It is the most common question parents ask, and the most legitimate. Essays polished by AI, maths explained by AI, first drafts generated by AI — over the years, does a child’s own thinking atrophy? Cognitive science gives an answer more honest than yes or no: it depends on how. Cognitive load theory holds that working memory is strictly limited, and that learning happens when that limited capacity is spent on generative processing — organising for oneself, inferring for ones