Milwaukee students using AI to learn; annual fundraiser coming up
MILWAUKEE - Between coding, artificial intelligence and 3D animation, technology is advancing quickly, and so are students at St. Augustine Preparatory Academy.
These Milwaukee students are prepping for the workforce and they're only in fourth grade. Feet dangling and small hands to the keyboard, the brain power of these fourth graders is enormous.
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The St. Augustine Prep students are learning all about artificial intelligence. Through a partnership with SHARP Literacy, programs focused on science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) are implemented into schools, particularly underserved students, for free.
The kids learn about coding, design and in this case, creating an AI avatar.
"They want to get these kids learning this at a very young age so that will help with workforce development," SHARP Literacy President Linda Welsh said.
Fourth grader Jaxon Carlberg created an avatar that knows everything about space.
"It taught me a lot more about coding," he said.
Upper Elementary Principal Nathan Carlberg said courses like this prepare the kids for advancement in technology, even if they don't pursue a career in tech.
"They look at websites, different topics, and sort of fill their avatar with knowledge about the topics they picked," Carlberg said. "I think they’re also learning about how they interact with information and data and technology in some unique ways."
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Next week, these students will showcase their avatars at the SHARP Literacy fundraiser "A Novel Event," which helps keep programming in local schools.
"These coding skills and video game design and design thinking and engineering and AI all of that is only going to help them forward," Welsh said.
So no matter your age or size, knowledge is power. And these kids are teaching just that.
The 2024 A Novel Event fundraiser is set for Wednesday, Oct. 30. Tickets are available at the SHARP Literacy website.