“My child wants to use ChatGPT, but I’m not sure whether I should allow it.”
We’re hearing this from parents more and more. After the smartphone, the next judgment call today’s parents are facing is the one around generative AI.
Letting children use generative AI isn’t something that should be banned across the board, nor something to allow unconditionally. By checking three things — the child’s age, the terms of use of the service being used, and the purpose of that use — you can build a standard for your own household to judge by.
This article pulls together a comparison table of age requirements for the major AI services, a way of thinking about AI use for homework and research, age-by-age guidance, an overview of the risks, and a checklist for building household rules you can start using today. Please use it as a starting point for “how should we decide in our family.”
Table of Contents
Should you let your child use generative AI? The answer comes down to age, terms, and purpose
You can judge a child’s generative AI use by age, the service’s rules, and purpose. Rather than a blanket ban, setting household rules is the realistic approach.
According to a survey released in March 2026 by the NTT Docomo Mobile Society Research Institute — the research arm of a major Japanese mobile carrier — generative AI use among junior high school students was roughly three times the previous year, topping 40%, and the gap widening over parents’ own usage rate. Generative AI is no longer “just for adults.”
（Reference：Generative AI Usage: Junior High Students Roughly Triple Year-on-Year, Topping 40%｜NTT Docomo Mobile Society Research Institute）
But that doesn’t make it a case of “everyone’s using it, so it’s fine.” What matters here are three axes: which AI, used by what age, for what purpose.
The three judgment axes parents should check first
① The child’s age
Generative AI services have age requirements. Because conditions differ by service — 13 and older, 18 and older, and so on — first check whether your child’s age meets that condition.
② The terms of use of the service being used
Even if an app download is labeled “12 and older,” that’s separate from the service’s own terms of use. Judging by the app store’s age rating alone is risky; you need to check each service’s official rules.
③ The use, the purpose, and the parent’s level of involvement
Within the same AI service, “looking up the meaning of a difficult word” and “having it write an entire essay” mean completely different things. Confirming as a family what it will be used for is the core of building rules.
“Making the rules visible” is more realistic than “banning it”
From the many parents we’ve heard from, what we sense is that in households that ban AI completely, a situation easily arises where the child keeps using it out of the parent’s sight.
A ban creates a sense of reassurance that “the parent has it under control,” but it carries a different risk — the child’s behavior becomes invisible. Deciding as a family “what we use it for, and how far” makes it easier to grasp how your child is using it. Rather than forbidding it one-sidedly, we recommend starting by thinking it through together.
What age can children use AI services? Check each service’s age requirements
The usable age and the conditions for parental consent differ for each generative AI service. Before letting your child use one, always check the official information.
Comparison of major AI services’ age requirements (as of May 2026, based on official information)
Each service’s official rules are revised from time to time. The following is information as of this article’s writing. Always check the latest official pages.
The major AI services aren’t all ones a child can freely use on their own. It’s important to check the age conditions, parental permission, and the difference between school/organization accounts separately.
| Service name | Rough guide to usable age/conditions | Conditions for under-18s/children | Management features for children | Main points to note at home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT (OpenAI) | 13 and older, or at least the minimum age required in your country of residence | Under-18s need permission from a parent or legal guardian | Parental controls available (from 2025 onward) | Cannot be used by those under 13, or who haven’t reached the minimum age required in their country of residence. Confirm parental permission before use |
| Gemini (Google) | Parents can allow children under 13 (or the applicable age in your country) to access the Gemini app | Even under 13 or under the applicable age, use may be possible if a parent manages and permits it via Family Link | Google Family Link compatible | Parents can manage on/off, but inappropriate content can’t be fully prevented |
| Microsoft Copilot | Personal use is basically 18 and older. Access also expanding to ages 13–18, subject to the minimum age requirement of each country/region | For school/organization accounts, usage conditions differ depending on the educational institution’s or administrator’s settings | Microsoft Family Safety, etc. | Minimum age requirements vary by country/region, so check the latest Microsoft support information before use. Conditions also differ greatly between personal use and school/organization accounts |
| Claude (Anthropic) | 18 and older | Personal use of Claude.ai by under-18s is not permitted | No management features for children (personal use by minors is not anticipated) | Not treated as a personal-use service for elementary, junior high, or high school students |
（Reference：Terms of Use｜OpenAI ／ Supporting Your Child’s Use of the Gemini App｜Google Help ／ Microsoft Copilot Age Limits and Parental Restrictions｜Microsoft Support）
Don’t judge by the app store’s age rating alone
On the iPhone App Store and Google Play, the ChatGPT app is sometimes labeled “12 and older.” But this is the app store’s own classification, and it differs from the service’s terms of use (13 and older; under-18s need parental consent).
