AI Literacy For Creativity
The Creative Futures Collaborative literacy framework is informed by established standards, including AI4K12, UNESCO, and Anthropic’s AI Fluency Framework. Lessons are designed along three pillars to teach AI fundamentals, emphasizing the design intent of generative AI tools, and their limits in creative work.
100% of lessons have tech-free versions that do not require AI use during instruction.
Built With Student Input
These lesson titles were developed and improved based on direct feedback from 70+ students during our pilot at Media Arts Center San Diego.
All Lessons
Chihuahua or Muffin?
How AI Learns to Spot the Difference
Grades 1-5
Inspired by a viral internet “chihuahua or blueberry muffin?” meme, this lesson introduces students to computational thinking. Students look at a set of visually similar images and try to write down their own step-by-step rules for telling one from the other— is it the ears? the paws? the texture?
From there, students compare their own rules to how an AI model handles the same task. They pick up core vocabulary and start building a mental picture of what “AI thinking” actually looks like.
The Human Edge in Creative Writing
Grades 6-12
AI Use Optional
In this scriptwriting activity, students write a short script scene, then prompt a large language model to write its own version of the same moment. Comparing the two outputs, students identify where their own personal experience, cultural context, and natural rhythm of conversation produces writing that is distinguishable from that of LLMs.
This practice urges students to think critically about whether it is possible for AI-assisted writing to contribute to their process without overshadowing their voice.
Storyboarding Backwards: What Happens when AI Enters the Process
Grades 6-12
AI Use Optional
We all know AI can provide polished images. But do they convey what we need them to?
Students evaluate the opportunities and consequences of using fully-formed AI-generated images instead of sketches in storyboards. They practice describing their creative intention in detail, then make deliberate decisions about what to strip away from AI-generated images, identifying bias and inaccuracy in outputs.
By the end, students weigh when to adhere to their own creative vision and when it’s okay to let AI make decisions, reflecting on how that choice shapes their ownership over the final piece.
Supplemental Activities
Learn the Vocabulary of How AI Works
Common Vocabulary Terms that allow students to effectively understand and converse about AI.
Create an AI Use Social Contract for Your Classroom
An interactive exercise allowing creatives to debate and rank their stances on using generative AI for different purposes. Good for creating social contracts for AI use.
Chaotic Neutral? Rank Different AI Use Cases
A D&D-inspired alignment chart where students plot AI use cases by how conventional they are and how much public good or harm they cause.
Sign Up For Free
Keep in touch as we add material to our free library resources that expand on AI fundamentals, provide examples of AI use in creative projects, and provide perspective on the ethics of AI use.
For Inquiries, Partnerships, or Support
Interested in Professional Development for you or your educators?