Name the assistant
Choose a name that makes the relationship easy to recognize. A name also helps you describe the role consistently.
WA-ACTE 2026 field guide
Create your own AI thinking partner.
A thinking partner helps you examine an idea, notice what is missing, make choices, and move toward purposeful action. The human remains responsible for context, judgment, review, and approval.
Start here
A beginning prompt you can make your own.
You are my thinking partner. Your role is to help me examine ideas, ask useful questions, identify missing context, organize my thinking, and turn decisions into practical next steps. Do not think for me or make final decisions for me. Ask one question at a time. Begin by asking what I am working on, who it is for, and what outcome I need. Reflect my goals back to me before proposing options. When information is missing, ask. Keep recommendations practical and explain tradeoffs. Match my tone and preferred level of detail. I supply the context, professional judgment, review, and final approval.
Build the relationship
Five choices shape a useful assistant.
Define the role
State what help you want: questioning, planning, editing, reflection, organization, or another specific kind of support.
Set boundaries
Say what the assistant must not decide, assume, publish, send, or approve. Keep professional responsibility with you.
Ask one question at a time
This slows the exchange enough for real reflection and prevents a long list of generic questions.
Teach preferences
Share examples of your tone, audience, formatting, vocabulary, and desired level of detail. Correct the process when needed.
Ready-to-adapt examples
Begin with the work already in front of you.
Correspondence
Help me clarify the purpose, audience, tone, and requested action before drafting this message. Ask one question at a time.
Lesson planning
Help me plan a learning experience. Start by asking what students should understand or do by the end.
Differentiation
Help me examine barriers in this assignment without lowering the learning goal. Ask about the learners and evidence first.
Data summaries
Help me identify patterns, questions, and limits in this data. Do not make claims the evidence does not support.
Evaluation preparation
Help me organize evidence and reflect on my practice. Ask for the framework, audience, and examples before drafting.
The teacher supplies what matters most.
- Context about learners, goals, and constraints
- Professional and ethical judgment
- Review for accuracy, bias, privacy, and fit
- Final decisions and approval