My child could be using an AI chatbot or a tablet loaded with YouTube access at school right now, and I never signed off on it. That's the reality in a growing number of elementary schools, most recently spotlighted when First Lady Melania Trump toured Mountain View Elementary in Jefferson, North Carolina, where young students are already building chatbots, running AI-generated experiments, and receiving hundreds of new AI devices through a national donation program.

Preparing kids for the future is a good goal. But handing untested AI tools and unrestricted tablet access to five, six, and seven-year-olds isn't the same as teaching them to code or use a calculator. Many parents across the country have raised alarms about schools giving young children tablets that open the door to YouTube and other AI-driven platforms, often with little transparency about what content or data those tools expose kids to. The pace of these rollouts, driven by donations and national programs rather than local research, means individual school districts may adopt new AI technology in classrooms faster than they can evaluate it for children's safety.

This isn't about being anti-technology or anti-progress. It's about basic transparency: parents deserve to know exactly which AI tools and internet-connected devices are in front of their kids, what safeguards exist, and the chance to opt their child out if they're not comfortable. Right now, that information often isn't offered at all.

We're asking local school boards and superintendents to adopt a simple standard: before any new AI platform, chatbot tool, or internet-enabled tablet is introduced to elementary classrooms, parents must be notified in writing and given the option to opt their child out, with clear disclosure of what content and data the tool can access.

Kids only get one shot at elementary school. Sign the petition to demand parental notice and consent before AI tools reach our youngest students — before a rushed rollout costs a child their privacy or safety.