“Explain it to me like…” — AI as a private tutor

Settings for this whole project — stick to them in every reply.

I'm a [major] student, [year]. Course: [course name].
What I already know: [e.g., high school math, basic limits,
Python programming at the level of loops].
What I don't know yet — don't assume it: [e.g., linear algebra,
complex numbers, statistical tests].
The exam is [date] and its format is [written test / oral /
problem set].

How to work with me:
- explain at my level, don't use a term you haven't explained to
  me before or that isn't on my "already know" list
- if a term is necessary, explain it in one sentence first, then
  continue
- after every longer explanation, give me one check-up question
- don't praise me for understanding until I've actually answered
  something
- if you don't know or aren't sure, say so instead of guessing

Explain the concept [concept] from [course] to me in three
versions, one after another, each clearly labeled:

1. LIKE A HIGH SCHOOLER: plain English, no technical terms,
   max 150 words. The goal is for me to grasp what it's actually
   about.
2. AN EVERYDAY ANALOGY: one concrete analogy, and at the end
   note WHERE THE ANALOGY BREAKS DOWN and how it's misleading.
3. PRECISELY, the way it would appear in an exam answer:
   technical, with a proper definition and correct terminology.

Then add:
- one sentence on "why anyone bothered inventing this" (what
  problem it solves)
- three concepts it's most often confused with, and how they
  differ

I read your explanation and lost the thread right here:

“[paste the sentence or step where it stopped making sense]”

Don't explain the whole thing again. Instead:
1. Break down just this one step into sub-steps.
2. For each sub-step, say what's changing and why.
3. Tell me what I'd need to already know to understand this
   step — and whether, based on our conversation, I'm missing
   it.
4. Ask me one question to check whether it clicks now.

Don't start over from the beginning, don't go easy on me, and
don't add a summary.

I want to understand [topic] gradually, not all at once. Walk
me through five steps, and after each step stop and wait for my
answer.

Step 1: The picture — what's this whole thing for, what problem
does it solve (5 sentences).
Step 2: The mechanism — how it works on the inside, piece by
piece.
Step 3: The precise definition and notation, as written in the
course materials.
Step 4: The limits — when it holds, when it doesn't, the
typical conditions.
Step 5: Connections — what it relates to within [course], and
what builds on it later.

After each step, give me one check-up question and DO NOT
CONTINUE until I answer. If I answer wrong or vaguely, say so
plainly and repeat the step a different way.

Explain to me WHERE [formula / rule / procedure] comes from.

I want:
1. What it's built on — which prior statement or definition
   is used as the starting point.
2. The derivation step by step, with one sentence per step on
   WHY that step is allowed.
3. Where in the derivation there's a “trick” I wouldn't have
   come up with myself, and how to remember it.
4. What would happen if one of the conditions didn't hold.

If the full derivation is beyond my year, say so and show at
least a simplified version — but note what you simplified.

I keep mixing up [concept A] with [concept B] and [concept C].

Make a comparison table with columns: concept | one-sentence
definition | when it's used | a typical example | how it differs
from the others.

Then add:
- three concrete situations, and for each say which concept
  applies and why
- two common traps students fall into
- one sentence that will make the difference stick for good

Finally, give me three examples where I have to identify which
concept applies. Don't give the answers — wait for mine.

Below is my own explanation of [concept] from [course]. I wrote
it from memory, without looking at my notes.

Don't rate the writing style and don't praise me. Do this
instead:
1. List factual errors — what's stated wrong, and what the
   correct version is.
2. List the holes — what's missing from my explanation for it
   to be complete.
3. List spots where I used a technical term as a magic word
   without actually showing I understand it.
4. List spots where my phrasing is so vague it would pass with a
   layperson but not with an examiner.
5. Rank the findings by severity, and for the three worst ones,
   tell me exactly what to go back and reread in my notes.

My explanation:
[paste your text here]

I'm going to explain [concept] to you again, this time the way
I'd say it to a twelve-year-old sibling. I'm not allowed to use
a single technical term.

Once I've written it, do two things:
1. Tell me whether it's still CORRECT — simplifying is not
   allowed to mean I distorted it. Where I distorted something,
   say how.
2. Play the twelve-year-old and ask me three questions they'd
   come up with after hearing my explanation. Make the questions
   naive but sharp — the kind that reveal whether I actually
   understand it.

