Pioneers of AI

This worksheet is designed for students in Grades 6-8 to build reading comprehension, historical understanding, and critical thinking through short biographies of key pioneers in artificial intelligence. Students read about influential figures such as Alan Turing, John McCarthy, Marvin Minsky, and Herbert Simon, then answer comprehension questions that assess understanding of each individual’s contributions and impact on the development of AI.

Academic Focus

• Informational & Biographical Reading (Grades 6-8) – Understand key details and ideas from short biographies.
• Foundations of Artificial Intelligence – Learn how early thinkers and researchers shaped AI theory and practice.
• Technological Vocabulary – Build familiarity with discipline-specific terms related to computing and AI.
• Synthesis of Information – Compare contributions and recognize how different fields influenced AI’s growth.

Instructional Benefits

• Teacher-Created Resource – Designed by educators to align with middle school ELA, science, and social studies standards.
• Clear Comprehension Questions – Supports accurate recall and deeper understanding of key contributions.
• Interdisciplinary Perspective – Highlights how mathematics, psychology, computer science, and logic intersected in early AI.
• Flexible Use – Ideal for history of technology units, STEM integration, guided reading, or homework.

This printable worksheet helps students appreciate the human stories behind artificial intelligence by focusing on the innovators who laid its foundations. By analyzing biographical information and synthesizing key details, learners strengthen comprehension, critical thinking, and historical awareness. Suitable for classroom or homeschool use, this no-prep activity supports meaningful engagement with the people, ideas, and collaborations that shaped modern AI.

This worksheet is part of our History of AI collection.