System Prompts and Templates
A system prompt tells the model who it is and what rules to follow. You write it once, and it works for the whole chat. You learn what to put in it and how to reuse it as a template. You also learn why it is not a security wall.
New words
- System prompt
- Rules and a role you give the model once, before the chat starts.
- User message
- The question or request a person types during the chat.
- Role
- Who the model should act as, for example a science tutor.
- Prompt template
- A prompt with blanks, such as {subject}, that you fill in each time.
- Placeholder
- A blank in a template, written inside curly brackets.
- Output format
- The shape of the answer, such as bullet points or steps.
What you will learn
- Rules on the notice board
- Why not put the rules in every question?
- What goes in a system prompt?
- A worked example: a Class 10 science tutor
- Try it: build a system prompt
- Prompt templates: write once, use many times
- Keep prompts in one place and test changes
- A system prompt is not a security wall
- Try it today, and key takeaways
10 quiz questions at the end.
The full lesson, with interactive demos and the quiz, opens after you sign in with Google. It is free.