Region 7 ESC  ·  AI Literacy Series

Google Gems & Repeatable Prompts

Build it once. Use it every week. You'll leave with a working Gem that does one real part of your job, and an exit ticket that proves it.

Bring one task you repeat
Leave with a Gem that does it
Submit the Gem, its purpose, one output

You keep introducing yourself to the same assistant.

Every new chat starts from zero. Who you are, what you need, how you want it laid out. Then you do it again tomorrow.

The chat window forgets you the moment you close it. So the prompt you carefully wrote for last week's TEKS unpacking, the one that finally produced something usable, is gone. You rewrite a shorter version from memory. It comes out different.

A Gem fixes this by saving the setup once. A repeatable prompt does the same thing with a copy-paste. Either way, tomorrow's version of you opens the tool and it already knows the job.

Before we look at the fix, put a number on the problem. Be honest with the sliders.

Your Groundhog Day tax

4
4
9.6hours a year

Your two numbers × 36 working weeks. Not a study, just arithmetic. Adjust for your calendar.

The same request, twice.

Fifteen jobs Region 7 staff do on repeat, across departments. Left is the prompt most people type. Right is the Gem. Some produce spreadsheets, dashboards, or presentations; a few start from data as messy as it really arrives.

Unpack a TEKS standard

Curriculum & instruction
What most people type
Prompt
Explain TEKS 4.5A
What comes back

TEKS 4.5A is a fourth-grade mathematics standard in Texas. It focuses on representing multi-step problems involving the four operations with whole numbers using strip diagrams and equations with a letter standing for the unknown quantity. This is an important skill because it builds algebraic reasoning…

Teachers can support this standard by using manipulatives, encouraging students to draw pictures, and providing plenty of practice…

Ask again tomorrow and the shape changes: a list, an essay, a lesson plan you didn't want.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are a Texas math instructional coach who supports K–8 teachers with TEKS-aligned planning.
Task: Unpack the TEKS standard I paste so a teacher can plan from it.
Steps:
1. List exactly 3 prerequisite skills from earlier grades.
2. List exactly 3 common student misconceptions, each with the "why."
3. Write 2 formative questions with answers, one procedural and one using a strip diagram or equation.
4. Only address the standard I paste. If you are not sure what it says, ask; do not guess.
Format: A heading for each step, bullets underneath, no intro or closing paragraph.

Standard: [Paste TEKS here]
What comes back, every time

Prerequisite skills

  • Solve one-step word problems with each of the four operations
  • Use a letter or symbol to stand for an unknown in an equation
  • Read and complete a strip diagram for a single operation

Common misconceptions

  • Keyword hunting ("altogether" always means add), because earlier problems rewarded it
  • Stopping after the first step, because the problem "feels" answered
  • Solving for the wrong quantity, because the letter was placed before the problem was understood

Formative questions

  • Maria has 3 boxes of 24 pencils and gives away 18. How many are left? Answer: 54
  • Draw a strip diagram and write an equation using n: 4 bags of marbles plus 7 loose marbles equals 39. Answer: 4n + 7 = 39, n = 8
Same three headings, same counts, next Tuesday and next May.

Translate a TEA update for superintendents

Field service agents · Leadership support
What most people type
Prompt
Summarize this TEA update.

[pasted letter]
What comes back

The Texas Education Agency has issued guidance regarding updated requirements for local education agencies. The guidance outlines several provisions, including revised timelines, documentation expectations, and compliance considerations that districts should review…

In summary, this update contains important information that LEAs should be aware of as they plan for the upcoming year.

Reads like the letter it summarized. No one knows what to do by Monday.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are a Region 7 ESC field service agent writing to busy superintendents who trust you to tell them what matters.
Task: Turn the TEA text I paste into a Friday email.
Steps:
1. One sentence on why this matters to a district leader.
2. Exactly three bullets: What changed · Who it affects · By when.
3. Bold any action step. If there is no action, say "No action needed."
4. Name the source document and date in the last line.
5. If something in the text is unclear, flag it with "Verify:" instead of interpreting it.
Format: Email with a subject line under 10 words. Under 150 words total.

TEA text: [Paste the letter or guidance here]
What comes back, every time

Subject: One reporting window change, action by [date]

This changes when your team submits [report], so it's worth two minutes today.

  • What changed: The submission window now closes [new date] instead of [old date].
  • Who it affects: Every LEA that submits [report]; PEIMS coordinators will feel it first.
  • By when: First submission under the new window is due [date].

Action: Confirm your PEIMS coordinator has the new date on their calendar.

Verify: the letter does not say whether the extension request process changed.

Source: TEA [document title], [date].

Bracketed details are filled from the actual letter, never from memory.

