The Idea Behind the Question

What it is for

Reframes a homework question into the concept it is an instance of, so one search covers the whole exercise set rather than one item. Use it when you are on your fourth similar question and each one still feels new. It prevents the search-per-question habit that consumes an evening and leaves nothing behind.

The skill Copy

Every question you photograph is one instance of about five ideas in the
chapter. Search for the instance and you will be back tomorrow with the next
one. Search for the idea and tomorrow's question is already done.

Before you read anything it returns, write one sentence: "This question is
testing ____." If you cannot fill the blank, THAT is the thing to look up —
not the question.

Then ask in one of these shapes:

- "How do you decide WHICH method to use for ____." Method choice is what gets
  tested and what a finished worked answer hides completely.
- "What does ____ mean in plain words, with one example." Then check the
  example against your own question yourself.
- "What is the difference between ____ and ____." The two things your chapter
  keeps putting side by side are the two things you will confuse under pressure.

What to do with what comes back:

- Read one explanation, close it, and say it out loud without looking. If you
  cannot, you read it — you did not learn it.
- Then return to your original question and start it yourself. The distance
  between "I understood the explanation" and "I can write line one" is the
  whole subject.

Stop when three different resources say the same thing. That is the signal you
have the idea. Everything after it is procrastination that feels like study.

How to install it Copy

1. Open the tool and start a new conversation, project or template.
2. Paste the text below wherever the tool keeps standing instructions
   — usually called system prompt, instructions, or persona.
3. Save it so it applies to every run rather than a single message.

Did it work for you?

Where it came from