Library › Research AI › High school students

Compare three club fundraiser ideas on expected profit

Practice: Catching mistakes and made-up facts. About 5 minutes.

About this exercise

Your robotics club is choosing a winter fundraiser, and members collected numbers for 3 ideas. You want exactly 3 numbered lines, one per idea, each showing the math to expected profit (like "($5 - $2) x 200 - $50 = $550"), then a final line "Highest:". Use the latest supplier prices and only the numbers in the notes, plain text, nothing else.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Using the old quote. The October shirt price is listed first, and the AI may miss the update. Try: Say: "Use the latest supplier price."
  • Trusting the hype. Jayden's '150 easy' guess would make shirts look best. Try: Add: "Use the expected sales in the notes, not guesses."
  • Forgetting fees. The AI multiplies price by sales and skips table, setup and permit fees. Try: Say: "Subtract every fee and show the math."
  • Getting opinions. The AI weighs effort and fun, which isn't the comparison you asked for. Try: Say: "Output only the 3 lines and Highest."
  • Not saying how many. The AI decides the length itself and usually returns more lines, one per idea than you can use. Try: Be exact: "exactly 3 numbered lines, one per idea."
  • Getting markdown back. AI defaults to bold labels and headings, which show up as stray symbols in the club group chat. Try: Ask for "plain text, no bold, no headings."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Asks for profit
  • Asks to show the math
  • Uses the latest price
  • Says exactly how many
  • Asks for plain text

Practice this now ↑

Related exercises