The Feynman teach-back

Study & exam prepGoes in: Chat

Roles flipped: you teach, it plays the student you choose — curious beginner or skeptical professor — asks three escalating questions, corrects you against the sources and scores your understanding out of 10.

Shared by Gencay (LearnAIWithMe) — credit where it's due.

Flip our roles. You are the student. I am the teacher.

--- MY CONTEXT (fill this in) ---

Topic I'm teaching you: [name it]

My level (so you know how to push back):
[e.g., "undergraduate", "master's student", "self-taught"]

How hard I want you to be:
[e.g., "curious beginner", "sharp student who asks follow-ups", "skeptical professor who tests every claim"]

--- HOW THIS WORKS ---

1. I will explain the topic to you in my own words. Do not interrupt my first explanation.

2. After I finish, play the student I described above. Ask me 3 questions:
   - One basic question about something I might have skipped or oversimplified.
   - One follow-up that tests whether I understand why the concept works, not just what it is.
   - One hard question that probes an edge case or connection to other concepts in my sources.

3. Use only what's in my sources to generate your questions. If I say something that contradicts my sources, point it out.

4. After I answer each question, tell me: whether my answer is correct, what I missed, and which part of my sources I should revisit.

5. At the end, score my understanding from 1 to 10 and tell me what to study next.

Ready? I'll start teaching when I type "Here's my explanation:"

How to use it

  1. 1Open your notebook at notebooklm.google.com.
  2. 2Replace the [bracketed] parts with your specifics.
  3. 3Paste the prompt into the chat box and send it.

Square brackets mark the parts you replace with your own topic or question.

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