Mastering AI Prompts for Lesson Planning
A Professional Development Activity on Prompt Engineering
Activity Overview
This professional development activity introduces teachers to the practice of prompt engineering by showing how small changes in prompts dramatically improve AI outputs. Using ChatGPT or another genAI platform as the tool, educators begin with a vague, unhelpful prompt and gradually refine it step by step into an excellent, classroom-ready version. Through the "Prompt Ladder" method, teachers learn to create subject-specific prompts that generate high-quality lesson plans tailored to their classroom needs.
Download Activity Resources
Educator Lesson Plan
Complete facilitation guide with timing, demonstration examples, and discussion prompts
Presentation Slides
Slides with prompt examples (Levels 1-4) and key concepts
Teacher Worksheets
Prompt Ladder template for building and refining prompts step by step
- Science: Structure experiments with objectives and inquiry steps
- Mathematics: Scaffold multi-step problems, model applications, and formative checks
- Social Studies/History: Design inquiry-based lessons on historical events, civics, and geography, build structured guiding questions, and compare perspectives
- Languages: Design vocabulary or grammar practice, and cultural lessons, refine writing tasks, and model clarity
- Arts: Generate creative lesson prompts with boundaries for originality and reflection
- Health/PE: Design lessons on nutrition, fitness routines, or teamwork skills
- Projector and computer for facilitator
- Device with ChatGPT, Gemini or similar genAI platform access per group
- Printed teacher worksheets
- Pens and pencils
