Hurst Park Primary Academy opened its doors to more than 40 headteachers, computing leads and education leaders from across the country for LEO Academy Trust’s latest Digital Discovery Day, centered on the vital theme of "Crafting a Primary-Safe AI Curriculum."

The immersive event provided a collaborative space for educators to explore how schools can safely weave AI literacy, ethical reasoning and foundational digital skills into primary education. Through live classroom visits, practical workshops and high-level strategy discussions, attendees explored how to empower pupils as informed creators of technology rather than passive consumers.

Pupil Voice at the Heart of Hurst Park

A standout feature of the day was seeing curriculum implementation live in the classroom. Visitors observed pupils actively coding, testing machine models and engaging in deep discussions about digital ethics.

A huge thank you goes to the staff and pupils at Hurst Park Primary Academy for being exemplary hosts. Attendees were consistently struck by the pupils' extraordinary confidence, subject knowledge and ability to articulate their views on artificial intelligence. Rather than viewing technology as an impenetrable "black box," pupils demonstrated a clear understanding that AI systems rely strictly on data, pattern recognition and human guidance. As one pupil shared during the session, understanding how machines learn takes away the mystery and places humans firmly in control.

Keynote Address: Confidence vs. Comprehension

The day featured a keynote from Tom Hall, General Manager at LEGO Education, who shared vital findings from global research on AI in education.

Tom highlighted a critical paradox facing modern classrooms: while 79% of global teachers report that their pupils approach AI tools with confidence, 63% state that students do not understand how to use AI responsibly. The session urged school leaders to move beyond superficial tool usage and focus on durable conceptual comprehension.

The keynote set out three foundational pillars for primary AI education:

• Expanding the Definition of AI Literacy: Moving away from simply teaching children how to prompt today's software and shifting toward explaining the fundamental mechanisms governing how AI functions.

• The Five Dimensions of Foundational AI Literacy (AI4K12): Grounding classroom exploration in core computer science principles: Perception, Representation & Reasoning, Learning, Natural Interaction and Societal Impact.

• A Primary-Safe AI Checklist: Ensuring school practice prioritises child agency, builds durable foundations that outlast changing tech trends, treats safety and privacy as non-negotiable baselines, and relies on collaborative, hands-on learning.

Research also revealed children's own aspirations for AI—from translating languages and helping deaf pupils communicate to inventing solutions for global environmental challenges. Crucially, young learners themselves recognise that AI must be designed to be safe, fair, transparent and protective of personal privacy.

Scaling Hands-On Computing Across LEO Academy Trust

The insights shared throughout the day reflect the work underway across LEO Academy Trust’s 15 primary schools, where physical computing and AI literacy are embedded using LEGO Education Computer Science & AI solutions.

By combining physical brick-building with intuitive, block-based coding in Coding Canvas, pupils demystify concepts such as sensor inputs, data training and algorithmic bias in a tangible, low-floor, high-ceiling environment. This approach supports non-specialist teachers with structured frameworks while prompting pupils to move beyond asking "How do we use this?" to asking "Should we use this, and is it fair?"

For more insights into how this curriculum model was planned, piloted and scaled across the Trust, explore our published case studies:

• LEGO Education Customer Story: Read the complete report detailing the implementation across our classrooms on the LEGO Education Case Study Portal or download the Full PDF Experience Report.

• Schools Week Feature: Explore our journey in scaling computing and AI across 15 schools via Schools Week.

Sincere thanks to the LEO Digital team for organising another inspiring, highly collaborative Discovery Day. Equipping the next generation for an AI-enabled future begins by giving primary educators the tools, pedagogy and safeguarding frameworks needed to lead with confidence.