New to ChatGPT? Here's how to learn in 15 minutes — this lesson plan could even work for your parents

I’m sure most of the people in their 20s and 30s have become the household IT expert in their parents’ eyes.There have been plenty of moments when my mom has screamed in horror over the Wi-Fi connection being down, called on me to fix it, and I've saved the day with my simple “press the restart button on the router” fix. I’ve also stepped in to show my dad how to attach a document to an email, give my grandmother a quick lesson on how to scan something with a printer and even expose my aunt to the wonders of ordering dinner through a food delivery app.The older folks in my family have begun referring to AI as “ChatGPT” in the same way they still refer to video games as “Nintendo.” And they’ve been requesting my assistance with trying to wrap their head around using the chatbot that’s become synonymous with the trending technology.So I came up with a short and simple lesson plan for AI beginners who want to start using ChatGPT (including my parents).A hands-on crash course for beginners on how to properly use ChatGPT(Image credit: Shutterstock)Right from the jump, I chose to forgo teaching ChatGPT beginners about all the technical jargon that comes with jumping into the world of AI. I feel like there’s no need to confuse someone who’s never used an AI tool before by hitting them with expert terms like “Large Language Model” and “Token.”To start my 15-minute beginner course on how to use ChatGPT, I think it’s worth explaining what it can do. For those not familiar with OpenAI’s chatbot and other AI tools like it, ChatGPT can operate as a digital assistant you can talk to if you ever need help writing, learning, summarizing, brainstorming, planning and solving everyday problems. Simply ask yourself, “What’s something I need help with today?” and turn that into a question you can present to ChatGPT in the form of a prompt.It’s good to know the difference between a weak prompt and a strong one. A weak prompt, such as “Help me get organized,” won’t give you much of a worthwhile result that’s tailored specifically to you. A much more concise prompt to use instead is something like this: “I’m a busy person who feels overwhelmed by my daily tasks. Create a simple morning routine with three priorities [list your three priorities]. Keep it realistic and easy to follow.” Coming up with a prompt that targets your goal, gives ChatGPT context on what it needs to accomplish the task you’ve given it, the limits or preferences you need it to take into consideration and the format of the response you want is key to getting the best results from ChatGPT.(Image credit: Shutterstock)Then comes the hands-on part. A ChatGPT beginner should choose a current objective they need help accomplishing, type it into the chatbot as a prompt, take note of the answer they get back and use follow-up responses if need be. You probably won’t get the perfect answer back from ChatGPT on your attempt at prompting it, so it’s worth understanding that AI works best if you have a conversation with it to get exactly what you’re looking for. In my parents’ case, I’d tell them to ask ChatGPT to help them plan a dinner, then use follow-up responses that mention their favorite foods, ask for the ingredients they need to make a specific dish and request links to videos that show how that dish is actually made.Explaining the three main habits that separate a beginner from a more experienced ChatGPT user is key. Adding context to your prompts, asking follow-up questions and doing extra research to check if the answers you’ve been given are factual are a must. AI tools can make mistakes, be overconfident when providing information and even invent their own nonfactual data. I’d make it very clear to my parents that, when asking ChatGPT to help with research tasks, they need to tell it to point out any assumptions it may have made, explain the reasoning behind its response and include reliable sources to check out for themselves on the topic at hand. It’s important to use ChatGPT to support your own judgement and common sense, not fully replace it.For the final part of my 15-minute lesson plan on how to get the most out of ChatGPT, it's crucial to know the type of information that shouldn’t be given to it or any other AI tool. Never give it your passwords, details about your bank accounts and any other sensitive information about yourself or anyone else you know. There have been far too many instances of AI tools leaking people’s personal information, so I’d prefer it if my parents didn’t give up their most confidential details to ChatGPT.Bottom lineI’m sure my parents and anyone else who’s ready to wade into the intimidating waters of AI tools like ChatGPT can look at my lesson plan and get a quick primer on how to get started. Using ChatGPT for assistance with completing an everyday task, writing a strong prompt with proper context to make it start working and using follow-up questions to improve its responses are essential details AI beginners must know. Also, keeping in mind that AI tools like ChatGPT can make mistakes, backing up the answers it gives you with your own research and knowing what personal information you should never share with it are mandatory lessons worth memorizing.More from Tom’s GuideChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity are getting election facts wrong — and a new study shows whyI used the Megu AI styling app to solve my three-day clothing dilemma — and it changed how I plan my outfitsI found a free AI chatbot that works without Wi-Fi — and it could be incredibly useful in an emergency