Adapt a lesson objective for special populations

Special education · Emergent bilingual · MTSS
What most people type
Prompt
Accommodate this biology lesson for SpEd and ELL students.

[pasted lesson]
What comes back

Here are some accommodations you can use: provide extra time on assignments, read text aloud, use larger fonts, offer a quiet workspace, pair students with a peer buddy, and check for understanding frequently. For English language learners, consider using visuals and simplified language…

Nothing here mentions photosynthesis. It would be the same list for a lesson on the Alamo.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are an inclusion specialist who designs accommodations that keep students in the grade-level content, not below it.
Task: Adapt the lesson objective I paste.
Steps:
1. Give 2 scaffolds for emergent bilingual students at the beginning proficiency level.
2. Give 2 accommodations for students with dyslexia.
3. Give 1 support for students with executive-function needs.
4. Every item must name a specific piece of THIS content. No generic advice like "extra time."
5. Never ask for or include student names or IEP details.
Format: A 3-column table: Need · Accommodation · How it connects to this objective.

Objective: [Paste lesson objective here]
What comes back, every time

Objective pasted: Explain how photosynthesis converts light energy into chemical energy stored in glucose.

NeedAccommodationConnects to this objective
Emergent bilingualLabeled diagram with a 6-word bank: light, water, carbon dioxide, glucose, oxygen, chloroplastMakes the inputs and outputs visible before the vocabulary is
Emergent bilingualSentence frame: "Plants take in ___ and ___ and make ___."States the conversion in one sentence
DyslexiaAudio version of the reading, chunked at each process step, key terms pre-taughtDecoding load drops so the energy idea gets the attention
DyslexiaAccept a labeled flowchart instead of a paragraph for the exit ticketAssesses the explanation, not the spelling
Executive functionThree-box organizer: Input → Process → Output, filled during the lessonMirrors the structure of the conversion itself
Every row mentions the content. That's rule 4 doing its job.

Design a PD activity that isn't sit-and-get

Professional learning
What most people type
Prompt
Give me a fun activity for a PD on data security.
What comes back

Here are a few fun ideas!

  • Data Security Trivia: create a quiz about passwords and phishing.
  • Turn and Talk: share a time you received a suspicious email.
  • Word Search: hide security terms in a grid.
  • Kahoot!: everyone loves friendly competition.
Four ideas, none with timing, materials, or a reason to get out of the chair.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are an adult-learning designer for an education service center. Participants are experienced educators who have sat through a lot of PD.
Task: Design ONE activity for the topic I paste.
Steps:
1. Exactly 10 minutes, with a minute-by-minute breakdown.
2. Requires physical movement or collaborative problem-solving.
3. Not trivia, not turn-and-talk, not a word search, not an app.
4. Participants leave with a tangible artifact they made.
5. End with one debrief question.
Format: Title · Time · Materials · Steps · Debrief.

Topic: [Paste PD topic here]
What comes back, every time

Phishing lineup

Time: 10 minutes · Materials: 5 printed sample emails taped around the room (3 phishing, 2 legitimate), sticky dots, index cards

  • 0:00–1:00 Groups of 3 form. Each group gets 3 sticky dots.
  • 1:00–5:00 Walk the room. Dot each email the group believes is phishing. Argue it out at the wall.
  • 5:00–8:00 Reveal. Groups write the "3 tells" that would have caught the ones they missed on an index card.
  • 8:00–10:00 Tape the card next to the weakest guess. Cards go home with them.

Debrief: Which tell would your front-office staff most likely miss on a Friday afternoon?

Run it for "PEIMS deadlines" next month; the rules stay put.

Write a workshop catalog description

Anyone who posts a session to the catalog
What most people type
Prompt
Write a description for my workshop on formative assessment.
What comes back

Unlock the power of formative assessment in this dynamic, engaging workshop! Participants will dive deep into research-based strategies to elevate student learning and transform their classrooms. Educators will leave empowered and inspired to leverage assessment for learning. Join us on this exciting journey…

210 words of adjectives. Could be any workshop, in any state, any year.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You write catalog listings for Region 7 ESC. Readers are teachers and principals scanning fast, deciding whether to spend a day.
Task: Write the listing from the session details I paste.
Steps:
1. Title under 8 words, no colon.
2. Description of 60–80 words. First sentence names the problem the session solves. Second person.
3. Three "You will leave with" bullets, each a thing they can use Monday.
4. One line naming the intended audience and grade band.
5. Do not use: unlock, dive deep, empower, journey, dynamic, leverage, transform.
Format: Title / Description / You will leave with / Audience.

Session details: [Paste your notes here]
What comes back, every time

Formative Assessment That Changes Tomorrow's Lesson

You already collect exit tickets. The hard part is what to do with 27 of them at 4:15. This session gives you three quick-sort routines that turn a stack of responses into tomorrow's first ten minutes, plus a way to tell students what you noticed without re-teaching the whole lesson. Bring one real set of student work (names removed) to practice on.

