{"id":"wri-np-statement-of-need","audience":"nonprofit","category":"applications","technique":"grounding","title":"Write a grant's statement of need with current, cited numbers","free":false,"task":"A foundation's application asks for a statement of need, 120 words max. Use exactly two statistics, both from the most recent sources in your notes, and name each source in the sentence. Skip emotional adjectives ('heartbreaking', 'desperate', 'devastating', 'tragic'), and end with the one sentence on what your program does about it. Write a prompt that gets that answer.","materialLabel":"Your research notes (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"RESEARCH NOTES - Statement of need, Ashford Literacy Project\nApplication: Tri-County Community Foundation, Education Grants. Field: \"Statement of need (120 words max).\"\n\nData we have:\n- Ashford Unified 3rd grade reading: 2019 state test, 52% of 3rd graders read below grade level. 2024 state test (most recent), 47% read below grade level.\n- Library access: Ashford Public Library 2024 annual report: 2 of Ashford's 5 elementary schools are more than 3 miles from a library branch, with no direct bus route.\n- 2018 county survey: 1 in 4 Ashford households have no children's books at home. (Survey hasn't been repeated, and it's 7 years old.)\n- 2024 Ashford Unified family survey: 38% of families say they read with their child less than once a week.\n\nOur program:\n- After-school reading clubs at the 2 schools far from the library, twice a week, with take-home books.\n- Served 140 kids last year.\n\nBoard chair wants us to \"really pull at the heartstrings\" this time.","rules":[{"type":"maxWords","max":120}],"mistakes":[{"title":"Trusting the AI to count words","why":"AI is bad at counting. Ask for \"under 120 words\" and it often lands well over.","fix":"Cap each part: \"4 sentences, each under 25 words.\"","checks":["maxWords"]},{"title":"Using every number","why":"The AI piles in all the stats, including the old 2018 and 2019 ones.","fix":"Say it: \"Use exactly two stats, both from 2024 sources.\"","checks":["r0"]},{"title":"Unsourced numbers","why":"AI drops numbers in without saying where they came from, which reviewers distrust.","fix":"Add: \"Name the source of each statistic in the same sentence.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"Pulling heartstrings","why":"Asked for need, AI reaches for \"heartbreaking\" and \"devastating\", which reads as fluff.","fix":"Add: \"No emotional adjectives. End with what our program does.\"","checks":["r2"]}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Sets a word limit","patterns":["\\d+\\s*words","word (limit|count)"]},{"label":"Limits the statistics","patterns":["\\b(2|two)\\b.{0,15}(stat|number|data)","exactly"]},{"label":"Uses current sources","patterns":["2024","most recent","current"]},{"label":"Asks for sources","patterns":["source","cite","name (the|each)"]},{"label":"Bans emotional language","patterns":["emotional","heartbreaking","adjectives","factual"]}],"hint":"Funders trust current numbers with named sources. Tell the AI how many stats, which years, how to cite them and what tone to avoid.","rubricLabels":["Uses exactly two statistics, both from 2024 sources (such as 47% below grade level from the 2024 state test, 2 of 5 schools more than 3 miles from a library from the 2024 library report, or 38% reading less than weekly from the 2024 family survey), and none from 2019 or 2018","Names the source of each statistic in the same sentence (such as 'the 2024 state test' or 'the library's 2024 annual report')","Uses none of these words: heartbreaking, desperate, devastating, tragic, and the last sentence says what the program does (after-school reading clubs with take-home books)"]}