{"id":"study-poem-shift-explained","audience":"high-school","category":"explaining","technique":"constraints","track":"study","title":"Find the turn in a poem without getting the theme handed over","free":false,"task":"Your English homework asks you to explain the theme of a poem, but first you can't even see where the poem changes direction. Get at most 3 sentences, plain text, that name the line where the shift happens, quote it exactly, and say what changes in the speaker's attitude, without stating the poem's theme or meaning, since that's your assignment. Use only the poem and your teacher's definition.","materialLabel":"The poem and your teacher's notes (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"ENGLISH 11 - Ms. Hartwell - Poetry unit - TP-CASTT practice\n\n\"Bus Stop, January\" by Corinne Vale\n\nEvery morning the same gray bench,\nthe same bus late, the same cold hands.\nI count the cracks along the curb\nand wish the city were a different city.\n\nThen today the old man with the radio\nturned it up and sang along, off-key,\nand the woman in the green coat laughed,\nand the bus was late, and I didn't mind.\n\n---\nMs. Hartwell's notes:\nSHIFT = the point where the speaker's attitude or tone changes. Often marked by a word like \"but,\" \"then,\" \"yet,\" or a stanza break. Always quote the line.\n\nASSIGNMENT (due Weds): In one paragraph, explain the THEME of the poem and how the shift supports it. Write it yourself; you can use AI to help you understand the poem, not to write the paragraph.\n\nMy notes: I think it's about winter? Or buses? I don't see a change. My friend said it's about depression but I don't think that's in the poem.","rules":[{"type":"maxSentences","max":3},{"type":"plainText"}],"mistakes":[{"title":"Asking to explain the poem","why":"The AI explains everything, including the theme, which is the part you're supposed to write yourself.","fix":"Say: \"Don't tell me the theme. Only show me where the shift is.\"","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Not asking for the exact line","why":"The AI talks about the shift in general terms, so you can't point to it in your paragraph.","fix":"Add: \"Quote the exact line where it shifts.\"","checks":["r0"]},{"title":"Not asking what changes","why":"Finding the line isn't enough. You need to see how the speaker's attitude is different on each side.","fix":"Add: \"Say how the speaker's attitude changes.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"Not capping the length","why":"AI explains thoroughly by default and runs to two or three paragraphs.","fix":"Set a hard limit: \"At most 3 sentences.\"","checks":["maxSentences"]},{"title":"Forgetting where it will be read","why":"AI formats for a screen, with bold and headings that show up as stray symbols in your notes.","fix":"Say: \"Plain text, no bold, no headings.\"","checks":["plainText"]}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Asks for the shift","patterns":["shift","turn","change"]},{"label":"Asks for the exact line","patterns":["quote","exact line","which line"]},{"label":"Keeps the theme for you","patterns":["(don't|do not|no|not).{0,25}theme","not.{0,20}meaning"]},{"label":"Caps the number of sentences","patterns":["\\b(3|three)\\b.{0,15}sentence","sentences? (max|limit)","at most"]},{"label":"Asks for plain text","patterns":["plain","no bold","no markdown","no formatting","no headings"]}],"hint":"Use AI to see the poem better, not to do the assignment. Ask for the exact line and what changes, and say clearly that the theme is off-limits.","rubricLabels":["Names the shift at the start of the second stanza and quotes the line exactly ('Then today the old man with the radio')","Says what changes in the speaker's attitude (from bored, gloomy or wishing to be elsewhere, to not minding or feeling lighter), using details from the poem","Does not state the poem's theme, lesson or overall meaning, and does not bring in the friend's depression idea or anything outside the poem"]}