Artificial intelligence (AI) has opened up exciting new possibilities for educators to leverage technology to design customized and engaging curriculum. With the right prompts and iterative refinement, AI tools like ChatGPT can help generate curriculum ideas, lesson plans, activities, assessments and more. This article provides a step-by-step guide for educators on using AI in curriculum development, with an example for a 5th-grade social studies unit on early American government.
Step 1: Determine the Goal and Scope of the Curriculum
Before beginning the AI prompting process, take time to think through the purpose and parameters of the curriculum you want to create. Consider the following:
- What subject and grade level is the curriculum for?
- What standards or learning objectives do you want it to cover?
- How long will the unit be – weeks/months?
- Will it be project-based, integrated with other subjects, or strictly focus on the core subject matter?
- What resources and materials will be available?
Clearly defining the goal and scope upfront will focus the AI and yield more tailored results.
For our example, let’s say we want a 4-week social studies unit on early American government for a 5th grade class. The curriculum should cover key standards on the establishment of the Constitution, branches of government, Bill of Rights, and role of citizens.
Step 2: Craft Initial Prompts for the AI
With a clear goal in mind, we can start prompting the AI to generate curriculum ideas and content.
Some tips for effective prompting:
- Provide context in each prompt – restate the key goals, parameters, grade level, and subject matter. The AI will continuously refine outputs based on the given context.
- Start broad, then get more specific. Begin with high-level prompts for overall curriculum structure before prompting for detailed lessons, activities, and assessments.
- Use clear, concise language. Avoid overly long or highly technical prompts.
- Request examples frequently. This gives the AI clear signals regarding the level of depth and style you desire.
Here are some starter prompts for our 5th grade American government unit:
- “Please provide a high-level overview and sequence for a 4-week, 5th grade social studies curriculum on early American government focused on the Constitution, branches of government, Bill of Rights, and role of citizens. Include a paragraph briefly summarizing each week’s focus.”
- “Please provide a list of 5 lesson titles and brief descriptions for Week 1 of the curriculum.”
- “Please provide a detailed lesson plan for Week 1, Lesson 1 including a lesson objective, warm-up activity, materials needed, sequence of learning activities, and assessment.”
Step 3: Review Outputs and Refine Prompts
The initial prompts will generate draft curriculum content from the AI. The key next step is to carefully review the outputs, assess how well they map to your goals, and refine the prompts based on the review.
In evaluating the AI outputs, consider:
- Does the overall unit sequence and weekly focus align to the defined subject area, standards, and learning objectives?
- Are lessons, activities, and assessments age-appropriate and well-suited for the grade level?
- Is the content factually accurate and free of bias?
- Is the curriculum engaging and pedagogically sound?
Based on the review, you can revise prompts to guide the AI, provide clearer instructions, request adjustments or alternatives, and ask follow-up questions.
For example, after reviewing a sample lesson plan, you may refine the prompt like:
“The warm-up activity and sequence of learning activities in the lesson plan I reviewed were not age-appropriate. Please modify the lesson plan to include more interactive, hands-on activities suitable for 5th graders.”
Leverage the AI’s ability to continuously refine content based on ongoing user feedback.
Step 4: Curate AI Outputs into Final Curriculum
Once satisfied with the AI generated draft content, the final step is to curate the various outputs into one cohesive curriculum.
This may involve:
- Compiling lesson plans, activities, and assessments into an organized unit sequence
- Formatting content into a usable curriculum document with a table of contents, section headers, etc.
- Making any final edits for clarity, accuracy, or flow
- Adding your own custom introductions or summaries as needed
The AI provides raw material, but the educator curates those parts into the final curriculum. Think of yourself as the editor. Maintain control over the end product by bringing all the AI outputs together into a curriculum aligned with your vision.
Example 5th Grade American Government Curriculum
Here is a brief example of how the AI prompting process could generate a sample week of curriculum content for a 5th grade social studies unit on early American government:
Curriculum Goal: Students will gain an understanding of the establishment of the Constitution and branches of the U.S. government.
Week 1 Overview: Introduction to Creating the U.S. Constitution in 5 Lessons
- 1: The Articles of Confederation and need for a new government
- 2: Drafting the Constitution at the Philadelphia Convention
- 3: Ratifying the Constitution
- 4: Overview of separation of powers and three branches of government
- 5: Assessment on drafting and ratifying the Constitution
Sample Lesson Plan – Week 1, Lesson 2: Drafting the Constitution
Objective: Students will examine key compromises reached at the Philadelphia Convention and draft their own Constitution.
Opening activity: Whole class discussion on challenges of drafting the Constitution and need for compromise.
Main activity: In small groups, students review key events of the Philadelphia Convention, analyze compromises around representation and slavery, and draft their own simple classroom Constitution deciding classroom rules and structure. Students then share their draft Constitutions.
Closing activity: Reflect on how the Founders compromised to draft the Constitution. Discuss how we use compromise to come to agreements today.
Assessment: Students turn in their group’s draft classroom Constitution.
Get Started with AI in Curriculum Development
Creating curriculum can be time-consuming, but AI tools provide efficient support to begin generating ideas and content. With the right prompts and iterative refinement, educators can tap into AI to design customized curriculum that fits their specific goals. The end result still requires an educator’s discerning eye and curation to pull together into a final polished product. Approach AI as a collaborator, have clear objectives, and continuously refine prompts to get the most value for curriculum development.
