AI, Plagiarism, and an 8-Year-Old’s Million Naira Essay
Recently, something happened that left me both impressed and absolutely terrified. My 8-year-old daughter has been eager to participate in a creative writing competition, the winner gets NGN1,000,000 (about $650). Determined to become a millionaire this year, she had written a first draft of 200 words and then her teacher told her that she was meant to write a minimum of 1,000 words on imagining a Nigeria with advanced technology.
As her biggest cheerleader and reviewer, I was thrilled when she emailed me her essay for a quick review before printing. I opened the document, expecting the usual brilliance of an eight-year-old’s imagination. But as I read the first few sentences, I immediately knew something was off.
Elissa is a smart child—no doubt about that. But suddenly, her essay of over 1,000 words was filled with complex terminology, well-structured arguments, and a whole chapter into Nigeria’s digital economy and job creation. There were even sections discussing Lagos being the Silicon Valley of Nigeria and companies like Piggyvest , Paystack , and Flutterwave . Clearly something was wrong.
So I called her.
“Elissa, where did you get this from?” I asked.
She hesitated.
I followed up, “Who is Piggyvest? What does Paystack do?”
She had no idea. That was all the confirmation I needed.
Then, she said in her most innocent voice to avoid getting in trouble:
“Mummy, I was having writer’s block, so I asked Copilot to help me.”
I didn’t know whether to laugh, be proud, or be deeply concerned. On one hand, my daughter had just demonstrated a level of tech-savviness and resourcefulness that many adults struggle with. On the other hand, my 8-year-old had used Artificial Intelligence to generate an entire essay, and I was only catching it because it didn’t sound like her.
The fact that she even thought to use Copilot for her “writer’s block” at eight years old is wild, and then attempting to pass it off as ‘her own’—even wilder.
At that moment, I realized that parenting in this era is unlike anything we have ever known. The world is evolving at an unbelievable pace. AI is not something our children will “discover” later in life—it is already embedded in their daily experiences. They don’t just use tech to play games or check emails; they instinctively turn to AI for problem-solving, just as easily as we once turned to Google.
After taking a deep breath, I gave her a crash course on plagiarism—the dangers of passing off someone else’s work as her own, the ethical implications, and of course, I said people who plagiarize go to jail and I won’t be allowed to visit her. (I mean, how else would you know I am an African mother without a little drama?)
She listened, wide-eyed, and promised never to do it again.
But this incident left me with more questions than answers. How do we guide our children to use AI ethically? How do we teach them that technology is a tool, not a crutch?
Kids now have access to tools we never even imagined at their age. They’re not just passively consuming tech; they’re actively using it to “enhance” their work. It’s like we have to teach them integrity, critical thinking, and responsible use of AI in a way that feels natural to them, rather than just banning it.
If you are a parent, educator, or someone who teaches children, how do you ensure that they are using AI as a source of inspiration but not for direct answers? How do we ensure that children still remain creative, finding their own ideas and voice?
This is just the beginning of an ongoing conversation. Our children are growing up in a world where AI is the norm. The best we can do is teach them how to navigate it with wisdom, integrity, and creativity.
And maybe, just maybe, not give their parents mini heart attacks in the process.