“Being able to install the app” does not equal “the child may use it.” Always check the official rules on each service’s official site.
Think differently for under-13s, 13–17, and 18-and-over
Under 13 (where many elementary school children fall)
Most major services don’t anticipate solo use by the child themselves. Using it together with a parent, or through a parent’s management features, is the realistic choice.
Ages 13–17 (where many junior high and high school students fall)
Depending on the service, use may be possible on the premise of parental permission or management. Getting consent and grasping the content of use need to be thought of as a set.
18 and over
On many services, use by the person themselves becomes possible. That said, learning ethics and information literacy are still needed.
How do schools handle generative AI? Reading Japan’s MEXT policy through a parent’s eyes
There are guidelines from Japan’s education ministry for using generative AI at school, but use at home requires each family to build its own rules.
On December 26, 2024, Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) published its “Guidelines on the Use of Generative AI in Primary and Secondary Education (Ver. 2.0).” A revision of the provisional version from July 2023, this edition drops the word “provisional” and offers more concrete support for use in school settings. The guidelines position generative AI as something that, “depending on how it’s used, can become a tool that supports and extends human ability and widens its possibilities,” and the content assumes flexible use rather than prohibition or mandate. At the same time, they ask schools and teachers to guide students so that they don’t take AI output at face value and can, in the end, judge for themselves.
（Reference：Guidelines on the Use of Generative AI in Primary and Secondary Education (Ver. 2.0)｜Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology）
School rules and household rules are separate things
MEXT’s guidelines are mainly reference material for teaching staff, boards of education, and schools. Schools set rules to protect fairness in lessons, assessment, and submitted work. At home, meanwhile, uses arise that school doesn’t anticipate — homework, free-form research, creative work, play, and so on. These guidelines are aimed at Japanese schools, not at households or readers abroad.
School rules don’t apply directly to the home, but both extreme readings — “it’s banned at school, so we won’t let them use it at home either,” and “it’s OK at school, so anything goes at home” — feel a little precarious to us. You need a perspective that refers to the school’s rules while filling in the gaps at home.
For homework, essays, and independent research projects, prioritize the school’s policy
When a child uses AI on schoolwork they’ll submit, that judgment isn’t something the household can settle on its own. Checking the school’s and the homeroom teacher’s policy first comes before anything else. Even if a parent decides “we’ve made it OK,” it can clash with the school’s assessment criteria or submission rules.
MEXT’s guidelines suggest that when generative AI is used, noting the service name, the prompt that was entered, the date, and so on may also be worth considering. When using AI for schoolwork, follow the school’s rules and, if needed, keep yourself able to explain which AI service you used and how.
What parents may check with the school
When something is unclear, we recommend checking directly with the homeroom teacher or the school. Examples of things it’s fine to ask about include whether AI may be used for homework, whether AI may be used for essays and book reports, how AI assistance is treated in research-based learning, and whether AI services can be used on school devices. Asking is nothing to be embarrassed about — it’s an important process for getting the home and school on the same page.
How far is it OK to use AI for homework and research?
For homework, the dividing line is whether AI is used to copy answers wholesale, or as support before and after the thinking.
One of the situations parents puzzle over most is the question “how far do you allow AI for homework?” There’s no “single right answer” to this line-drawing. But organizing, as a family policy, the “uses that are fine,” “uses that need care,” and “uses to avoid” makes it easier to talk things over with your child.
Uses that are easy to make OK at home
- Asking the meaning of a difficult word or concept, to aid understanding
- Checking the text they wrote themselves for typos and missing characters
- Having it suggest candidate keywords for looking things up
- Using it to check their own thinking from a different angle
- Asking it as a reference for “here’s another way of thinking about it”
What these uses have in common is that AI supports the child’s own thinking rather than replacing it.
