-shaped world - including my own daughter’s - I keep coming back to three things that feel increasingly important.

Not specific software tools. 

Not predicting which technologies will win.

Just three underlying principles.

1. Thinking skills matter more than memorisation

For generations, education has placed enormous value on remembering information. Knowledge.

But we now live in a world where vast amounts of knowledge are available instantly, often at almost no cost.

Artificial intelligence systems can already retrieve facts, summarise articles and generate explanations in seconds.

That doesn’t make thinking less important.  It makes it more important than ever. 

The advantage in an AI-powered world will increasingly belong to those who know how to:

• break problems down

• question answers

• recognise patterns

• test ideas and refine them

In other words, those who know how to think, not just what to remember.

This idea sits at the heart of what we try to do at Think Big - helping children develop computational thinking and problem-solving skills that apply far beyond coding.

2. Understanding systems - Not just using tools

Children today use technology constantly.

But using a tool and understanding the system behind it are very different things.

A child might use AI to generate an image, write text or answer questions. But without understanding how these systems are trained, where their data comes from, or how bias can appear in outputs, they remain passive users. Being great at using one specific piece of software, isn’t going to cut it.

Understanding systems changes that.  It allows children to ask better questions.

To challenge outputs.

To recognise when technology is helpful - and when it might be misleading, or biased.

And that knowledge turns passive users into active participants – Creators.

3. Protecting confidence, agency and resilience

In an earlier article in this series, I described how many Year 6 pupils told me they felt more scared than excited about artificial intelligence.

That reaction matters because mindset shapes behaviour.

If children grow up believing the future is something happening to them - something unpredictable and uncontrollable - it is easy for anxiety to replace curiosity. We risk a self-fulfilling prophecy.

But when children experiment - build things, test, solve problems, and learn through trial and error - something very different happens.

They begin to feel capable and develop confidence.

Not the loud, performative kind of confidence - but the quieter belief that they are capable of figuring things out.

Psychologists often talk about agency - the sense that our actions can influence the world around us. That belief matters enormously.

Children who feel they have agency are more likely to explore, adapt and persist when things are difficult. They are more comfortable with uncertainty and change, because they trust their ability to learn. Resilience.

Creators, versus Consumers

Ultimately, the divide in the age of AI may be quite simple.

It may be between those who create with technology or other things, and those who simply consume.

Tony Robbins recently described in an interview three progressive skills that he recommends to everyone he has worked with – his own family too – all around the concept of patterns. It made sense to me.

First, recognising patterns. When we recognise patterns we feel secure and safe. Say, recognising day and night, or seasonal weather, at it’s most basic.

Second, utilising patterns - which helps us survive and begin to prosper. Say, using the knowledge of the seasonal weather patterns to grow food in an effective manner.

And third, creating patterns - which is where true mastery lies. Not just playing the piano, but creating new music.

The same idea applies here.

Creating, not just consuming.

The children who feel confident experimenting, questioning and building will experience the digital world very differently from those who simply scroll, watch and accept what appears on their screens.

Rethinking success

Artificial intelligence may also reshape how we think about work itself.

For decades, society has tended to value certain professions above others.  But the future may look very different.

Highly skilled trades - electricians, plumbers, technicians - may become even more valuable as societies depend on physical infrastructure that machines cannot easily replace, at least in the short to medium term.

Human-centred roles - teaching, caring, mentoring - may also become more important rather than less. Social skills are likely to highly prized.

Knowledge based professions, on the other hand – say, Law, Accountancy – may be more redundant.

The hierarchy of careers we inherited may not be the hierarchy our children inherit. And, irrespective of the specific job title - being a problem-solver and adaptable may be the most valuable asset a person can have.

The real question

The children sitting in primary school classrooms today will grow up in a world shaped by artificial intelligence.

That part is almost certain.

What is far less certain is the role they will play in it.

Some will grow up simply consuming what technology produces.  Others will grow up confident enough to question it, build with it and shape it.

In the age of AI, that may become the real divide.

Creators, versus consumers.

And if we get the balance right - helping our children understand technology, experiment with it and feel capable of shaping it, with confidence and resilience - then perhaps the next generation won’t approach the future with fear, or anxiety.

Perhaps they’ll approach it with something much healthier.

Curiosity. Confidence. And maybe even a little excitement.

This article completes our series of Raising Children in the Age of AI. If you have any comments or views, it would be great to start a discussion and please feel free to share them on our Facebook post by clicking here.