--- title: "Play fact detective with an AI answer" description: "An adult-led game for spotting unsupported claims, asking for evidence and correcting a fictional answer without turning it into a trick test." author: Power of AI date: 2026-09-07 url: https://powerofai.ca/playbooks/family-fact-detective --- # Play fact detective with an AI answer An adult-led game for spotting unsupported claims, asking for evidence and correcting a fictional answer without turning it into a trick test. A useful task, worked through. Children can learn to ask “How do we know?” without needing to navigate a chatbot alone. Use a short, deliberately flawed answer prepared by an adult, then compare it with a small source card. The activity makes evidence tangible: a statement either has support in the material or needs another check. ## Begin with a source everyone can inspect Here is an authored fictional museum card: “The Lantern Room opened in 1984. It contains twelve model boats. Visitors can draw their favorite boat at the activity table.” Now read the invented answer: “The Lantern Room opened in 1894 and has twelve real boats. Every visitor receives a free boat model.” The answer has one date error, a changed object type and an unsupported promise. Explain that this is a made-up practice packet with planted mistakes. It is not a real AI transcript or a test of whether the child can outsmart a machine. The purpose is to practise comparing words and asking for support. Keep the source short enough that the child can find each relevant sentence. ## Use three piles: supported, contradicted, unknown Place each claim in a pile. “Twelve model boats” is supported. “Opened in 1894” is contradicted by the card. “Free boat model” is unknown from the card; the text does not say whether the museum ever offers one. This third category matters because missing evidence is different from proof that a claim is false. Ask the child to point to the words that justify the choice. If they disagree with your category, hear their reasoning and return to the source. The activity should reward a good question and a careful correction, not speed or confident guessing. ### A request you can adapt Prepare a short adult-led fact-checking game using a fictional museum source card. Create three claims: one supported, one contradicted and one not established by the card. Label the packet as fictional and provide an adult answer key separately. Do not ask for personal information or present invented facts as real-world knowledge. ## Rewrite the answer using what is known An authored correction is: “The Lantern Room opened in 1984 and contains twelve model boats. Visitors can draw a boat at the activity table. The card does not say whether visitors receive a model.” The correction restores the facts and keeps the unanswered question visible. Then ask how you would check the remaining question in real life. A sensible answer might be the museum’s current official visitor page or asking staff. “Ask the AI again” may produce another answer, but it does not itself supply independent evidence. Have the adult demonstrate opening a relevant source if the group is ready for that step. ## Let the child become the source author Invite the child to invent a three-sentence card about a moon garden, then write one supported claim and one claim the card does not establish. Swap roles and let them explain your mistakes. Making the source is a good way to notice how easily an answer can add something that sounds reasonable but was never stated. Finish with a shared phrase: “Show me where that came from.” It can apply to an AI answer, a video or a conversation. Keep the lesson balanced: a source can also be wrong or outdated, and finding a matching sentence is only the first check. For this session, careful comparison is enough. [Practise with a family challenge](/for/families) ## Take it further with a changed example When a claim sounds plausible, return to the exact card before discussing the wider world. “The museum has a drawing table” does not establish that every visitor receives free art supplies. Plausibility and support are different questions in this activity. Use three piles: supported by the card, contradicted by the card, and not established. Ask the family to point to the words that explain each choice. Keep “not established” available so uncertainty does not have to become a confident yes or no. For a further exercise, change one sentence on the source card and sort the claims again. Identify which answer should change and which should stay. This shows that conclusions depend on evidence, rather than on remembering the color of the pile from last time. ## Take this into your next task Teach supported, contradicted and unknown as three different answers. [Build your learning roadmap](/for/families#roadmap). ## Questions people ask ### Is every unsupported claim false? No. It means the material in front of you does not establish it. Another source may resolve the question. ### Should I ask a child to find live misinformation? Start with a small adult-prepared fictional packet. It gives you control over the material and a clear answer key. ### How do I keep it fun? Swap roles, invent a playful source and reward careful explanations rather than fast guesses. ### What if the family knows more than the card says? Acknowledge that knowledge, then answer the narrower question about what this card establishes. You can add a separate source and label it clearly. ## Sources and editorial notes Reviewed 2026-09-07. Product capabilities depend on the app, plan, region and workspace settings. Workflows and prompts are authored teaching material, not recorded model results or measured time-saving claims. ## Keep going - [AI for Families and Kids: Adult-Led Activities and Learning](/for/families) - [Use AI to prepare homework hints, not finished answers](/playbooks/homework-hints) - [AI Mission Control: From Idea to Verified Result](/mission-control)