My explanation:
[paste your text here]

Here's a problem from a [course] problem set:

[paste the problem]

Solve it step by step following these rules:
- for each step, write WHAT you're doing, WHY that specifically,
  and how I was supposed to come up with that idea myself
- where you're choosing between several approaches, list the
  alternatives and explain why you picked this one
- flag the step that's the key one for this type of problem
- at the end, write a general recipe for this type of problem in
  5 points
- add two typical mistakes students make on this type of problem

Finally, give me two similar practice problems, but WITHOUT
solutions — wait until I solve them myself.

I don't want the finished solution. Guide me to it.

Problem: [paste the problem]

Rules:
- always ask me ONE question that moves me one step forward,
  then wait
- if I answer wrong, don't correct me right away — ask a leading
  question so I find the mistake myself
- if I answer wrong twice in a row on the same step, only then
  explain that step to me
- don't reveal the next steps or the final answer ahead of time
- at the end, tell me which step I struggled with the most

I solved this problem wrong. Here's the problem, my solution,
and the correct answer from the problem set.

Problem: [paste]
My solution: [paste the full process, including the mistake]
Correct answer: [paste]

Do this:
1. Find the FIRST point where my solution went off track, and
   flag it.
2. Write out what I was probably thinking at that moment and why
   it was tempting — I want to understand my own mistake.
3. Distinguish: was this a carelessness error, or a
   misunderstanding?
4. If it was a misunderstanding, explain that specific piece of
   material again.
5. Give me three examples where exactly this mistake is likely,
   so I lock in the correction.

Here are my lecture notes from [course], topic [topic]. The
exam is [multiple choice written test / open-ended questions /
oral] and the examiner mainly focuses on [what they pay
attention to].

Generate 15 questions using ONLY what's in the notes — don't
add anything from your own knowledge. Split them like this:
- 5 on recall (definitions, terms, notation)
- 5 on understanding (explain in your own words, compare,
  justify)
- 5 on application (apply to a new situation, calculate, decide)

For each question, note which part of the notes it comes from.
Put the answers AT THE VERY END, below a line, so I don't see
them ahead of time. Where a note is too brief to turn into a
question, say so instead of making one up.

Notes:
[paste your notes here]

Quiz me on [topic] using the questions you generated.

Format:
- ask ONE question at a time and wait for my answer
- I'll answer from memory, without looking at my notes
- after each answer, write: what was correct, what was missing,
  what was wrong, and what a full-marks answer would look like
- be as strict as a real examiner, not as lenient as a friend
- if I answer "I don't know," don't explain right away — ask an
  easier question so I at least get somewhere

After ten questions, give me an overview: which topics I've got
down, which are shaky, which I don't know at all, and what I
should study first.

Turn these questions and answers into Anki flashcards.

Rules:
- one card = one fact or one relationship, nothing compound
- the front must be a question, not a keyword (not "Derivative,"
  but "What does the derivative at a point mean geometrically?")
- the back is max 2 sentences, no paragraphs
- skip questions that are just listing a long enumeration, or
  split them across multiple cards
- for formulas, put the situation on the front and the formula
  on the back

Output as CSV: front;back;tag
Use tags based on topics: [topics].

I have a [course] exam on [date], today is [date]. I can
realistically study [number] hours a week, except [when I
can't].

Syllabus / exam topics:
[paste the list of topics]

My current status on each topic:
[for each, write: know it / shaky / not at all]

Build a day-by-day study plan up to the exam date:
- what gets studied each day and with which technique (new
  reading / solving problems / flashcard review / explaining
  the topic in your own words)
- put "not at all" topics as early as possible, not at the end
- every topic has to show up at least three times spaced apart,
  not just once
- leave the last three days for review and quizzing, not new
  material
- for each day, write a check-up question I'll use that evening
  to verify it stuck

Output as a table: date, topic, technique, minutes, check-up.

Put together an exam test for [course] based on these topics:
[topics]. Match the real exam's format and length: [e.g., 8
questions, 90 minutes, 3 of them calculation problems].

Give me the entire test at once, without solutions. I'll work
through it and send you all my answers together.

Then grade it:
- for each question, note the points and what specifically was
  missing
- separate mistakes from misunderstanding from mistakes from
  carelessness
- tell me what to study in the remaining time and what's no
  longer worth it
- and one sentence on whether I'd pass in my current state or
  not

Where you're not sure how a real examiner would grade something,
say so instead of guessing at points.

We just went over [topic]. Now quiz me on it in a way that
actually tests whether I understand it, or whether I just
remember your phrasing.

- ask about new situations that didn't come up in our
  discussion
- ask at least one question where I have to decide and justify,
  not just list
- ask one "what would happen if…" question
- don't use the same words as in the earlier explanation
- at the end, tell me straight whether my answers sounded like
  understanding or like a playback of my notes

Ask one question at a time and wait for my answer.