How to run it
For the teacher in the room. Read this once, then keep the one-page schedule on your desk.
For the teacher in the room. Read this once, then keep the one-page schedule (section 4) on your desk.
1. What you are teaching, in one minute
The Bridge AI Method (BAM) teaches students how to talk to AI clearly. It does that with one picture: you would never build a bridge without a blueprint, so you never ask AI for something without planning the request first.
Every prompt stands on four pillars. Students use all four, every time:
| Pillar | Real-world term | What the student does |
|---|---|---|
| Outcome-Anchoring | Goal setting | Says exactly what "done" looks like: "I'll know this worked if..." |
| Expert-Casting | Role prompting | Tells the AI who to be: a role, a style and a tone that fit the job |
| Sequential Scaffolding | Chain prompting | Puts the request in order: first, then, finally |
| Lens-Consistent Correction | Discernment | Checks the result through the same expert's eyes, then fixes one thing |
Four support beams get added only when the job needs them. "Not needed for this one" is a correct answer.
| Beam | Real-world term | Use it when... |
|---|---|---|
| Guardrails | Output constraints | The result needs limits: length, what to leave in, what to keep out |
| Stoplight | Giving the AI space to think | A fast answer would be shallow. It is one forced pause: the AI stops at the gate and answers three questions before it answers you |
| GPS | Offering examples | The destination is unfamiliar, so the student shows the AI an example of "good." If they already know the way, they skip it |
| Diligence | Verify and disclose | Always ends the job. The student is the building inspector: they check one real fact, and they say plainly that AI helped |
The core message to repeat: BAM teaches the communication skill, and the subject is the vehicle. AI is a tool, not a shortcut. You can't write a strong prompt about a book you haven't read, so a good prompt shows that the student understands the material.
The teaching pattern in every lesson: say the real industry term first, then the bridge word. Students leave with vocabulary they will meet again.
2. What's in the box
| You need | File |
|---|---|
| Daily slides (videos are built in) | Slides/ in the kit: day-1-monday-start.pptx to day-5-friday-finish.pptx |
| Student pages, one per day | Student-Pages/ in the kit (or everything in one file: student-worksheets-all-week.pdf) |
| Week plan and rubric on one sheet | teacher-quickstart-and-rubric.pdf |
| Longer track (two weeks) | Two-week decks and the 8-section worksheet: email [email protected] |
| Word-for-word talk-throughs for each idea | Module talk-throughs (useful on the two-week track): email [email protected] |
| The seven videos on their own | Videos/ in the kit, or the Videos page on this site |
| Fonts for the slides | Fonts/ in the kit (install once on the computer that runs the slides) |
The speaker notes on every slide give you the timing, the narration and what to listen for.
3. Before day one
- AI access. Every student needs an AI image tool every day. Monday needs two runs per student; the other days need one. If access fails on a day, students still write the prompt, and you run three or four of them on the board.
- Student codes, not names. Teacher digits plus student digits, like
0412-0007. Pictures and pages are saved ascode-BEFORE,code-1...code-5. - A folder per student (paper or digital) for the week's pages and pictures.
- Play one video from inside the slides on the classroom computer to confirm sound and fonts.
- Choose the subject frame (section 5). Students each pick their own topic inside it.
4. Pick a pacing track
Both tracks teach the same eight ideas and end with the same turn-in. Prompt length is open on both. You decide how long a prompt your class should write. Grade clarity, not word count.
Track A: one week (~5 days). This is the default.
