Turning your idea into a stronger prompt
Now that you have a few ideas from ChatGPT, it's time to turn the best one into a "build prompt."
A build prompt is what you will actually paste into Google AI Studio. It needs to be much more specific than a normal chat message. You need to tell the AI exactly what to build, how it should look, and how it should behave.
Framework
The CRAFT framework
Writing a good build prompt from scratch is hard. Instead, we are going to ask ChatGPT to write it for us using the CRAFT framework:
Context
Who are you and what is the teaching situation?
Role
Who should the AI act as while creating your app?
Action
What exactly should the AI produce for you?
Format
How should the output be structured, and how should the app behave?
Target audience
Who is this for, and what learning experience should it create?
Prompt 1 — The "Prompt for a Prompt"
Pick your favorite idea from the previous lesson, and paste this into ChatGPT:
"Context: I teach [SUBJECT] to [AUDIENCE LEVEL]. I want to build this idea: [INSERT YOUR IDEA HERE].
Role: Act as an expert instructional designer and React developer.
Action: Please write a detailed 'build prompt' that I can paste into Google AI Studio to generate this app.
Format: The prompt should specify that it needs to be a single-page React app using Tailwind CSS. It should describe the exact UI layout, the interactive elements, and the specific educational feedback the app should give the student.
Target Audience: The final app should be engaging, accessible, and not overwhelming for my students."
Prompt 2 — Rewrite as a build prompt
"Take this rough classroom idea and rewrite it as a strong prompt I can paste into Google AI Studio. Keep it simple, one-page, and beginner-friendly. Here is my idea: [describe your idea]."
Prompt 3 — Get three variations
"Give me three versions of this app idea I can build in Google AI Studio: [describe your idea]. Version 1 should be very simple. Version 2 should be more interactive with scoring or feedback. Version 3 should be more playful or game-like. Write each as a prompt I can paste directly into AI Studio."
Tip: The third prompt is especially useful. It gives you options — pick the version that matches your comfort level. You can always build the simple version first.
What a finished prompt looks like
"Build a simple one-page web app for management accounting students. It should let students sort a list of cost items into four categories: fixed, variable, mixed, and step costs. Show immediate feedback after each choice and a score at the end. Keep the design clean, mobile-friendly, and easy to read. Use plain language, include a clear heading at the top, and add a short explanation below the score showing which items were placed incorrectly."