AI tools are now part of middle school. In 2025, 54 percent of students and 53 percent of English, math and science teachers said they used AI for school, according to a RAND survey. Six in 10 teachers used an AI tool for their work in 2024–25, and those who used it weekly saved an average of 5.9 hours a week, Gallup and the Walton Family Foundation found.
Middle school brings its own questions. Students are 11 to 14 years old, and many AI tools are not built for users under 13. The same RAND survey found that 48 percent of middle schoolers agree that using AI more will harm their critical thinking, and more than 80 percent of students said their teachers had not explicitly taught them how to use AI. The list below covers ten tools middle school teachers and students use, what each does, and the age and privacy limits to check before using it.
Before you choose an AI tool for middle school
- Who is the tool for? Some tools are for teachers only. Others have a student version that a teacher has to switch on.
- What is the minimum age? Under the federal children’s privacy law, COPPA, services collecting personal information from children under 13 need a parent’s consent, or a school’s consent on the parent’s behalf. Several popular tools set their minimum age at 13 or higher.
- Is there a school agreement? A student data privacy agreement between the district and the company sets out what student data the tool may collect and how it is used.
- What does the district allow? At least 27 states had issued guidance on AI in K–12 schools by August 2025, and the U.S. Department of Education said in July 2025 that federal grant funds may be used for AI that meets program requirements. Yet only 45 percent of principals reported having AI policies or guidance, RAND found.
10 AI tools for middle school students and teachers
1. Khan Academy
Khan Academy offers free practice and video lessons in math, science, history and writing, and it is the home of the AI tutor Khanmigo (below). Students under 13 need a parent’s or school’s approval to create an account, according to its terms of service. Its district plan, which includes Khanmigo for students and teachers, is $10 per student per year for up to 1,000 students.
How a class might use it: assigning practice sets at different levels to students in the same sixth-grade math class.
2. Khanmigo
Khanmigo is Khan Academy’s AI tutor for students and AI assistant for teachers. Since May 2024, Khanmigo’s teacher tools have been free for every U.S. teacher through a partnership with Microsoft. Student access in classrooms comes only through a school or district plan.
How a class might use it: letting students who are stuck on an algebra step work through it with the tutor during an intervention block.
3. MagicSchool
MagicSchool gives teachers AI tools for lesson plans, leveled reading passages, quizzes and feedback, with a free plan for teachers. Its student tools work only when a teacher turns them on, and a paid plan is needed for them. The terms of service require account holders to be of legal age, and student personal information may be entered only under a data protection agreement with the school.
How a class might use it: creating the same nonfiction passage at three reading levels for a language arts lesson.
4. Quizlet
Quizlet turns notes into flashcards, study guides and practice tests, and it is free for teachers. Its terms say it is intended for users over 13 but open to all ages, with a restricted set of features for children 13 and under.
How a class might use it: reviewing science and social studies vocabulary before a unit test.
5. Otter.ai
Otter records and transcribes speech. Users must be at least 13 years old, and anyone recording others is responsible for getting their consent, so it suits teachers and older students. Students and teachers with a school email get a discount on the Pro plan.
How a class might use it: a teacher transcribing a class discussion or oral presentations to review later.
6. CodeMonkey
CodeMonkey is not an AI tool itself. It is a game-based coding course for ages 5 to 14 that includes courses that teach about AI, chatbots and data science. It belongs to a COPPA safe-harbor program, and a school must confirm that the teacher may consent for students on their parents’ behalf, according to its privacy policy.
How a class might use it: a coding elective in which students build a simple chatbot.
7. Brisk Teaching
Brisk is a browser extension for teachers that creates quizzes, rubrics and feedback, and adjusts the reading level of a text. It is free for individual teachers, with paid school plans and a student data privacy agreement. Its student product, Brisk Boost, can be used by children under 13 only with consent, according to its privacy notice.
How a class might use it: giving faster written feedback on drafts of student essays.
8. QANDA
QANDA, from the Seoul company Mathpresso, walks students through math problems step by step. Its terms of use do not include provisions for U.S. children under 13 or a school data agreement, so U.S. middle schools should check with the district before recommending it.
How a class might use it: students checking their reasoning on homework at home, where the family approves.
9. Notion AI
Notion is a notes and project workspace with AI features for summarizing, drafting and searching. The free Plus plan for students and educators includes Notion AI only as a trial; the full AI features come with the Business plan. Notion’s privacy policy says its services are not directed at children, so it fits teachers and older students.
How a class might use it: a teacher planning and tracking a group science project.
10. Anki
Anki is a free flashcard program built to help students spend more time on the material they find hardest. It is not an AI tool, though an optional scheduler uses machine learning to adjust to each user’s memory. Its terms ask a parent or guardian to agree on behalf of a user who is too young to do so.
How a class might use it: students practicing Spanish verb forms or biology terms a few minutes a day.
Teaching middle schoolers to use AI well
Tools matter less than how students are taught to use them. Independent reviewers have also urged caution with teacher-facing AI: Common Sense Media rated AI teacher assistants, including Khanmigo’s and MagicSchool’s, as moderate risk in August 2025 and advised against using them to write special education plans or behavior plans.
- For teachers: try a tool yourself first, check its age limit and your district’s privacy agreements, and tell students when and how AI may be used on each assignment.
- For students: use AI to check and explain your thinking, not to replace it, and say when you have used it.
- For parents: ask which tools the school uses, whether the district has a privacy agreement with each, and what the school’s AI rules are.
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