Latticework
Latticework · by Ballard Class

Raise a kid who can't be fooled.

Forty-five ways to think for yourself. One short lesson a day, a quick quiz, and a dollar for every trick they catch in the wild. Built for kids and teens.

The demo is a made-up family you can play with. No sign-up. · Free wall poster

Try one · Pop-up on the tablet
Why

Their feed is built to skip their thinking.

Every ad, every group chat, every viral clip is engineered to get a reaction before a thought. School doesn't teach the defense. Most adults never learned it either.

The good news: a trick you can name is a trick that's lost its power. Kids who can say "that's a false dichotomy" out loud at the lunch table are hard to push around. Latticework gives them the names, the reps, and a reason to go looking.

How it works

About five minutes a day, in this order.

Kids are never quizzed on an idea until they've been taught it. Then it comes back after 1, 3, 7, 14 and 30 days, so it sticks.

  1. 1📚 Learn one new ideaA two-minute lesson: a moment from their world, the idea in plain words, two practice checks, and the question to ask out loud.
  2. 2📝 Quick quizOnly on ideas they've already learned. Mixed up on purpose, so they have to think, not pattern-match.
  3. 3🕵️ Smell testOne real-world claim sized to their age: a pop-up, a group chat, a headline. Fishy, can't tell yet, or legit?
  4. 4🃏 Flip cardsSay it before you look. Four spaced "knew it"s and a card is known cold.
  5. ⭐Want more? Extra creditBonus rounds, learning tomorrow's idea early, and a weekly race. The winner gets a trophy that stays forever.
💵 The bounty. $1 for catching a trick in real life and explaining it. $2 for catching a parent, teaching an idea to someone, or changing their own mind because of evidence. You approve it from your phone and pay in cash.
What's inside

The 45 ideas we teach.

Five sets, each written three times: for little kids, middle kids, and teens. Same idea, different examples, different depth. The explanations below are the teen version, which is about right for grown-ups too.

Tricks people use on you13 ideas
Is it true?9 ideas
Tricks your own brain plays5 ideas
Thinking tools10 ideas
Building things that last8 ideas
363 quiz questions and 86 real-world scenarios, written at three age levels
All 45 ideas as digital flashcards, plus a printable guide and cards
44 explainer videos from TED-Ed, Crash Course, Khan Academy and others, each checked by hand
An AI tutor that only talks about the 45 ideas. Parents can read every question.
A parent dashboard: approvals, payouts, each kid's age and level, and the weekly race
The lattice

One pause, then three questions.

First, notice the rush and wait ten seconds. Then every one of the 45 ideas hangs off one of three questions. That's what makes it a lattice instead of a list. Tap any dot to see which idea it is.

Tricks people use on youIs it true?Your own brainThinking toolsBuilding things that last
0
Did this make me feel something fast? Then wait ten seconds.Little ones: "Feeling it fast? Wait."
1
Who's saying it, and what do they get if I believe it?Little ones: "Says who?"
2
How do they know? Show me.Little ones: "How do you know?"
3
What would I check before I repeat this?Little ones: "Let's check."

Print the poster for your kitchen

Why this exists

I built this for my kids. It started as a dinner-table game: one idea a night, and a dollar for anyone who caught it being used on them the next day. The jar filled up faster than I expected, and so did the questions. Latticework is what happens between dinners: the reps, the scenarios, and the scoreboard. The dinner is still the point.

Justin · Ballard Class

Questions

The short version.

What ages is it for?

Kids and teens. Every idea is written at three levels. You enter each kid's age and their lessons, quizzes and scenarios follow it, and you can move a kid up or down a level. Younger kids get one example and one thing to try; older kids get the full model plus how it shows up online. Little ones do it alongside a parent; teens run it themselves.

How much time does it take?

About five minutes a day for the kid: one short lesson, a quick quiz on ideas they've already learned, and one real-world scenario. Kids who want more can earn extra credit. For you, a minute or two approving what they caught, and one model at dinner whenever you can.

Does it replace talking to my kid about this?

No, and it isn't trying to. The naming game happens between people. The site is the reps between conversations, and it hands you the dinner prompt each night so the conversation is easy to start.

Can teachers use it?

Right now it's built for one family at a time, with one parent account. The live demo shows everything a class would use, with a made-up family and nothing saved. If you teach and want it for a classroom, leave your email below and say so; classroom use is exactly what we want to hear about.

What devices?

Any phone, tablet, or laptop with a browser. It installs to a phone's home screen like an app. No app store, no downloads.

What about privacy?

No ads, no tracking, no selling anything to anyone. Your kids' names and progress live in your family's account and nowhere else. Videos load only when a kid taps play, through YouTube's no-tracking embed.

What does it cost?

Not set yet. Founding families get in first and get a say. The wall poster is free either way.