Writing for different audiences is difficult, even for professionals. It’s no surprise, then, that our students often struggle toggling between audiences.

We can use ChatGPT to model for students how this shifting works!

By completing this activity, students practice:

➢ writing for different audiences

➢ communicating clearly and directly

➢ revising their own viewpoints

➢ predict future pitfalls

Here are the steps:

  1. Open ChatGPT (to do this, you can click here)
  2. Say hi to ChatGPT. Be nice!
  3. Copy and paste these words (make sure to keep the brackets, since they help the AI out): “[writing style: write for a general audience; use concise and clear language; avoid jargon; lean towards short sentences of 6 words or less] Please write me a 2-paragraph essay on ________.” Insert a topic you’re interested in!
  4. Read what ChatGPT has created.
  5. Copy and paste this: “Can you rewrite those paragraphs for an expert audience? Use jargon, longer sentences, and specific examples.”
  6. Read the new output.
  7. Copy and paste this: “Great, thank you. Can you rewrite the paragraphs as if you were writing to a friend or significant other?”
  8. Read the new output.
  9. Thank ChatGPT and write a response using this template: “These paragraphs really show me that _______.” Let the system know what you learned from the activity.
  10. Hold down “Ctrl” and “P” to print the transcript. Click on “Save as PDF” and save it to your computer. Then, you’re ready to upload it to the course’s LMS.