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Give rubric-based feedback on a student paragraph

Practice: Keeping the AI to your sources. About 5 minutes.

About this exercise

You're grading 8th grader Maya's argument paragraph and need feedback for the class portal comment box: at most 3 bullets (one strength, two next steps), under 75 words, plain text, talking to Maya directly. This round you're only grading Evidence and Explanation, so start every bullet with "Evidence:" or "Explanation:", point to her own words, and say nothing on spelling or grammar. Don't rewrite the paragraph or add facts for her. Write a prompt that gets you exactly that.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Asking for "feedback" with no focus. The AI comments on everything, spelling first, and never says which rubric line each comment is about. Try: Add: "Start each bullet with Evidence: or Explanation:. No comments on spelling or grammar."
  • Getting generic praise. "Great job, add more evidence!" fits any paper, so Maya can't tell what to fix. Try: Add: "Each bullet quotes a few of her own words."
  • Letting the AI rewrite it. The AI likes to show a better version or hand over a statistic, which turns the revision into its work, not hers. Try: Add: "Tell her what to do. Don't rewrite her sentences or add facts."
  • No size or format limit. The AI writes a long report with headings and many bullets that won't fit a comment box. Try: Be exact: "At most 3 bullets, plain text, no bold."
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for "under 75 words" and it often lands well over. Try: Cap each part instead: "each bullet one sentence under 20 words."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Labels each bullet by criterion
  • Says to skip spelling
  • Limits the bullets
  • Asks to quote her words
  • Says not to rewrite

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