When the Younger Teaches the Older One: Children Showed Seniors How AI Works and Taught Them Safety Principles

The boys and girls from the Open Future center in Trnava organized an interactive workshop called “Digital Café” for seniors. At the Lifestarter community center, participants tried their hand at AI image recognition, using Spotify and YouTube, and learning the basics of phone security.

The Lifestarter Community Center hosted a unique workshop led by the younger generation for the older one.

“The whole event was a huge success. Seniors from Trnava tried to tell which photos were created by AI and which were real. The children showed them how to create their own playlist on Spotify and how to secure their phones. They explained the differences between security features such as Face ID, a PIN code, and a fingerprint,” explained Lucia Gregorová, senior program manager for Open Future.

Thorough Preparation

The children prepared carefully for the workshop. First, they had the seniors fill out a survey to find out which topics related to digital technology interested them.

They won four categories: artificial intelligence, Spotify, YouTube, and phone security. “A lively discussion took place during the workshop, with many questions and real-life scenarios being raised. After the children’s presentation, the seniors were able to put what they had learned into practice. At each station, assistants—the children—were there to help them navigate every step of using the technologies and apps,” L. Gregorová added.

Intergenerational gatherings are important

The seniors also took home an excellent brochure titled “Stress-Free Phone Use,” which was created just for them by the children who participated in the program. The goal is for them to have this information handy at home so they can refer back to it at any time. One participant even took a brochure for her neighbor—a senior who is immobile but also needs digital skills. She was very happy that she would be able to share this information with him.

One positive aspect of the entire event was that everyone—both the children and the seniors—was satisfied. After the event, coordinator Ivka, who works with children at the Open Future center in Trnava, noted this with a smile: “A quiz sparked a very lively discussion at the Digital Café, during which the children asked the seniors if they could tell the difference between a real image and one generated by AI. The atmosphere was very pleasant and friendly, and even the children said the seniors were very nice. We also invited them to our closing event, MiniExpo 2026.”