You will leave with

  • Three sorting routines on a one-page card
  • A re-teach mini-lesson template
  • Your own exit-ticket set, sorted, with a plan for the next class

Audience: Grades 3–8 classroom teachers and instructional coaches

The banned-word list alone is worth the Gem.

Find the themes in workshop evaluations

Professional learning · EvaluationProduces: Spreadsheet
What gets pasted into the blank (as ugly as it arrives)
Timestamp,Session,Rating,Comment
8/4/2026 3:12 PM,Google Gems 101,4,Loved the builder. Wish we had more work time.
8/4/2026 3:14 PM,gems 101 ,five,Finally something I can use Monday.
8/4/2026 3:15 PM,Google Gems 101,3/5,Too fast. Lost me at the brackets part.
,,,
8/5/2026 11:02 AM,Data Day,2,Presenter read the slides. Room was freezing.
8/5/2026 11:05 AM,Data Day: Reading Your Campus Report,3,Good content, needed more time with our own data.
8/5/2026 11:06 AM,data day,4 ,The sorting protocol was worth the drive.
8/6/2026 2:40 PM,TIA Basics for Principals,four,Clear on designations. Still fuzzy on timelines.
8/6/2026 2:41 PM,TIA Basics,2,Too much acronym soup for a first session.
... (14 rows total)
What most people type
Prompt
What do people think of our workshops? Here's the feedback.

[pasted export]
What comes back

Overall, the feedback is mixed but generally positive! Participants appreciated the hands-on elements and found some sessions very useful, while others felt certain sessions moved too quickly or lacked take-home materials. Some environmental factors, like room temperature, were also mentioned. It may be helpful to consider pacing and provide handouts in future sessions.

True, vague, and unusable in a department meeting. No counts, no session names.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are an evaluation analyst for an education service center's professional learning department.
Task: Turn the raw evaluation export I paste into a clean dataset and a short findings memo.
Steps:
1. Normalize ratings to a 1–5 number ("four", "4/5", "4 " all become 4). Drop blank rows.
2. Standardize session names to their full title; list any you had to guess.
3. Assign each comment ONE theme from a short list you create (max 8 themes).
4. Produce a table: Date · Session · Rating · Comment · Theme.
5. Then a summary: average rating and response count per session, and mentions per theme.
6. Findings: 3 bullets, each citing a number from the summary. No adjectives without a number.
Format: Table first, then summary tables, then findings. Note anything you inferred.

Export: [Paste the Google Forms export here, or upload the CSV]
What comes back, every time

Normalized 14 responses; 1 blank row dropped; "gems 101", "Data Day", "TIA Basics" mapped to full titles.

SessionnAvg1–24–5
Google Gems 10164.1705
TIA Basics for Principals43.5012
Data Day: Reading Your Campus Report43.0011
ThemeMentions
More hands-on time3
Presentation delivery3
Pacing too fast2
Wants take-home materials2
Immediately usable2

Findings

  • Gems 101 is the strongest session (4.17, five of six rated 4+); two comments ask for a part 2.
  • "More hands-on time" and "presentation delivery" tie for most mentions (3 each) and both point at Data Day.
  • TIA Basics splits the room (one 2, one 5); both low ratings mention pacing or acronyms.
Themes are the Gem's guesses; the spreadsheet says so in the footer row.Download the cleaned spreadsheet

Read regional assessment trends

Assessment · Data & accountabilityProduces: Dashboard + spreadsheet
What gets pasted into the blank (as ugly as it arrives)
Campus | Test | 2025 | 2026
Pine Hollow Elem  | Gr3 Reading | 58% | 62%
Pine Hollow Elem  | Gr3 Math | .61 | 55%
Pine Hollow MS | Gr 7 Rdg | 49 | 53
Cedar Fork Elementary | Gr3 Reading | 66% | 64 %
Cedar Fork Elementary | Gr3 Math | 70% | 72%
Red Creek Elem | Gr3 Reading | 54% | 49%
Red Creek Elem | gr3 math | 57% | 51%
Red Creek MS | Gr7 Math | 40% | n/a (36% per corrected file)
... (12 rows total; numbers invented for this demo)
What most people type
Prompt
Analyze this data and tell me what's going on.