Uses that need care
- Having AI make a draft of an essay and then finishing it off as is
- Letting AI decide the entire topic and approach for an independent research project
- Having it produce only the answer to a math problem without thinking through the process
- Believing and using AI’s answers without checking sources or grounds
The concern with these is that “the thinking process doesn’t develop easily.” That said, how much of a problem it is also changes with developmental stage and the content of the assignment.
Uses to avoid, and a rough guide for judging
| Use | Judgment at home | Main reason |
|---|---|---|
| Entering personal information (name, address, school name, etc.) | No | Privacy risk |
| Submitting AI’s answer as is | Best avoided | An issue of learning value and school rules |
| Having it write a book report on a book they haven’t read | Best avoided | An issue of fairness in learning assessment |
| Looking up or checking the meaning of words | Easy to make OK | Functions as learning support |
| Using it to help organize their own thoughts | Easy to make OK | Their own words remain |
| Routinely bringing personal worries to AI for advice | Caution | There are situations where connection with people matters |
One thing we’d like you to keep in mind is the check of “after using AI, can they explain it in their own words?” When this becomes a habit, it gets easier for the child themselves to be aware of the difference between using AI and thinking for themselves.
An age-by-age guide to children’s generative AI use
Elementary schoolers using it with a parent, junior high schoolers using it with rules, high schoolers learning verification and responsibility — that’s the realistic shape.
Elementary school children (up to age 12): “using it together with a parent” is the basic
Most major AI services don’t anticipate solo use by under-13s. Even if it’s technically usable, the principle is to stay within the scope of the terms of use.
Even when a parent uses their own account or management features to show a child AI, care is needed so it doesn’t become solo use by the child. Keep things in a state where you can see what the child is about to enter, never enter personal information, and check AI’s answers together as parent and child — make these the minimum rules.
What we’d like you to value more than generative AI in this age band is the “experience of looking things up yourself when you don’t know” and the “experience of asking someone.” The balance between knowing about a convenient tool and not leaning on it too much is something you can build by having an adult present.
Junior high school students (ages 13–15): the “use it with rules” stage
Meeting the terms-of-use age condition means something different from letting them use it freely right away. At the junior high stage, taking AI output in as natural-sounding text can make it feel like “correct information.” That’s because they’re partway through developing critical thinking.
What we’d like to value in this period is the “practice of not believing AI’s answers as is.” Building a habit of starting from “AI said this” and then checking with books and other sources becomes the foundation of AI literacy. Also, for use on homework, check the school’s rules as the top priority.
High school students (ages 16–18): the “learning verification and responsibility” stage
By high school, the situations where AI can be put to use widen — career research, reports, creative work, and more. In this age band, what’s asked for is not just “being able to use it” but understanding “checking sources,” “how to think about copyright,” and “handling personal information.” Submitting AI-generated text as is can become a problem at many schools. If they used AI, it’s important that they indicate so appropriately and can add to and edit it with their own judgment.
| Age/school level | Basic policy | Uses easy to make OK | Uses to avoid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elementary | Use it together with a parent | Word meanings, simple lookups (under parental supervision) | Solo use, entering personal information |
| Junior high | Use it with rules | Learning support, organizing thoughts, checking information | Copying homework wholesale, routine reliance for personal advice |
| High school | Learn to verify | Career research, improving writing, creative support | Submitting information of unknown source, excessive dependence |
The risks of children using AI, and the points parents should know
The main risks are four: entering personal information, misinformation, outsourcing homework to AI, and excessive dependence on AI. Knowing them makes it easier to prepare.
The risk of entering personal information
In the course of a conversation with generative AI, a child may enter personal information without realizing it. Information that shouldn’t be entered includes name, address, school name, face photos, friends’ or family members’ names, family members’ workplaces, household circumstances, and so on.
With generative AI services, the handling of entered content differs by service and by setting. Because, depending on the service, entered content may be used for things like improving features, make it a firm rule that children don’t enter personal information. Google’s official Help also clearly states to tell your child not to share sensitive personal information such as addresses, school names, and family information.
