Part 1 - The Basics

1. What AI Is, and What a 'Script' Really Is

Goal: Understand what an AI chat tool does and why the message you send matters so much.

An AI chat tool is a program that predicts helpful text in response to your message. It has read an enormous amount of writing, so it is good at language: explaining, drafting, summarising, rewriting and answering questions.

It is not a search engine and it is not a person. It does not truly 'know' you, it cannot see your screen, and it only responds to the exact words you send. Think of it as a very fast, very well-read assistant who is brilliant but extremely literal and has no memory of you beyond this conversation.

Your message is called a prompt. Because a good prompt can be saved and reused, we call it a script. Learning to write good scripts is the entire point of this course.

The Script (Template)

[Just write a normal, clear sentence asking for what you want.]

Worked Example

You write

What is a prompt in AI, explained in two sentences for a beginner?

AI replies (sample)

A prompt is the message you type to an AI tool telling it what you want it to do. The clearer and more specific your prompt, the more useful the AI's answer will be.

Why it works

The request was clear and told the AI exactly who it was for (a beginner) and the length (two sentences). Clear in, clear out.

Do & Avoid

Tips

The AI only knows what is in your message plus what it learned during training.
It cannot see files, screens or links unless you paste the content into the chat.
A fresh chat starts with no memory of earlier chats.

Common Mistakes

Assuming the AI can see something you are looking at. If it matters, paste it in.
Treating it as a fact database. It can be confident and wrong; you must verify (Chapter 16).

Practice

Open an AI chat and ask it to describe itself in one sentence.
Ask the same question two different ways and compare the answers.

Teacher Notes Suggested: 15 min

Learning objectives

Students can state, in their own words, what an AI chat tool is and is not.
Students understand that the prompt is the single biggest lever they control.

Talking points

Use the 'literal, fast, well-read assistant with no memory' metaphor throughout the course.
Emphasise that the rest of the course is about improving the input, not the AI.

Answer key / what good looks like

Descriptions will vary; look for the idea that it responds only to the message sent.
Different wording gives different answers - that is the hook for Chapter 2 and 3.

Discussion questions

Where have you already met AI without noticing (autocomplete, recommendations)?
Why might a tool that is 'confident and wrong' be risky in school or work?