Fit a stack of grading into your planning periods before grades close

About this exercise

You teach high school English and have four stacks of papers to grade before report card grades are due. You want exactly 5 numbered lines, Monday to Friday, each listing that day's grading with minutes and a total that fits your free minutes, under 80 words, plain text. Finish everything before the deadline in the principal's corrected email, and leave out the optional extras. Write a prompt that gets you exactly that.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

• Missing the correction. The first email says Friday, and the AI spreads grading through Friday. Try: Add: "Grades are now due Thursday Dec 11. Finish by then."
• Ignoring the time limits. The AI splits the stacks evenly and overloads Wednesday. Try: Add: "Each day's total must fit my free minutes. Show the minutes."
• Filling spare time with extras. The AI adds the bulletin board to Friday. Try: Add: "Skip the optional extras."
• Letting the AI pick the layout. The AI makes a big table with headings. Try: Be exact: "Exactly 5 numbered lines like '1. Mon: P1 essays 60 = 60/60 min'. Plain text."
• Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for "under 80 words" and it often lands well over. Try: Cap each part instead: "each line under 11 words."

What a strong prompt includes

• Says how many lines
• Uses the corrected deadline
• Fits the free time
• Skips extras
• Sets a word limit

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