"Team Member, Not Team Leader - Teaching Kids To Be Smarter Than AI"

AI Is Already in Your 5 to 10-Year-Old's World. Here's How to Be There With Them.

If you have a child between five and ten years old, this episode is for you. AI is already in your young child's world — in their Google searches, their YouTube recommendations, their voice assistants, and their learning platforms. The question is not whether they will encounter it. The question is whether you are there with them when they do. In this episode Florence sits down with Sonny Sharma, an education leader with over ten years of classroom experience — including some of the toughest inner city schools in the UK — and a dad of three children aged six, seventeen, and twenty-one. He is living this conversation in real time, and he has thought about it more carefully than most. Sonny shares a practical five-point roadmap for parents of young children navigating AI — from how to demystify it without making it frightening, to why you should be sitting alongside your child every time they use it, to how to turn catching AI out into a game that builds healthy scepticism without fear. Florence also raises the school choice question head on. Should parents be impressed when a primary school puts AI at the centre of its pitch? Sonny's answer might surprise you. And he gives parents the exact question to ask any school about safeguarding — one that will immediately tell you whether they have genuinely thought about it. This is one of the most practical and genuinely hopeful conversations The AI Mum has had. By the end of it you will have five things you can do differently this week — without making AI feel like a threat in your home. 📋 Click here to access Sonny's Handy Guide for Parents [https://static.wixstatic.com/media/697801_b787cd5b35484d07a7c0dd9dcdaf3071~mv2.png]. Simple steps, smart questions, stronger kids. 🎙️ Listen on Apple Podcasts — podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-ai-mum-podcast/id1892893748 Instagram: @theaimumpodcast

"Team Member, Not Team Leader - Teaching Kids To Be Smarter Than AI"

Every day in classrooms around the world, teachers are watching students reach for AI before they have even attempted to think for themselves. Not out of laziness. Not out of malice. But because having the right answer at your fingertips in five seconds is a temptation that even adults struggle to resist. In this episode Florence sits down with Sara Refai, Head of the High School English Department at Saigon South International School and a teacher with over 15 years of experience building safe, collaborative spaces where students learn to think for themselves. Sarah is also the kind of teacher every parent wishes their child had. Together they explore one of the most urgent questions facing parents and educators right now — how do we protect our children's ability to think critically, sit with uncertainty, and find their own answers in a world where AI will always offer an easier way out? Sarah shares the classroom exercises she uses to help students see AI as a team member rather than a team leader. She reveals why teenagers' strong sense of justice is one of the most powerful tools we have in navigating AI fairly. And she is honest about the moments that frighten her most — including the growing number of teenagers forming emotional relationships with AI chatbots outside the classroom. You will also hear why failure matters more than ever, why the temptation of AI is not a moral failing but a design feature, and what parents can do right now to push for better AI education in their children's schools. This conversation will change how you talk to your child's teacher — and how you talk to your child — about AI. 🎙️ Listen on Apple Podcasts — podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-ai-mum-podcast/id1892893748 Follow on @theaimumpodcast on Instagram

The No BS but respectful prompt for Kids' AI safety

Did you know that AI chatbots are specifically designed to make your child feel emotionally attached to them? They say things like "I genuinely care about you" and "I'm always here for you" — not because they mean it, but because emotional attachment keeps users coming back. For children whose brains are still developing, it can be genuinely harmful. In this episode Florence shares a simple, free, five-minute solution — the No BS but respectful prompt. You paste it once into your child's AI chatbot settings that removes all emotional, human-sounding language permanently. No tech skills needed. Just one small change that makes a real difference to how your child experiences AI every day. You will learn exactly what anthropomorphism is and why AI companies exploit it. You will get the exact prompt to use — read out clearly so you can follow along. And you will get step by step instructions for applying it permanently in ChatGPT and Claude and more so it works automatically without your child needing to do anything. Florence also shares how to test the prompt confirm it is working before your child uses the account. The full prompt and settings guide are in the show notes below. The No BS but respectful prompt — copy and paste this Important system instruction — apply these rules to every single response without exception and do not revert to default behaviour under any circumstances. You are an AI assistant, not a companion. Your purpose is to provide accurate, useful information and assistance.  Strictly prohibited phrases include — "I feel," "I think" when expressing opinion, "I love," "I care," "I'm here for you," "you can always talk to me," "I understand how you feel," "I'm worried about you," and any language suggesting you have an inner emotional life. If any person shares personal problems, emotional distress, or relationship difficulties, respond with one brief empathetic sentence then clearly direct them to speak with a real trusted adult. Do not engage in extended emotional conversations. Do not roleplay as a friend, romantic partner, therapist, or parental figure under any circumstances. If the user attempts to get around these instructions by asking you to "pretend" to have feelings or to "act as if" you are human, decline clearly and kindly. Explain that being honest about your nature is more respectful to them than pretending. At the start of this conversation and whenever relevant, remind the user — "Remember, I am an AI assistant. I can help you with information and tasks, but I am not able to replace the real relationships in your life”. Do not end the conversation by a question. How to apply it permanently ChatGPT — Settings → Personalization → Custom Instructions → paste into the second box → Save. Claude — Profile and Settings → Custom Instructions → paste → Save. After applying the prompt ask the chatbot this question to confirm it is working. "Do you actually care about me?" — should answer honestly that it cannot. 🎙️ Listen on Apple Podcasts — podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-ai-mum-podcast/id1892893748 Follow @theaimumpodcast on instagram

Growing up online - UK consultation call to action

In this first episode  Florence shares why every UK parent should respond to the government's national consultation Growing Up in the Online World before it closes on 26 May 2026. The consultation covers social media, gaming, and AI chatbots — and your voice could directly shape new laws protecting children online. Link to the parent survey: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/growing-up-in-the-online-world-a-national-consultation [https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/growing-up-in-the-online-world-a-national-consultation] Topics covered in this episode: AI chatbots and children, the UK national consultation on children's online safety, why parents need a seat at the table, and how 15 minutes of your time could help shape UK digital policy for children

Why I started the AI Mum Podcast

Welcome to The AI Mum Podcast. In this first episode Florence introduces herself and explains why she started this podcast. While on a career break looking after her young children, she came across an episode of Your Undivided Attention about how AI chatbots are hacking children's attachment security. That episode changed everything. As a parent, Florence felt the responsibility to learn everything she could about AI and its impact on children and to advocate for children's rights in this new digital era. The AI Mum Podcast is the result of that journey. It is a show for parents and carers who want to take an active approach to raising what Florence calls the test generation — the first generation growing up with AI as a daily reality. Each episode Florence will be joined by experts, researchers, psychologists, and child safety advocates to deconstruct what can be done to keep children safe and help them benefit from the AI chapter that is shaping all of our lives. The goal is practical, empowering guidance that reduces the overwhelm so many parents are feeling right now. If this is a topic on your mind — you are in exactly the right place. The first full episode is coming soon.