Every day, students use all four pillars on the same goal and rewrite their whole prompt. Each day spotlights one pillar. The slides show a stronger bridge every day (rope, timber, stone, steel truss, steel suspension).
| Day | Spotlight | Video | Live exercise | Student check (Penny's check) | AI runs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon · START · 45 min | Outcome-Anchoring | 1 | Pick one subject. Make the BEFORE picture with one quick line. Write the anchor sentence and a starter line for each pillar. Make Picture 1. | Could a stranger tell if it worked? | 2 |
| Tue · BUILD · 40 min | Expert-Casting | 2 | Keep the anchor. Recast the expert (role, style, tone). Add one detail. Make Picture 2. | Is my expert specific? | 1 |
| Wed · BUILD · 40 min | Sequential Scaffolding | 3 | Split the request into first, then, finally. Add one layer in the step where it belongs. Make Picture 3. | Does each step build on the last? | 1 |
| Thu · IMPROVE · 40 min | Lens-Consistent Correction | 4 | Ask the five questions through the expert's eyes. Find the ONE thing most off, name its pillar, fix only that line. Make Picture 4. | Did I name the pillar? Was my fix specific? | 1 |
| Fri · FINISH · 55–60 min | All four support beams | 5, 6, then 7 | Go through each beam: add one line or write "not needed." Write the final prompt, do the Diligence check, write one sentence on how AI helped. Make Picture 5. Then the filmstrip and send-in. | Which beams did my bridge need, and why? | 1 |
Friday is full. If you have one period, split it after Video 5 (Guardrails + Stoplight) and finish GPS, Diligence and the filmstrip the next morning. Video 7, Build on Your Blueprint, plays last as the wrap-up. If time runs out, skip it. It reviews the week and adds nothing new.
Track B: two weeks (~10 days). One idea per day.
Use this track for younger classes, shorter periods, or when you want each idea to sink in. Students build one prompt across the two weeks on the 8-section Student Prompt Worksheet, filling one box per day.
| Day | Lesson | Video | Slides | What students add |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Welcome + Outcome-Anchoring | 1 | module-0-welcome, module-1 |
Subject + Pillar 1 box. Run once. |
| 2 | Expert-Casting | 2 | module-2 |
Pillar 2 box |
| 3 | Sequential Scaffolding | 3 | module-3 |
Pillar 3 box |
| 4 | Lens-Consistent Correction | 4 | module-4 |
Pillar 4 box. First full run and fix. |
| 5 | Build on Your Blueprint | 7 | module-4b |
Start, Build, Improve rounds (three runs) |
| 6 | Guardrails | 5 (first half) | module-5-guardrails-stoplight |
Guardrails line, or "not needed" |
| 7 | Stoplight | 5 (replay) | same deck | Stoplight line, or "not needed" |
| 8 | GPS | 6 (first half) | module-6-gps-diligence |
GPS line, or "not needed" |
| 9 | Diligence | 6 (replay) | same deck | Diligence check + AI-use sentence |
| 10 | Final turn-in + share | — | module-6 finish slides |
Final prompt, final picture, partner share |
On days 6–9 the videos cover two beams each. Play the whole video both days, and the second day ask, "What did Penny do this time?"
5. Subjects it pairs with
BAM works in any class because the subject is the vehicle. Pick a frame for the whole class, and let each student choose a topic inside it. Here are examples of a strong anchor and expert for each:
| Subject | Students pick... | Strong anchor ("I'll know this worked if...") | Strong expert |
|---|---|---|---|
| Book report (ELA) | A book they're reading | someone who never read the book can tell what the main character wants most | a children's book illustrator who paints cozy watercolor scenes |
| English / writing | Their own story or poem | the picture shows the mood of my opening line, not just the setting | a picture-book artist known for moody night scenes |
| History / social studies | An event or a person | a classmate could name the year and the place from the picture alone | a museum diorama designer |
| Science | A process (water cycle, a food chain) | every step of the cycle is in the right order and labeled with arrows | a science-textbook illustrator |
| Math | A word problem | a friend could solve the problem just by looking at the picture | a teacher who draws clear visual math models |
| Geography | A biome or a country | someone could guess the climate from the plants and the weather | a National-Park poster artist |
| Health / PE | A healthy habit | a 2nd grader would want to try the habit after seeing it | a cheerful cartoon poster designer |
| Art | An artist they studied | the picture uses that artist's colors and shapes on a new subject | a gallery curator who explains styles |
| Music | A song or an instrument | you can tell how the music feels without hearing it | an album-cover artist |
| World language | A vocabulary set | every object in the picture is one of this week's words | a children's picture-dictionary illustrator |
The rule to protect: students must understand their topic before they prompt it. If a student can't say the anchor out loud without the AI's help, they need to go back to the material first.
