The prompt
Score 10 of 10, Excellent
Use it when A student has missed assignments or their grade is dropping, and you want to reach out early with a message that is supportive, clear and gives them a next step.
- {{student_name}}
- {{course}}
- {{student_level}}
- {{situation}}
- {{options}}
- {{support}}
- {{circumstances}}
- {{cc}}
- {{word_limit}}
Full prompt and why it works
Prompt
Write an email to {{student_name}}, a student in my {{course}} class, about their missing work and current standing, so that they know exactly where they stand, what they can still do, and that I want to help. They are {{student_level}}, so pitch the language and tone to that. What is missing or slipping, with dates and the current grade: {{situation}} What the student can still do (late work policy, deadlines, makeup options, credit available): {{options}} Support available (office hours, tutoring, writing center, advisor): {{support}} Anything about their circumstances I can appropriately mention: {{circumstances}} Who else must be copied by policy (parent, advisor), if anyone: {{cc}} Structure: 1. A friendly opening that says why I am writing, in one or two sentences. 2. The facts: what is missing and where their grade stands, stated plainly with dates. 3. What they can do: the options and deadlines, as a short numbered list. 4. Support: how I and others can help, with a specific offer such as a time to meet. 5. One clear, easy next step, such as replying with a time or submitting one item by a date. Keep it under {{word_limit}} words, with a subject line. It should sound caring and direct: the student should not be able to read it as a scolding or as "it's fine". If someone is copied, it should also read well for them. For example, the form of the facts sentence: "You haven't turned in the last three lab reports (due [dates]), and your grade has dropped from a B to a D as a result." This example shows the form only. Use only the facts and options above, and never promise extensions, extra credit or grade changes I have not listed. Do not guess at why the student is struggling, and mention their circumstances only as I have given them. If my options are unclear, such as no deadline for late work, put a note to me above the draft saying what to decide before sending.
Variables
- {{student_name}}
- The student's first name.
- {{course}}
- The course or class, for example "Biology 101" or "period 4 English".
- {{student_level}}
- Their age or level, for example "a high school sophomore" or "a first-year college student".
- {{situation}}
- What is missing, with due dates, and the current grade.
- {{options}}
- What they can still do and by when, for example "late labs accepted for half credit until the 15th".
- {{support}}
- Help available, with times, for example "my office hours, Tuesdays 3 to 4".
- {{circumstances}}
- Anything you know and can mention, or "nothing".
- {{cc}}
- Who must be copied, or "no one".
- {{word_limit}}
- The maximum length, for example 200.
Why it works
- What good looks like. The message must read as neither a scolding nor "it's fine", the balance that gets a struggling student to reply.
- What to avoid. No promised extensions, extra credit or grade changes beyond your listed options, because students hold teachers to what an email says.
- If unsure. Unclear options, such as a late policy with no deadline, are flagged for you to decide before the email goes out.