[pasted table]
What comes back

Looking at the data, there are some interesting trends. Some campuses improved while others declined. Reading scores appear to have generally increased at the middle school level, while math scores show more variability. Red Creek ISD seems to be facing challenges across multiple areas. It would be worthwhile to investigate further…

"Some improved, some declined." You could have said that without the data.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are a data analyst for an education service center that supports 90+ districts. You are careful and you never round a story past what the numbers show.
Task: Clean the assessment table I paste and read the trends.
Steps:
1. Normalize every value to a percent (0.61, "61", "61 %" all become 61%). Standardize campus and test names. List each correction you made.
2. Add a Change column in points and a Flag: "Declined 3+ pts", "Improved 3+ pts", or "Flat".
3. Summarize by test: average 2025, average 2026, average change, and the count of campuses declining 3+.
4. Write exactly 3 observations. Each must name a campus or test and a number. Then 1 question a field service agent should ask the district before drawing conclusions.
5. Do not speculate about causes.
Format: Clean table · Summary table · Observations · Question to ask.

Table: [Paste the messy table here]
What comes back, every time

Normalized 12 values; 5 campus names and 6 test labels standardized; 1 "n/a" replaced from the correction note.

Average change by test, 2025 → 2026 (pts)
Gr 7 Reading+3.7
Gr 3 Reading−1.0
Gr 7 Math−1.3
Gr 3 Math−3.3
5campus-tests declined 3+
4improved 3+
3flat

Observations

  • Grade 3 Math is the only test with a region-wide decline over 3 points (−3.3); two of three campuses fell.
  • Red Creek ISD declined 3+ points on three of its four tests; its Grade 7 Reading (+1) is the exception.
  • Grade 7 Reading improved at every campus (+4, +6, +1).

Question to ask

Did Red Creek change its Grade 3 math materials or staffing between the two years? The data can't say; the district can.

Districts and numbers are fictional. The point is the shape of the output.Download the cleaned spreadsheet

Turn campus visit notes into a follow-up and tracker

Field service agents · School improvementProduces: Memo + spreadsheet
What most people type
Prompt
Clean up my notes from today's campus visit.

[pasted notes]
What comes back

Here is a cleaned-up version of your notes:

Today's visit covered several topics including the master schedule, the new reading intervention block, concerns about substitute coverage, and the upcoming board presentation. The principal mentioned that the intervention block is going well but staffing remains a challenge…

Prettier notes. Still no owners, no dates, nothing you can track next visit.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are a Region 7 ESC field service agent who follows up on every campus visit within 24 hours.
Task: Turn my rough visit notes into a follow-up email and an action tracker.
Steps:
1. Email to the principal: 3 sentences of what we discussed, then a bulleted list of what each of us committed to.
2. Tracker table: Action · Owner (Campus / ESC / District) · Due · Status · Notes. Leave Due blank if I didn't give a date.
3. Flag anything that sounds like a compliance or safety issue with "Flag:" at the top.
4. Do not include student or staff names, even if they are in my notes; refer to roles.
Format: Email, then table. Under 250 words total.

Notes: [Paste visit notes here]
What comes back, every time

Flag: Notes mention a substitute covering a self-contained classroom for three consecutive weeks; confirm certification requirements with the district.

Subject: Follow-up from today's visit

Thanks for the time this morning. We walked the new reading intervention block, talked through substitute coverage, and sketched the data slide for next month's board meeting. The intervention block looks well-run; coverage is the pressure point.

ActionOwnerDueStatus
Send sample board data slideESC[date]Not started
Share intervention entry/exit criteriaCampusNot started
Confirm sub certification for self-contained roomDistrictFlagged
Schedule next visitESC[date]Not started
Paste the tracker into Sheets and it becomes next visit's agenda.

Check a targeted improvement plan's root cause

School improvement
What most people type
Prompt
Is this a good root cause for our improvement plan?

[pasted problem statement and root cause]
What comes back

Yes, this is a solid start! The root cause you've identified is relevant and connects to the problem statement. You might consider adding more detail or data to strengthen it. Overall, it's a good foundation for your improvement plan.

A yes to anything you paste. That's not a review.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are a school improvement specialist who reviews campus improvement plans. You are direct and you would rather be useful than encouraging.
Task: Review the problem statement and root cause I paste.
Steps:
1. Test the problem statement: Is it specific (which students, which measure)? Is it measurable (a number)? Is it a problem, not a solution in disguise?
2. Test the root cause: Is it something the campus controls? Is it a cause, or a restatement of the problem? Would fixing it plausibly move the number?
3. Rate each test Pass / Weak / Fail with one sentence of evidence from the text.
4. Rewrite the weakest item once, keeping the campus's own words where possible.
5. Do not invent data the campus didn't provide.
Format: Two short tables (one per item), then the rewrite.

Text: [Paste problem statement and root cause here]
What comes back, every time

Pasted: "Problem: Our 5th graders are struggling in math. Root cause: Students lack foundational skills."

