Seven elementary teachers spent the final week of July learning how to introduce artificial intelligence to their students, thanks to a five-day professional development institute hosted by UNLV’s Center for Mathematics, Science and Engineering Education (CMSEE) at McCaw Elementary School in Henderson.

From July 27–31, participants explored the Five Big Ideas of AI alongside foundational computer science concepts—sequences, events, loops, and conditionals. Working hands-on with Google’s Teachable Machine, the Snap! block-based programming environment, and Hummingbird Robotics kits, teachers built their own machine-learning models and programmable robots, gaining the tools and confidence to teach AI and computer science to students in grades 4 and 5.

The institute is part of CMSEE’s broader EducateAI effort to develop an integrated AI curriculum for elementary classrooms, giving young learners meaningful exposure to AI and STEM well before middle school. Participating teachers will now begin implementing these lessons in their own classrooms during the coming school year.

This project is funded by National Science Foundation Grant #2434803

https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award?AWD_ID=2434803