Build a seven-part prompt card for one classroom activity
Turn one teaching intention into a reusable prompt card with role, task, context, input, example, format, and clarifying questions.
Why
Why it earns its place
A compact structure makes missing context and unsafe inputs visible before prompting. Reusable cards also let colleagues compare what works instead of starting over.
How
Run it
Start from the learning goal
Write what learners must practise or decide without AI. Choose one small AI contribution that does not replace that practice.
Fill seven fields
Add role, instruction, context, allowed input, a short example, output cues and format, plus permission to ask clarifying questions.
Test with safe material
Run the card on invented or owned content. Check accuracy, age fit, accessibility, bias, copyright, and whether the output serves the learning goal.
Revise and label
Record the tool and date, edit the prompt, and add a human-check note before sharing the card with colleagues.
Ready to paste
Prompt
Role: You are a [bounded classroom-support role].
Instruction: Create [one output] that helps learners practise [learning goal] without completing [human-only task] for them.
Context: Learners are [age range and relevant prior knowledge]. The activity lasts [time] and uses [approved setting/tool].
Allowed input: [teacher-authored, public-domain, licensed, or synthetic material only].
Example: A suitable item looks like [brief original example].
Cues and format: Return [number] items as [table/cards/list], using [language and accessibility requirements]. Attach a checkable source or label “teacher verification needed” for factual claims.
Clarifying questions: Ask up to three essential questions before drafting. If the input is insufficient, say what is missing rather than inventing it.- Audit this output against the learning goal and list what a teacher must verify.
The AIdea layer
The designer’s call
- Human core
- The teacher owns the learning goal, allowed input, age fit, evaluation, and final classroom material.
- The trade
- Reusable structure ↔ formulaic teaching. Fix it by starting from the human learning goal and revising cards after use.
- Skip AI when
- Skip AI when the activity requires copyrighted input, personal data, or the very practice the model would perform.
Check before use
Watch out
Never include identifying learner data or unlicensed published material. Test the card before class; verify facts, bias, accessibility, and tool changes, then record the date and human edits.
Source of truth
Evidence
Cambridge publishes a practical card pack and seven prompt components for teachers; it is an educator resource, not evidence that the structure improves learning.
Cambridge English · Generative AI Idea Pack for English Language Teachers