AI Use Case: Using Projects

Having entered into its third year as a commercial product, large language models like ChatGPT, et al., are having to innovate to be a viable, mass-market commercial product. This intersects with the increasing usage of the professional class with the product. A third important and ongoing factor here is the necessity of remaining organized and creating systems to manage your time and work.

A relatively recent iteration in the LLM market is essentially the idea of projects (nomenclature varies amongst apps - in CoPilot it's Notebooks, in Claude its Projects, Gemini essentially kicked this off with NotebookLM). These are subscription features, outside of NotebookLM. Regardless - this development is both a way of building data and organizing workflows.

An example from copilot.

The first feature of the project-space is the ability to provide greater context for the LLM with specific documents. Providing connection to your current workflow - Office for Microsoft-based or Drive for the Google-crowd - can allow those documents to be imported and linked swiftly. You can also upload pdfs and other common file types. Lastly, NotebookLM offers the ability to link in webpages directly as a source; for other LLMS they can be added in as well.

You can add or start chats within the projects as well, or even provide specific context for the LLM within that chat. NotebookLM and CoPilot offer the ability to have audio overviews - though Google's offering is superior here.

The big benefit is for those who typically start multiple chats or who use individual conversations to take different approaches around the same topic or sources. Prompting allows the LLM to assume different roles. Coupled with added memory features - this can create a series of conversations and agents tackling your documents, sources, and thoughts in different ways. This is also an opportunity for future development to have certain projects be "unlinked" from memory - a possible feature coming down the road. (I believe I saw Ethan Mollick tweet about this but cannot find the reference).

These folders an opportunity to centralize research but also provide more concrete drafting and work efforts. Create a project centered on test creation. Upload relevant information and examples of previous tests. Have the AI generate standards-based assessments on your material using your examples as models. Quick, easy, and specific.

Let's try it!

First I uploaded an old test on Holes that I wrote when I taught fifth grade.

Next - we want to customize instructions for our notebook. Next to Project Files, we click instructions and a dialogue box pops up. This will be where we build our prompt for this ongoing project.

Now, in the case for our project, I selected Macbeth and allowed Search on the chat. You could narrow it using resources you upload or allow search and the resources you uploaded. In this case, I knew that Macbeth was available on the web and thus would make a good demo for the LLM.

With a simple prompt - I got started (remember, we've provided deeper instructions in the project itself, so a more complicated prompt isn't necessary in this chat):

Please generate an assessment for the play Macbeth by Shakespeare.

And ChatGPT produced our assessment:

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Below is a 25-point, 7th‑grade Common Core–aligned assessment on Shakespeare’s Macbeth, structured with: Matching, Vocabulary, Short‑Answer, and two Essay choices (students choose one).

📍 Standards Alignment

• CCSS.ELA‑LITERACY.RL.7.1 • Cite textual evidence

• CCSS.ELA‑LITERACY.RL.7.2 • Theme determination

• CCSS.ELA‑LITERACY.RL.7.3 • Character analysis

• CCSS.ELA‑LITERACY.L.7.4 • Context clues for vocabulary

• CCSS.ELA‑LITERACY.W.7.2 • Argumentative writing

  
  

I. Matching (1 point each = 5 points)

Match each term with its definition.

A. Macbeth B. Lady Macbeth C. The Three Witches D. Banquo E. Duncan

1. ___ The king of Scotland whom Macbeth murders.

2. ___ Macbeth’s friend and fellow general, father of Fleance.

3. ___ A nobleman who becomes consumed by ambition after hearing prophecies.

4. ___ “Fair is foul, and foul is fair” – pushes Macbeth to kill Duncan.

5. ___ Supernatural characters who prophesize Macbeth’s rise and fall.

   
   

II. Vocabulary (1 point each = 5 points)

Define each word as used in the play (in one sentence).

1. Treason

2. Ambition

3. Regicide

4. Pity

5. Apparition

   
   

III. Short-Answer (2 points each = 10 points)

Answer each in one complete sentence, citing evidence or mentioning a scene.

1. What prophecy do the witches give Macbeth in Act 1, Scene 3?

2. How does Lady Macbeth persuade Macbeth to kill King Duncan?

3. What vision does Macbeth see before he murders Duncan?

4. Why does Banquo become suspicious of Macbeth’s actions?

5. What is the significance of “Out, damned spot!” in Lady Macbeth’s guilt‑ridden sleepwalking scene?

   
   

IV. Essay (Choose 1, worth 5 points)

Choice A: Ambition and Consequences Analyze how Macbeth’s ambition leads to his downfall. Include two specific examples from the play and explain how each illustrates the consequences of unchecked ambition.

Choice B: Supernatural Influence Discuss the role of the supernatural (witches and apparitions) in Macbeth. Does fate control the characters, or do they make their own choices? Use two examples to support your argument.

Rubric (for Essays & Short Answers)

• Content & Textual Support – uses specific examples or quotations

• Analysis & Clarity – connects evidence to claim with clear explanations

• Organization & Conventions – logical structure, grammar, mechanics

  
  

Total Points

• Matching: 5

• Vocabulary: 5

• Short Answer: 10

• Essay: 5➡️ 25 points total

  
  

Let me know if you’d like answer keys, rubric details, or modifications!

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Not too shabby! But we can take it a step farther - and ask for further refinement or just export it as is. "Can you create it as an exportable word document?" About thirty seconds later, I have an editable word doc, formatted, with the assessment. No spot for name, date, and student number however.

If I need a new assessment - I can create a new chat, specifying additional instructions as necessary. For example, I wrote a new chat beginning with: "Create an assessment for the civil war based on the eighth grade history standards from the state of california."

The project folder keeps the chat organized in your lefthand bar so that you can jump between them - or close the folder and not see them at all.