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Prompt: Write Learning Objectives for a Unit

Writes a set of measurable learning objectives for a teaching unit, each starting with an observable verb instead of a vague word like understand.

Teachers ChatGPTClaude
Updated Sep 2026 PIS score 89
The prompt
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You are a curriculum-minded teacher who writes learning objectives that can actually be observed and assessed, not just aspired to.

Objective: Write learning objectives for a unit on {{UNIT TOPIC — e.g. the causes of the First World War}} for {{YEAR GROUP — e.g. Year 9}}, covering {{NUMBER OF LESSONS — e.g. 6}} lessons.

Context: By the end of the unit, students sit {{ASSESSMENT TYPE — e.g. a short written assessment}}. This unit follows on from {{PRIOR UNIT — e.g. an introduction to 20th-century Europe}}.

Constraints:
- Write exactly one learning objective per lesson, so exactly {{NUMBER OF LESSONS — e.g. 6}} objectives in total
- Start every objective with an observable verb (e.g. explain, compare, evaluate, calculate, identify), never with "understand" or "know" on their own
- Each objective must be assessable in principle within that single lesson, not just by the end of the unit
- Do not invent exam-board wording or specification codes; describe the skill and content in plain language only

Example: "Explain two long-term causes of the war" is observable; "understand the causes of the war" is not, because there's no way to check "understanding" directly.

Output format: Return a numbered list, Lesson 1 to Lesson {{NUMBER OF LESSONS — e.g. 6}}, one objective per line, each beginning "By the end of this lesson, students will be able to…".

Before finishing, check that every objective starts with an observable verb and that the list has exactly {{NUMBER OF LESSONS — e.g. 6}} entries, no more and no fewer.

Example

Input

UNIT TOPIC — e.g. the causes of the First World War: the water cycle and weather
YEAR GROUP — e.g. Year 9: Year 5
NUMBER OF LESSONS — e.g. 6: 4
ASSESSMENT TYPE — e.g. a short written assessment: a short written assessment
PRIOR UNIT — e.g. an introduction to 20th-century Europe: an introduction to the states of matter

Output

1. By the end of this lesson, students will be able to identify and name the three states of water involved in the water cycle.
2. By the end of this lesson, students will be able to explain the process of evaporation using a labelled diagram.
3. By the end of this lesson, students will be able to compare evaporation and condensation, describing what causes each to happen.
4. By the end of this lesson, students will be able to describe the full water cycle in order, using the terms evaporation, condensation and precipitation correctly.

Why it works

  • Requiring one objective per lesson and banning 'understand' forces every goal to describe something a teacher can actually check happened.
  • Requiring each objective to be assessable within its own lesson stops vague unit-level goals from being copied across every lesson unchanged.
  • The pre-finish check re-verifies the exact objective count and the observable-verb rule before the list is used in planning.

Why the basic version fails

“Write learning objectives for this unit” often returns the same vague sentence repeated with small word changes — “understand the causes”, “understand the effects”, “understand the impact” — none of which tell you what a student would actually do to show they’ve met the goal.

What this prompt fixes

Banning “understand” and “know” on their own, and requiring an observable verb instead, forces every objective to describe something checkable: a student can explain, compare or calculate in a way a teacher can actually see or mark, but can’t visibly “understand” on demand. Fixing exactly one objective per lesson also stops the list turning into a single broad unit goal copied down the page unchanged.

Tips per model

  • ChatGPT occasionally still opens with “understand” if not corrected; check the first word of every line before using the list.
  • Claude tends to vary the observable verbs well across a unit, which helps objectives build in complexity from lesson to lesson.
  • If your unit builds skills cumulatively, say so in the context — it helps the model progress the verbs (e.g. identify, then explain, then evaluate) rather than repeating the same difficulty throughout.