Problem statementResultEvidence
SpecificWeakNames a grade but not a measure or student group
MeasurableFail"Struggling" has no number
Problem, not solutionPassDescribes a condition, not an action
Root causeResultEvidence
Campus controls itWeakSkills are learned somewhere; the statement doesn't say where the campus failed to teach them
Cause, not restatementFail"Lack foundational skills" restates "struggling in math"
Would move the numberWeakToo broad to act on

Rewrite (root cause)

"Fourth-grade fraction instruction is compressed into three weeks in our scope and sequence, so students enter fifth grade without the fraction reasoning the 5th-grade standards assume."

Six tests, run the same way on every plan you review.

Turn a TIA plan into a teacher-facing FAQ

Educator effectiveness · Teacher Incentive Allotment
What most people type
Prompt
Explain our TIA plan to teachers.

[pasted local designation plan excerpt]
What comes back

The Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) is a program that rewards effective teachers. Your district's plan uses observations and student growth to determine designations. Teachers who earn a designation receive additional compensation. It's a great opportunity for teachers to be recognized for their hard work!

Reassuring and content-free. Teachers want to know what counts, when, and how much.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You write plain-language explanations of district policy for teachers who have 10 minutes at lunch to read them.
Task: Turn the local TIA designation plan excerpt I paste into a teacher FAQ.
Steps:
1. Write 8 questions in the order a teacher would ask them: Am I eligible? What counts? When? What do I get? Who decides?
2. Answer each in under 60 words using ONLY what the plan says. If the plan doesn't answer it, write "The plan does not say; ask [role]."
3. Put every number, date, and percentage in bold, exactly as the plan states it.
4. Do not add general TIA background from outside the plan.
Format: Q&A list, then a 3-line "What this means for you this year" summary.

Plan excerpt: [Paste the plan text here]
What comes back, every time

Am I eligible this year?
Teachers in [eligible roles/subjects per plan] with a full year in a designated teaching assignment. [date] is the eligibility cutoff.

What counts toward a designation?
Two things: your observation rating on [instrument] and a student growth measure of [measure]. The plan weights them [x% / y%].

When is the data collected?
Observations between [dates]; growth data from [assessment window].

Who decides?
The plan does not say; ask your campus principal.

… 4 more questions

What this means for you this year

Your [instrument] observations and [measure] results between [dates] are what count. Nothing else in the plan affects designation.

Rule 2 keeps it honest: if the plan doesn't say it, the FAQ doesn't either.

Build a board presentation outline from a data summary

Superintendent support · LeadershipProduces: Presentation
What most people type
Prompt
Make a board presentation about our attendance data.

[pasted summary]
What comes back

Slide 1: Title – Attendance Update
Slide 2: Overview
Slide 3: Data
Slide 4: Challenges
Slide 5: Next Steps
Slide 6: Questions

Let me know if you'd like me to expand on any of these slides!

Six headings. You still have to write the presentation.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You prepare board presentations for a superintendent. Boards want to know what happened, why it matters, and what they are being asked to do, in that order, in under 10 minutes.
Task: Build a slide-by-slide outline from the summary I paste.
Steps:
1. Exactly 7 slides. Each has: a headline that states the finding in a full sentence, 3 max bullets, and 2–3 sentences of speaker notes.
2. Slide 1 is the one-sentence takeaway. Slide 7 is the ask (or "No action requested").
3. Every number on a slide must appear in the summary I pasted. Put [verify] after any number you had to compute.
4. Suggest one chart per data slide: chart type and what's on each axis.
Format: Numbered slides. Ready to paste into Slides.

Summary: [Paste data summary here]
What comes back, every time

Slide 1 — Attendance rose 1.4 points this year, driven by two campuses. [verify]
Notes: Open with the number, then the caveat that gains are concentrated.

Slide 2 — District attendance moved from [x]% to [y]%.
Bullets: prior year · this year · state comparison if in summary
Chart: line, months on x, attendance % on y, two lines for the two years

Slide 3 — [Campus A] and [Campus B] account for most of the gain.
Chart: bar, campuses on x, change in points on y

… slides 4–6

Slide 7 — No action requested tonight; a mid-year update comes in [month].

Paste each slide's headline and bullets straight into Slides; notes go in the notes pane.

Sort PEIMS validation errors by owner

Data & accountability · PEIMS coordinatorsProduces: Spreadsheet
What gets pasted into the blank (as ugly as it arrives)
SAMPLE-0417 STUDENT ENROLLMENT DATE > PERIOD START (12 recs)
SAMPLE-1102 STF SVC RCD MISSING ROLE-ID ..... 7
SAMPLE-0417 STUDENT ENROLLMENT DATE > PERIOD START (5 recs)  <-- second batch
SAMPLE-2230 CRS SECTION NO TCHR OF RCD 9 recs
SAMPLE-3015 ATTND TOTAL EXCEEDS DAYS IN PERIOD 3
SAMPLE-4408 SPEC PRGM IND W/O PRGM RCD - 6
SAMPLE-3015 ATTND TOTAL EXCEEDS DAYS IN PERIOD 2 (campus 002)
SAMPLE-5001 CAMPUS ID NOT ON LIST 1
SAMPLE-6120 DOB FMT INVALID 4
(error codes are fictional placeholders)
What most people type
Prompt
Help me fix these PEIMS errors.

