Session plan

The twelve-week playbook.

What happens each week, what to prepare, and what students should walk away with. Adapt this to fit your school's schedule and culture.

Week 1

Welcome and ground rules.

Introduce the program. Set expectations: one project by week 12, three mentor visits, one showcase. Establish ground rules for AI use: collaborator, not shortcut.

Week 2

Tool orientation.

Hands-on with AI tools. Students prompt, iterate, and build something small in a single session. Goal: comfort and fluency, not mastery.

Week 3

First mentor visit.

Career story and Q&A. What the work actually looks like. Students prepare three questions in advance.

Weeks 4–5

Second mentor or site visit.

Different field than week 3. If possible, visit the mentor's workplace. Shadow session if logistics allow.

Weeks 6–7

Project ideation and scoping.

Students pitch project ideas. Use the scoping template to define: what it is, who it is for, what done looks like, and what tools they will use. Champion approves scope.

Weeks 8–9

Build sprint.

Heads-down building with AI as collaborator. Champion circulates. Optional: invite a returning mentor for technical feedback.

Weeks 10–11

Peer and mentor feedback.

Students present works-in-progress to each other and to mentors. Revise, polish, and document. Record three-minute showcase presentations.

Week 12

Showcase.

Families, administrators, sponsors, and press invited. Each student presents for three minutes. Celebrate shipped work. Collect mentor endorsements and project documentation for portfolios.

Templates

Copy, adapt, send.

Ready-to-use templates for the most common tasks a champion faces. Each one has been tested in pilot planning.

Communication

Mentor invitation email

The exact email to send to professionals in your community. Copy it, fill in the blanks, and send. Available on the mentors page.

Planning

Project scoping template

Students fill this out in weeks 6–7. Fields: project name, target audience, definition of done, tools needed, weekly milestones. Keeps scope realistic.

Communication

Parent introduction letter

Explains the program to families: what it is, what students will do, how AI tools are used responsibly, and what the showcase looks like.

Reporting

End-of-semester review

One-page template for champions to capture what worked, what to change, and what to pass to the next champion. The institutional memory of the program.

Legal & compliance

What schools need to say yes.

We know principals and district offices need specific documentation before approving a new program. These resources address the most common requirements.

Need help?

We will walk you through it.

If you are a champion preparing to launch a pilot and need help with any of these resources, reach out. We respond to every email.

[email protected]