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Follow along
TwigaGuide · TeachersTwigaGuide · TeachersFollow along
Getting Started
One real conversation, start to finish. A teacher with twelve minutes before class gets what he needs in one message, then gets the next thing without starting over.
Do not test Twiga with a made-up question. Ask it for the lesson you are actually teaching next. The answers get sharper the more real the request is, and you end up with something you can carry into the room.
Here is a real one. A teacher had a Form 1 maths class starting in twelve minutes and could not remember what came after integers.
Mambo! I have my Form 1 maths class in 12 minutes and I just realised I forgot what topic comes after integers. Help!!
Mambo! No worries, I've got you covered. 😊 After Integers, the next topic in Form 1 Mathematics is Fractions. This includes: - Meaning and types of fractions (proper, improper, mixed) - Converting between improper fractions and mixed numbers - Operations on fractions (add, subtract, multiply, divide) - Solving problems involving fractions Let me know if you'd like: - A quick 2-minute summary for students? - One practice question to start the lesson? - Tips for teaching common misconceptions?
Notice what the message is. It is a panic, with a greeting on the front and two exclamation marks on the end. None of that matters. What matters is that it names the subject, the form and the thing he wants to know. The reply came back thirteen seconds later.
That answer is long. It gives the topic, four subtopics, and three offers of what to do next. That is Twiga's default shape when you do not say what you want back.
It is a good answer in a free period. With twelve minutes it is more than you can read. So say the shape you want, in the message itself.
Three minutes later the same teacher moved on to a different class, a different subject and a different form level. He said so in the same chat, and he said exactly how much he wanted.
ok recap im now going to physics form 2. give me a 1-line intro for newtons first law that 14 year olds will actually remember
"An object will stay still or keep moving in a straight line unless a force, like a push, pull, or stop, makes it change!"
One line asked for, one line back. The words that did the work were 1-line and that 14 year olds will actually remember. Small words like those change the whole answer.
You never have to start again. The chat remembers what you have been talking about, so the next request can lean on the last one.
Five minutes from an emergency staff meeting, the same teacher sent this:
can you set me a quick 3 question exit ticket for the law you just gave me? mixed difficulty
Of course! Here's a quick 3-question exit ticket on Newton's First Law, easy, medium, and challenge: 1. What happens to a ball lying on the ground if no one kicks it? Explain using Newton's First Law. 2. A passenger in a moving car jerks forward when the car suddenly stops. Use Newton's First Law to explain why. 3. True or False: An object in motion always needs a force to keep moving. Explain your answer.
The law you just gave meis the whole trick. He did not retype Newton's First Law and he did not say Physics or Form 2 again. The chat carried it. Three graded questions came back six seconds later.
The pattern to copy
Ask a full question once. Then chain short follow-ups onto it. When you switch subject, say so in a few words and carry on in the same chat.
Twiga's content comes from the TIE textbooks. Even so, a topic order, an intro line and an exit ticket are all worth one look against your own scheme of work. You are not proofreading a document. You are checking that it says what you expected. That is thirty seconds, and you have twelve minutes.
Twiga does not cover everything. In this same session the teacher asked about English Literature and was told no. It answers for secondary school only, and only for the subjects and forms on your profile.
So make your first real request one it can answer. If you are not sure what is on your profile, ask it.
what subjects am i teaching?Pick your next lesson and send one message that names the subject, the form, the topic and what you want back. For example:
I have my Form 1 maths class in 15 minutes. What topic comes after integers?