🧠 Teaching in the Prompt Era: How to Use AI to Co-Create Lesson Plans that Actually Slap
By Professor Timothy E. Bates,PhD , The Godfather of Tech
“Detroit taught me how to build with what I got. Now AI’s giving every teacher the same chance.” — Prof. Bates
📚 The Future of Lesson Planning is Prompt-Based
Let me take you into the lab real quick.
As a Professor of Practice at the College of Innovation & Technology in Flint, and someone raised in the hustle of Detroit and heart of Dearborn, I know what it means to teach with limited tools — and unlimited imagination.
Now AI, specifically ChatGPT and other Gen AI models, can flip that grind into power. But only if you know how to talk to it. This ain’t just about “asking the AI questions.” It’s about prompt engineering with purpose.
And for teachers? That means designing lesson plans like an instructional architect, one step at a time.
🎯 The Framework Prompt: Start with This
If you’re teaching Cybersecurity, History, Math, Language Arts — it don’t matter. AI doesn’t replace your creativity, it amplifies it. Here’s the universal framework I use with teachers and students:
(Role) You are an expert [Cybersecurity | History | Math | etc.] teacher.(Task) Help me create a lesson plan step-by-step. I will ask for various resources.
Every time I ask you for something, give me 3 versions of that thing.
I will choose the best one and we will continue to plan from there.
Start by giving me 3 lesson hooks for a lesson on [Data Privacy | The Civil Rights Movement | Fractions | etc.].(Format) Give me the resources I ask for at a [5th Grade | Middle School | 9th Grade | College Freshman] reading level.
This ain’t a static prompt. It’s a dynamic co-creation prompt. AI plays the assistant, not the boss. You guide it like you would guide your students.
🔐 Example in Action: Cybersecurity for High School
Here’s how this looks in the field — I used this exact method while building a digital literacy and data privacy unit:
Initial Prompt:
(Role) You are an expert Cybersecurity teacher.(Task) Help me create a lesson plan step-by-step. I will ask for various resources.
Every time I ask you for something, give me 3 versions of that thing.
I will choose the best one and we will continue to plan from there.
Start by giving me 3 lesson hooks for a lesson on Protecting Personal Data Online.(Format) Give me the resources I ask for at a 10th Grade reading level.
AI Response:
Hook 1: The $10,000 Mistake
Hook 2: Would You Post Your Password on a Billboard?
Hook 3: Your Data Has a Price Tag (this one hit hard — we used it!)
Then I asked for direct instruction, reading materials, discussion prompts, sentence starters, and an exit ticket — all aligned to that hook.
The final product? A student-centered lesson with:
✅ Real-world relevance
✅ Youth-friendly language
✅ Differentiated reading levels
✅ Built-in critical thinking prompts
✅ All done in less than 20 minutes
💡 Why It Works
AI is terrible at jobs — but phenomenal at tasks. Teaching is a job, but planning one step at a time? That’s task-based. That’s AI’s lane.
When you prompt AI in steps, it doesn’t just give you generic answers — it works with you. You’re the architect. It’s the assistant. Think of it like a digital co-teacher who never sleeps, never complains, and adapts to your classroom needs in real-time.
🎓 Try It With Any Subject
Here’s a remix version for U.S. History:
(Role) You are an expert History teacher.(Task) Help me create a lesson plan step-by-step. I will ask for various resources.
Every time I ask you for something, give me 3 versions of that thing.
I will choose the best one and we will continue to plan from there.
Start by giving me 3 lesson hooks for a lesson on The Civil Rights Movement.(Format) Give me the resources I ask for at a 9th Grade reading level.
Or this for Math:
(Role) You are an expert Math teacher.(Task) Help me create a lesson plan step-by-step. I will ask for various resources.
Every time I ask you for something, give me 3 versions of that thing.
Start by giving me 3 lesson hooks for a lesson on Understanding Fractions.(Format) Give me the resources I ask for at a 6th Grade reading level.
🚀 From Flint to the Future: What’s Next
I’m currently piloting this approach with teachers across Michigan. From Detroit’s DPSCD classrooms to U-M Flint’s lecture halls, we’re showing how Gen AI isn’t here to replace teachers — it’s here to free them.
If you’re an educator, curriculum designer, or youth mentor: give this prompt a shot. Make it yours. Let your style come through. And don’t just teach with AI — train it to teach with you.
🧢 TGot’s Final Thoughts:
AI won’t solve all our problems. But when you hand it the right prompt, it becomes a tool for liberation — for teachers, for students, for communities that were never meant to fall behind.
So keep it real. Keep it local. And keep building smarter.
Detroit, Flint, Southfield, Dearborn — we leading this wave.
Prompt by prompt.
Lesson by lesson.
Generation by generation.
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✍🏽 Professor Timothy E. Bates,PhD
Founder, The Godfather of Tech
Professor of Practice, College of Innovation & Technology
Advocate for Ethical, Culturally Rooted AI in Educatio
#AIinEducation #LessonPlanning #PromptEngineering #CulturallyResponsiveTeaching #TheGodfatherOfTech