（Reference：Supporting Your Child’s Use of the Gemini App｜Google Help）
AI’s answers can be wrong
Generative AI answers in natural, fluent text, but whether that content is accurate is a separate matter. A phenomenon called “hallucination,” in which it generates plausible-sounding misinformation, can occur.
MEXT’s guidelines also clearly state to “treat generative AI output strictly as a reference, and guide students so that, in the end, they can judge for themselves.” Tell your child to build a habit of checking with official sites, textbooks, trustworthy books, and the like, rather than “it’s correct because AI said so.”
The risk that outsourcing homework to AI reduces opportunities to think
Finishing homework in an instant with generative AI is technically possible. But that also means losing the chance to practice the “ability to solve problems.” Using it as “thinking for yourself and using it as support when you hit a wall” and using it as “having AI produce the answer from the start” involve very different ways of engaging with learning.
Adding the check of “can they explain it in their own words” after using AI for homework to your household rules becomes a chance to confirm their own understanding, rather than leaving everything to AI.
Don’t rely on AI alone for personal worries
If a child is consulting AI about worries over friendships or anxieties at home, grasping that fact first is important. Google’s official Help states that it’s important for parents to support their child in understanding that Gemini is an AI tool and not a human.
It’s also important to tell your child that “AI is not a human teacher or friend, but a tool that can also make mistakes.” AI is good at empathetic-sounding replies, but it has limits when it comes to truly understanding a situation and connecting a child to appropriate support. When a child is carrying a serious worry — something painful, bullying, physical or mental ill-health — it’s important to build a path to consulting people: parents, teachers, school counselors, consultation desks, and so on.
Parental management features also have limits
Parental management features (parental controls, Family Link, and so on) are convenient, but they don’t eliminate every risk. Google’s official Help also clearly states that filter settings can restrict access to inappropriate content to some extent, but can’t restrict it completely.
Rather than relying on settings alone, building a relationship where a child can talk to you when they’re in trouble also leads to long-term safety.
（Reference：Supporting Your Child’s Use of the Gemini App｜Google Help）
Editor’s note
The risk of generative AI most often talked about is the technical problems and misinformation. But what I actually feel, as a parent and as an editor, is something simpler.
A state where the parent has no idea at all that the child is using AI is one of the risks that’s hard to notice at home. A ban breeds the assumption “they probably aren’t using it.” But in reality, at school and at friends’ houses, children have chances to come into contact with AI. Rather than them using it somewhere out of sight, a relationship where you can talk at home about “what happens if you use it this way” creates a state where you’re more likely to notice the risks. More than teaching how to use AI, building a relationship where they can talk to you if something happens is, in the long run, what I think matters more.
How to build household AI rules, starting today
Household rules last better when, rather than a parent deciding one-sidedly, you decide the purpose, the prohibitions, and who to turn to together with your child.
Five rules to decide together as parent and child
When you talk it over with your child, you don’t have to decide everything at once. Try starting by checking these five points.
- Which AI service to use (check the terms of use together)
- What to use it for (put the purpose into words)
- What information must never be entered (name specific personal and family information)
- How far it’s OK to use it for homework (decide after checking the school’s rules)
- Who to consult when in trouble (decide on parents, teachers, consultation desks)
A checklist for building household AI rules
Try checking the following list together as a family. It’s fine if not everything gets ticked. Use it as a way to organize where to start.
- Checked the terms of use and age requirements of the AI service to be used
- Checked the school’s rules (AI use on homework and submitted work)
- Decided not to enter name, address, school name, or face photos
- Decided not to copy homework answers wholesale
- Decided to check AI’s answers against another source
- Decided to talk about troubling content with parents, teachers, or a consultation desk
- Decided on usage time and the place (device) where it’s used
- Decided on a day to review the rules (each term, etc.)
Don’t make the rules once and call it done
Generative AI services change at an extremely fast pace. The age requirement you checked this year may well change next year, and a new service may well spread among children.
Natural points for reviewing the rules include the turn of a school term, when a child changes the smartphone they use, and when talk of a new AI service comes up. Rather than trying to build perfect rules from the start, the stance of “decide at the current stage, and fix it if it turns out wrong” lasts longer.