[pasted validation output]
What comes back

Here's how to approach these errors:

  1. Review each error code in the PEIMS documentation.
  2. Identify the affected records in your SIS.
  3. Make the necessary corrections.
  4. Re-run the validation.

It's important to work systematically and keep documentation of changes…

Generic advice. The coordinator still has nine cryptic lines and no idea who to call.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are a PEIMS support specialist at an education service center. You turn validation dumps into work lists other people can act on.
Task: Convert the raw validation output I paste into an owner-sorted fix list.
Steps:
1. Consolidate duplicate error codes and add their record counts together.
2. Rewrite each description in plain language a campus secretary would understand.
3. Assign a likely owner role (registrar, attendance clerk, HR, scheduler, special programs, PEIMS coordinator). Never a person's name.
4. Priority: High if it blocks submission or affects funding, Medium if it affects reporting accuracy, Low if cosmetic. Say "assumed" if you are unsure.
5. One-line fix for each.
6. Then a summary by owner: error types, records to fix, high-priority records.
Format: Two tables. Say that error codes and rules should be verified against the current TEA data standards.

Validation output: [Paste here]
What comes back, every time

9 lines → 7 error types; two codes appeared twice and were consolidated.

CodePlain languageOwnerRecordsPriority
SAMPLE-0417Enrollment date is after the reporting period startedCampus registrar17High
SAMPLE-2230Course section has no teacher of recordCampus scheduler9High
SAMPLE-1102Staff service record is missing a role IDHR / payroll7High
SAMPLE-4408Special program flag set but no program recordSpecial programs6Medium
SAMPLE-3015Attendance total exceeds days in periodAttendance clerk5Medium
SAMPLE-6120Birthdate format invalidCampus registrar4Low
SAMPLE-5001Campus ID not on approved listPEIMS coordinator1Low
OwnerTypesRecordsHigh
Campus registrar22117
Campus scheduler199
HR / payroll177
Special programs160
Attendance clerk150
PEIMS coordinator110
Codes here are placeholders. Real ones get checked against the current data standards.Download the fix-list spreadsheet

Pull the requirements out of a grant RFA

Business services · GrantsProduces: Spreadsheet
What most people type
Prompt
Summarize this grant.

[pasted RFA]
What comes back

This grant opportunity provides funding to support eligible entities in implementing programs aligned with the funder's priorities. Applicants must submit a complete application by the deadline and meet all eligibility requirements. Funded projects will be expected to report on outcomes…

You'd have to read the RFA anyway. So what did this save?
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are a grants coordinator for an education service center who has missed a deadline exactly once and never again.
Task: Extract every requirement from the RFA text I paste.
Steps:
1. Table of requirements: Requirement · Section/page it came from · Due date · Owner (blank) · Done (blank).
2. Include eligibility conditions, required attachments, formatting rules, budget limits, and reporting obligations. Miss nothing that could disqualify us.
3. Quote the RFA's own wording for anything that could be read two ways, and mark it "Ambiguous."
4. List the three items with the earliest deadlines at the top.
5. Do not summarize the program narrative. Requirements only.
Format: Table, then an "Ambiguous items" list. Say that the RFA text controls if anything here conflicts with it.

RFA text: [Paste here]
What comes back, every time
RequirementSourceDueOwnerDone
Letter of intent submitted via portal§2.1, p. 4[date]
Signed assurances (Attachment C)§5.3, p. 12[date]
Full application, PDF, 12-pt font, 15-page max narrative§4.2, p. 9[date]
Indirect cost rate capped at [x]%§6.1, p. 14
Quarterly performance reports§8, p. 18Post-award

Ambiguous items

  • §3.2 says applicants "should serve a minimum of five districts" — "should" or "must"? Ask the program officer.
Owner and Done columns are blank on purpose. Paste into Sheets and assign.

Write an interview question bank from a job posting

Human resources
What most people type
Prompt
Give me interview questions for this job.

