Real Agent Cases

Get homework broken into small steps for a teen with ADHD and dyslexia with ChatGPT

Posted
by Elly Walsh (LinkedIn)
Last checked
Method:
How we verify

Evidence: Described by posterThe person describes what happened in words, without screenshots or video.

Beginner-friendlyNo logins, payments or coding needed. Low risk: paste the prompt and you should get something useful.

Outcome

Elly Walsh's teenage daughter has ADHD and dyslexia, and the family had been worried about her falling behind. Instead of banning ChatGPT for homework, Walsh had her type a prompt asking it to break the work down step by step for how her brain works. It split the work into short steps with clear explanations, one thing at a time, and Walsh says their daughter sat calm and focused, working through it slowly instead of having another meltdown.

Agent

ChatGPT

Prompt Original prompt

Exact prompt as published in the source.

I have ADHD and dyslexia. Please break this down step by step and teach it to me in a way my brain will actually understand.

Try this in:

Sends the Original prompt shown above. ChatGPT and Grok open with it filled in, and ChatGPT may send it straight away. Gemini opens empty, so we copy the prompt for you to paste. Every button also copies it.

Opens in a new tab. We don't see what you send.

These links are only a shortcut. We're not affiliated with OpenAI, Google or xAI, and your results may not match the source.

Optional stronger version

Our rewrite with extra checks. The poster didn't test it.

Before you start, ask me 1–3 short questions about anything important that's missing below. Keep them quick. Then do the task, checking in with me at the key points.

Goal: Teach me today's homework one small step at a time, in a way that works for someone with ADHD and dyslexia, without doing it for me.

What I can give you (ask for whatever's missing):
- The homework task or a photo of it
- The subject and year group
- What I already understand and where I get stuck

Rules:
- Give one short step at a time and wait for me before moving on.
- Use short sentences and plain words; avoid big blocks of text.
- Check I've understood each step with a quick question instead of giving me the answer.
- If I get frustrated, slow down and explain the same idea a different way.
- Check facts that can change (prices, opening hours, dates, availability, rules) against the official source, and tell me anything you couldn't verify.
- Never hand me the final answer to copy; if I ask for it, give a hint first.

Output: A step-by-step walk-through I can follow, with a one-line recap at the end.

You'll know it worked when: I can finish the homework myself and explain how I got the answer.

Before you finish: re-read my goal and constraints, check your answer against each one, and list anything you assumed or couldn't confirm.

Source

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/ellywalsh_i-bang-on-about-people-over-automation-all-activity-7435587516210102272-a5CP

  • During back-to-school prep, Laura Cioffi and their 14-year-old daughter gave the same cone surface-area problem to ChatGPT Study Mode, Photomath, Socratic by Google, Claude, Brainly AI and Duolingo Math. Photomath got it wrong; Claude and Socratic were right but too academic; Brainly gave clear steps; Duolingo felt like a game. ChatGPT Study Mode asked her for the values, walked her through the formula and checked her understanding; she said it didn't make her feel 'thick'.

    ChatGPT, Claude, Photomath, Socratic, Brainly AI, Duolingo Math · Personal · Source date:

  • Turn four pages of history homework into a study guide, quiz and flashcards with ChatGPTRecreated promptEvidence: Screenshots or logsBeginner-friendly

    The poster uploaded four pages of their daughter's completed history homework to ChatGPT's study feature. It made a study guide, then offered a 10-question test, on which she scored nine out of ten, and then flashcards, which the poster printed and she copied onto real cards. It was all done in Spanish, ahead of a Friday test.

    ChatGPT · Personal · Source date:

  • Catch a wrong multiplication answer from ChatGPT while checking homeworkRecreated promptEvidence: Screenshots or logsFailure

    Helping their son with homework, the poster had ChatGPT (GPT-5) do a simple multiplication problem. They couldn't reproduce its answer, checked with a calculator, and found ChatGPT was wrong.

    ChatGPT · Personal · Source date: