Getting Started: Using This GPT to Build South Dakota-Aligned Lessons

This GPT was custom-built to help South Dakota educators create or revise lessons that center Indigenous perspectives and align with state standards. It uses a large collection of South Dakota-specific documents, including Indigenous language dictionaries, cultural texts, and state-approved curriculum standards. Here’s how to use it.

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Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Decide what you want to do:

• Want a new lesson? Say: “New lesson.”

• Want to revise one? Say: “Existing lesson,” then paste your lesson into the chat.

• Want help with something else? Just describe it.

2. If you say “New lesson,” it’ll ask:

• What grade level?

• What subject?

3. It will then:

• Build the lesson using the Inquiry Design Model (IDM).

• Pull in Indigenous Elder interviews, stories, or songs (from verified transcripts and video links).

• Match it with one or more Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings (OSEU).

• Include accurate South Dakota state content standards based on your subject.

4. Your lesson will also include:

• “Learn About” questions for gathering information.

• “Learn From” questions to help students reflect and make personal connections.

• A Teacher Preparation section with terms, video links, and excerpts for background.

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Tip: Ask for Anything Specific

If you want a lesson that includes:

• A certain Elder’s voice

• A cultural story or practice

• A specific OSEU (like kinship or land)

• A student activity (like journaling or role-play)

Just say so in your message. This GPT can adjust on the fly.

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How to Handle AI Hallucinations (Fake Stuff)

Sometimes AI tools make things up. To keep things solid, this GPT was trained with a strict rule: never include a video, story, or Elder name that hasn’t been verified in the uploaded documents or the websites it searches.

Still, here’s how to protect your lesson from hallucinated info:

1. Double-check all Elder names and videos:

• Verified video links will come from:

• https://www.teachingsofourelders.org

• https://www.wolakotaproject.org

2. If a link doesn’t work or a name seems off, ask:

• “Is this a real interview?”

• Or copy/paste the link and test it in a browser.

3. Red flags to look for:

• URLs that don’t go anywhere or redirect to YouTube’s homepage.

• Elder names that don’t appear in the Wolakota or Teachings of Our Elders collections.

• Quotes or excerpts without proper source context.

This GPT will only use trusted documents and verified interview sources. But if anything looks off, it’s OK to question it.

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What It Knows (Current Knowledge Base)

This GPT uses:

South Dakota State Standards

ELA, Math, Science, Social Studies, Health, PE, Fine Arts, World Language, EdTech, Personal Finance, Career Readiness, Library/Information Literacy

Indigenous Culture & Language

• Oceti Sakowin Essential Understandings (OSEU 2024)

• Wolakota and Teachings of Our Elders video interviews

• Lakota/Dakota/Nakota dictionaries

• Lakota History & Cultural Research

• Winter Counts, songs, stories, and traditional teachings

Planning Tools

• Inquiry Design Model Template

• Learn About / Learn From question frameworks

• Inquiry curriculum guides

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Ready to Try It?

Just type:

• “New lesson” or

• “Existing lesson” or

• Tell it what you’re trying to build or learn about

The GPT will walk you through the rest. No need to know fancy AI lingo—just speak like yourself.

Pre-Made Prompt Stems

LESSON CREATION PROMPTS

1. Create a(n) ___ grade ___ lesson that teaches about ____________ using the Inquiry Design Model and aligns with at least one Oceti Sakowin Essential Understanding (OSEU).

2. Build a new lesson for ___ grade ___ class that connects ____________ with Indigenous culture, language, or history, and includes an Elder interview.

3. Design a lesson about ____________ for ___ grade students, incorporating vocabulary from the ___ language dictionary and a Wolakota or Teachings of Our Elders video.

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LESSON REVISION PROMPTS

4. Here’s my existing lesson on ____________. Revise it to align with an Oceti Sakowin Essential Understanding and include Indigenous cultural and language content.

(Paste lesson below)

5. I want to revise my ___ grade ___ lesson on ____________. Can you update it using the IDM format and include an Elder interview and OSEU alignment?

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ELDER INTERVIEW / VIDEO REQUESTS

6. Find me an Elder interview that matches this topic: ____________.

7. I’m teaching about ____________. Are there any interviews from Wolakota or Teachings of Our Elders that would support it?

8. Create a Learn About and Learn From question set based on this video: [Paste video URL or title]

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CULTURAL / LINGUISTIC RESOURCES

9. What Lakota/Dakota/Nakota words relate to the theme of ____________? Can you give me the word, definition, and pronunciation?

10. Find me excerpts from traditional stories or songs that connect with the concept of ____________.

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STANDARDS & CROSS-CURRICULAR CONNECTIONS

11. Add South Dakota content standards for ___ grade ___ to a lesson on ____________ that also includes Indigenous knowledge.

12. Align this lesson on ____________ with one or more OSEUs and South Dakota ___ standards.

(Paste lesson or description below)