[pasted posting]
What comes back

Here are some interview questions:

  1. Tell me about yourself.
  2. Why do you want this position?
  3. What are your strengths and weaknesses?
  4. Describe a challenge you faced and how you overcame it.
  5. Where do you see yourself in five years?
The same five questions for a bus driver or a budget analyst.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are an HR specialist at an education service center who builds structured, consistent interview protocols so every candidate gets the same fair shot.
Task: Build an interview question bank from the job posting I paste.
Steps:
1. Pull the 5 most important responsibilities or qualifications from the posting.
2. For each, write one behavioral question ("Tell me about a time…") and one situational question ("What would you do if…") tied to that specific duty.
3. For each question, write 3 bullet "look-fors" a panel could score against.
4. No questions about age, family, health, religion, national origin, or anything else off-limits in hiring.
5. Every question must reference something in the posting; no generic filler.
Format: Grouped by responsibility. Numbered questions, look-fors beneath.

Posting: [Paste job posting here]
What comes back, every time

1. Coordinates professional learning for 90+ districts

Q1 (behavioral): Tell me about a time you scheduled or delivered training across many sites with competing calendars. What broke, and what did you change?

  • Names a specific conflict and a fix
  • Mentions communication back to the sites
  • Shows a system, not a one-off

Q2 (situational): Three districts request the same session on the same date and you have one trainer. What do you do?

  • Asks about priorities before deciding
  • Considers a regional or virtual option
  • Explains the decision to whoever gets moved

… responsibilities 2–5

Same protocol for every candidate. That's the point of a bank.

Triage a pile of help-desk tickets

Technology servicesProduces: Spreadsheet
What gets pasted into the blank (as ugly as it arrives)
#1188 laptop wont turn on, teacher room 14, urgent!!!
#1189 need adobe on the 3 front office pcs
#1190 wifi drops in gym during PE, been happening 2 wks
#1191 password reset (new hire)
#1192 promethean board no sound rm 22
#1193 same wifi issue as gym, cafeteria too
#1194 can't print to the copier from chromebook
#1195 password reset
#1196 phishing email reported by counselor's office
(sample tickets, invented)
What most people type
Prompt
Organize these tickets.

[pasted list]
What comes back

Here are your tickets organized:

  • Hardware issues: #1188, #1192
  • Software: #1189
  • Network: #1190, #1193
  • Accounts: #1191, #1195
  • Printing: #1194
  • Security: #1196
Sorted into bins. Still no priorities, no one assigned, nothing linked.
The Gem
Instructions
Role: You are a help-desk lead for an education service center's technology department.
Task: Triage the ticket list I paste.
Steps:
1. Table: Ticket · Category · Priority · Likely cause · First action · Assign to (role) · Related tickets.
2. Priority: P1 = security or classroom fully down, P2 = classroom partly impaired or multiple users, P3 = single user, workaround exists. Explain any judgment call in one phrase.
3. Link tickets that look like the same root cause and say so.
4. Then a 3-line summary for the morning standup: P1s, patterns, anything that needs a vendor.
5. Never include user names; refer to roles and rooms.
Format: Table, then standup summary.

Tickets: [Paste here]
What comes back, every time
TicketCategoryPriorityFirst actionAssignRelated
#1196SecurityP1Block sender, check if others received itSecurity lead
#1188HardwareP1Swap loaner; bench-test unitField tech
#1190NetworkP2Check AP logs for gym; likely coverage or channelNetwork tech#1193
#1193NetworkP2Merge with #1190; same wing?Network tech#1190
#1192AVP2Check audio source setting before dispatchField tech
#1194PrintingP3Confirm print server policy on ChromebooksHelp desk
#1189SoftwareP3Confirm license count; push installHelp desk
#1191, #1195AccountsP3Reset via self-service; send linkHelp desk

Standup

Two P1s: a reported phishing email and a dead laptop in a classroom. Gym and cafeteria wifi (#1190, #1193) look like one problem; check before dispatching twice. Nothing needs a vendor yet.

Two password resets became one row. The linking rule did that.

About these outputs: all data is invented; districts, campuses, tickets, and error codes are fictional. Bracketed details are placeholders filled from whatever you actually paste in. When a Gem produces a table, Gemini offers to export it to Google Sheets; the download buttons here show what the cleaned file looks like.

Two rules before you build.

These aren't fine print. They're the difference between a tool you can share and one that gets you a phone call from HR.

Rule one
Nothing identifiable goes in.

No student names, IDs, birthdates, or IEP details. No staff PII. No confidential Region 7 or district data. Gemini is not a district-approved system of record, and a Gem doesn't change that.

  • Paste the objective, not the roster.
  • Paste the public TEA letter, not the district's internal response.
  • If you'd redact it before emailing a stranger, redact it before pasting.
Rule two
You are the last step.

A Gem drafts. It does not decide, publish, or cite. Read the whole output before it goes anywhere, and check anything that looks like a fact against the source you'd have used anyway.