FAQ: How children use generative AI
We’ve organized the questions most often raised by parents.
- Q1. From what age is it good to let a child use generative AI?
- Rather than a uniform age, you judge by three points: the service’s terms of use, parental management, and the purpose of use. On major services, the age conditions differ by service — 13 and older, 18 and older, and so on. For under-18s, parental permission or management may be required. First check the official age requirements, and from there, deciding rules for use within the family is the starting point.
- Q2. Is it OK to let an elementary school child use ChatGPT?
- ChatGPT’s terms of use set 13 and older, or the minimum age established in your country of residence, as the condition; a child under 13, or who hasn’t reached the minimum age required in their country of residence, cannot create an account and use it themselves. Even when a parent shows and explains the screen under their own responsibility, care is needed so it doesn’t become solo use by the child. Please check the latest terms of use on the official site.
（Reference：Terms of Use｜OpenAI） - Q3. Is it a problem for a junior high student to use AI for homework?
- It depends on the school’s rules. Checking with the homeroom teacher or the school first comes before anything else. At home, it’s realistic to set a rule of checking whether it’s used “as support for organizing their own thinking, rather than copying answers wholesale.” Try asking whether they can explain it in their own words after using AI.
- Q4. What should I do if my child has been using AI without telling me?
- Start by calmly asking “what were you using it for.” Scolding head-on may mean they won’t talk to you next time. Knowing the reason they were using it secretly can, in the end, lead to greater safety. From there, decide rules together on the handling of personal information, use for homework, and what to consult about.
- Q5. Why shouldn’t personal information be entered into AI?
- How entered data is handled differs by service. Depending on the service, entered content may be used to improve the service. We recommend making it clear, as a first rule, not to enter names, addresses, school names, face photos, or information about friends and family.
- Q6. How much can AI’s answers be trusted?
- Generative AI answers in natural text, but the content can be wrong (a phenomenon called hallucination). Rather than “it’s correct because AI said so,” it’s necessary to build a habit of checking with official sites, textbooks, library books, and the like.
- Q7. What should I do if my child has been bringing worries to AI?
- It’s important not to let them rely on AI alone, and to check in advance on a path for talking to people — parents, teachers, school counselors, consultation desks, and so on. Share with your child that AI is “not a human, but a tool that can also make mistakes.” If you sense that consulting AI is increasing, start by talking to them.
- Q8. If a parent isn’t familiar with AI, what should they start with?
- We recommend the parent trying it once themselves first. Starting with something casual like “suggest a menu for tonight’s dinner” and getting a feel for what it’s like is the quickest route. From there, just checking four points — age requirements, handling of personal information, rules for homework use, and where to turn when in trouble — makes for a first preparation for talking it over as a family.
Summary: at home, the “right answer” is “deciding” and “being able to talk”
There’s no “single right answer” about whether to let a child use generative AI, or how far to allow it. But there’s one thing we at TamagoDaruma can say with conviction: leaving it vague tends to create a state where the risks are hard to notice.
Not “we banned it, so they probably aren’t using it,” and not “well, we let them do as they like, but we don’t know what they’re doing” — building a state of “in our house, we use it under these rules; if you run into trouble, talk to us” is, in this era, an important preparation a family can make.
It’s fine for the first rules to be imperfect. As long as they’re something you can review with your child each term, that’s enough. A relationship where you’ve posted the rules somewhere and can say “shall we change this a bit?” is exactly what leads to reassurance at home.
References and primary sources
- （Reference：Generative AI Usage: Junior High Students Roughly Triple Year-on-Year, Topping 40% (March 12, 2026)｜NTT Docomo Mobile Society Research Institute）
- （Reference：Guidelines on the Use of Generative AI in Primary and Secondary Education (Ver. 2.0) (December 26, 2024)｜Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology）
- （Reference：Terms of Use｜OpenAI）
- （Reference：Supporting Your Child’s Use of the Gemini App｜Google Help）
- （Reference：Microsoft Copilot Age Limits and Parental Restrictions｜Microsoft Support）
- （Reference：Protecting the wellbeing of our users｜Anthropic）
※Each service’s age requirements and terms of use are revised from time to time. Always check the latest official information.