6. Grading: the 15-point rubric
Grade Friday's final prompt (Track A) or the Final Turn-In box (Track B), with the pictures beside it. You own the final grade, so adjust the weights for your class. Prompt length is open: grade clarity, not word count.
Five rows, scored 3 / 2 / 1:
| Row | 3 · Strong | 2 · Partly | 1 · Not yet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outcome-Anchoring | A stranger could tell if it worked | Clear topic, fuzzy finish line | Just a topic |
| Expert-Casting | Role, style and tone fit the subject | A role only, or a vague one | "An expert," or none |
| Sequential Scaffolding | Steps in order, and each uses the last | Steps that don't connect | One big ask |
| Lens-Consistent Correction | Named the pillar and made one specific fix | Fixed something, but the pillar is unclear | Started over, or said "make it better" |
| Subject connection | The prompt uses real knowledge of the subject (names, facts, details from the book or unit) that a student could only know by studying it | Some real details, mostly general | Only the topic's name |
The first four rows measure how well the prompt is built. The last row measures how well it connects to the subject. It is also your retention signal: a student who scores 3 here has kept what they learned in your unit.
Support beams cost nothing to skip. "Not needed for this one" is a complete answer. Praise a beam that is used with a clear reason.
Must-haves to turn in (not points): a Diligence check (one fact verified) and one sentence that says how AI helped. A prompt without these goes back to the student to finish.
Growth is discussed, not graded. The filmstrip (BEFORE to Picture 5) is for the class conversation: "Which day made the biggest jump, and which pillar did it?" Grading growth would reward students who made a lazy BEFORE picture on purpose.
7. Where students usually get stuck
| Confusion | What to say |
|---|---|
| Stoplight vs. Sequential Scaffolding | Scaffolding is the recipe: the order of the steps. The Stoplight is one taste-test pause inside it: the AI stops and thinks before it answers. |
| "I always need GPS" | GPS is for a place you've never been. If you can describe "good" in your own words, skip it. If you can't, borrow an example you admire. Don't invent one from scratch. |
| Diligence = "it looks fine" | The inspector checks one real fact against a real source (a teacher, a textbook, a trusted website) and tells people AI helped. |
| Correction = starting over | Keep everything. Fix one line. Say which pillar it belongs to. |
| "More is better" | More words is not the goal. One precise new line beats five vague ones. |
Ways to push a vague answer: - Anchor: "if it looks cool" isn't there yet. "If someone who never read the book can tell the dragon is protecting the kids" is. - Expert: "an expert" is not a cast. "A children's book illustrator who paints cozy watercolor scenes" is. - Fix: "make it better" is not a fix. "Keep everything, move the kids into the dragon's glow" is.
8. Send-in and privacy
- One photo per student: the Day 5 page next to Picture 5. Add the filmstrip if you can.
- Student codes only. No names and no faces.
- Email to [email protected] with your class name as the subject.
- Grades stay with you. Communication data is never used to rank students.
9. If something goes wrong
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| A video won't play in the slides | Open Videos/ in the kit, or the Videos page on this site and play the file directly, or read the narration from the slide's speaker notes |
| Fonts look wrong | Install the four files in Fonts/ in the kit, then reopen the deck |
| No AI access today | Students write the prompt on paper. Run three of them on the board and compare as a class |
| A student finishes early | "Add one new layer and say what stays the same." This is the Build on Your Blueprint move |
| An AI picture comes back off-limits or upsetting | Delete it, praise the student for spotting it, and add a Guardrail line. That's the lesson working |