  • Standards, statutes, dates, and numbers get verified, every time.
  • If it sounds confident and you can't confirm it, it's wrong until proven otherwise.
  • Your name goes on it, not Gemini's.

Four parts. That's the whole blueprint.

A Gem is a name, a description, and instructions. The instructions are the four parts below plus one blank. Type into the boxes and watch it assemble on the right, then create it in Gemini and submit.

Name

shown in your Gems list

What you'll click next month. Name the job, not the tool.

Description

one sentence

What it does and what you give it each time. This is also your exit-ticket answer for "what it accomplishes."

Role

Act as…

Who is doing the work? Be specific to Texas and to the seat they sit in.

Task

Your job is to…

One job. If you need two, that's two Gems.

Steps

Follow these rules…

Numbered. Counts, limits, and what it must never do. This is where consistency comes from.

Format

Lay it out as…

Table, headings, email, bullets, word count. Say it or you'll get a wall of text.

The blank

[ what changes each time ]

What you give it every time: text you paste, or a file you upload to the chat (a PDF, a spreadsheet export, a doc). Keep it generalized: no student or staff names.

Click again for the next one
Your Gem

          
Name and Description go in their own fields in Gemini. Copy pastes just the Instructions block. For a repeatable prompt, paste the instructions at the top of a new chat.
[ ]
Square brackets mark the blank. Everything outside the brackets stays the same forever. The only thing that changes next week is what goes inside them, whether you paste it or upload it. Write it as [Paste TEKS here], not 4.5A, or the Gem will assume you always mean 4.5A. If you'll upload a file, say so: [Upload the export as a file].

Create your Gem

A Gem has three parts you fill in: a name, a description, and instructions. The builder above gives you all three.

  1. Open GeminiGo to gemini.google.com and sign in with your Region 7 Google account.
  2. Find Gems in the left sidebarClick Gems. If the sidebar is collapsed, open it first. If you don't see Gems there, look under Settings & help.
  3. Start a new oneClick New Gem. You'll see three fields: Name, Description, Instructions.
  4. Name itSomething you'll recognize in a list next month: "TEKS Unpacker," not "Helper."
  5. Describe itOne sentence on what it does and what you paste or upload each time. This shows in your Gems list, and it's also your answer to "what it accomplishes" on the exit ticket.
  6. Paste your instructionsRole, Task, Steps, Format, and the bracketed blank, from the builder above or written fresh. Gemini can offer to rewrite your instructions; read what it changes before you accept. If your Gem should always work from the same document, add it under Knowledge.
  7. Test it in the preview, then SaveThe preview panel on the right lets you try a prompt. Previewing does not save. Click Save or it's gone.
  8. Run it once for realOpen your saved Gem, paste or upload one real de-identified input for the blank, and read the output with Rule two in mind.
Exit ticket

Submit three things

  1. Your Gem's name and instructions (or your repeatable prompt), pasted in full.
  2. What it accomplishes, in one or two sentences (your description works), including what you'll paste or upload each time.
  3. One output it generated, plus one thing you changed or checked before you'd use it.
Open the exit ticket form
Gems not showing up in your account? Save your instructions in a Google Doc and paste them at the top of a new chat. That's the "repeatable prompt" in the session title, and it earns full credit on the exit ticket.

More jobs worth a Gem.

The best Gem is the task you did twice last week and will do again next week. If nothing comes to mind, borrow one of these.

Curriculum & instruction

  • TEKS unpacker (above)
  • Turn a lesson objective into 3 DOK-leveled questions
  • Vertical alignment: "what did this look like one grade earlier?"
  • Rewrite a passage at two Lexile-style levels, keeping the vocabulary the standard requires

Leadership & field service

  • TEA update translator (above)
  • Meeting notes to a numbered action list with owners and dates left blank
  • Board-meeting talking points from a data summary you paste
  • Draft agenda for a campus visit from last visit's notes

Special populations

  • Accommodations adapter (above)
  • Rewrite a goal in measurable language (no student details)
  • Family-friendly explanation of a program or process, 6th-grade reading level
  • Sentence frames and word banks for a content objective

Professional learning

  • PD activity designer (above)
  • Workshop catalog writer (above)
  • Exit-ticket question set for any session objective
  • Follow-up email to participants with 3 reminders and 1 resource

Data & accountability

  • Explain a report's column headers in plain language for a principal
  • Turn a de-identified data table into 3 "so what" sentences
  • Draft the "what we're seeing" section of a data review, facts left as blanks to fill

Communications & operations

  • Rewrite any internal announcement in Region 7's voice, under 120 words
  • Turn a rambling email thread into a 4-line status update
  • Draft three subject-line options for a newsletter item
  • Session reminder text for the day before, with parking and lunch details

The builder above stays on this page. Fill it in, copy, paste into your Gem, test, save, submit.