Session 2: Make it read, sort and check for you

You leave with: an AI mistake you caught yourself, and a messy list turned into a clean spreadsheet.

Open the slides from class

It makes things up

The word for it is “hallucination”. When it doesn’t know, it fills the gap with something that sounds right.

Always check: numbers, names, dates, prices, laws, and anything you will sign or send to a client.

Give it your documents

You can attach a PDF, paste a long email thread, or upload a photo of a receipt, a menu or a handwritten list. It can summarise it, pull out the dates and amounts, make a to-do list, or turn it into a table.

For a table, say exactly which columns you want: “a table with these columns: date, name, item, amount”. Then copy it and paste it into Google Sheets or Excel.

What never goes in: everything on the safety rules page, plus guest lists, employee files and anything under a confidentiality agreement.

Exercise 3: Catch the mistake

Work in pairs with Handout C: a supplier price list (the source) and a summary an AI wrote of it. The summary has 3 errors.

1. Find the three errors by checking the summary against the source.
2. Paste the source into the AI, ask for its own summary, and check that one too.
3. Talk about it: which kind of mistake is easiest to miss?

Exercise 4: Messy to table

Use Handout D, a week of WhatsApp orders for a made-up catering business, typed the way people really type.

1. Paste it in and ask for a table: date, customer first name, item, quantity, price, paid yes/no.
2. Check 3 rows against the original by hand.
3. Paste the table into a Google Sheet. Ask the AI for the formula that totals the unpaid orders.
4. If there’s time, ask which customer owes the most, then check the answer in the sheet yourself.

Save the prompts that work

Keep a note on your phone with your 3 best prompts. ChatGPT and Claude both let you save instructions so you don’t have to type them every time.

Handout C: Source and summary

Source: Caribe Fresh Supplies, price list for restaurants

Tomatoes, 5 kg box ........ ƒ42.00
Onions, 10 kg bag ......... ƒ38.50
Cheese (gouda), 1 kg ...... ƒ27.00
Chicken thighs, 5 kg ...... ƒ61.00
Delivery: ƒ35.00 per drop, free above ƒ600
Minimum order: ƒ300.00
Order by Tuesday 12:00 for Thursday delivery
Payment: 14 days after invoice

AI summary (contains 3 errors)

Caribe Fresh Supplies sells tomatoes at ƒ42 per 5 kg box, onions at ƒ38.50 per 10 kg bag, gouda at ƒ27 per kilo and chicken thighs at ƒ61 per 5 kg. Delivery costs ƒ25 per drop and is free above ƒ600. Orders must be in by Wednesday 12:00 for Thursday delivery. Invoices are due within 14 days.

Handout D: A week of WhatsApp orders (made-up)

mon - maria 2 trays pastechi keshi, 1 tray bitterbal. paid
mon - jose  pls 40 croquettes for wed party!! will pay on pickup
tue - ana   2 trays pastechi (1 keshi, 1 chicken), pays friday
wed - jose  paid the croquettes thx
wed - ricky 3 trays mix, 60 croquettes, sat delivery, cash on delivery
thu - maria same as monday again pls. paid
fri - ana   paid for tue
fri - carla 2 trays bitterbal + 20 croquettes, not paid yet
prices: tray pastechi ƒ45, tray bitterbal ƒ40, tray mix ƒ50, croquette ƒ1.50

This week

Do one document task from your index card. Bring the result, and bring the mistake.