Portfolio Lab

Your portfolio materials, all in one place.

Everything from today's hands-on lab: your guide, your prompt library, the slides, the idea generator, and a gift for finishing what you started.

Start here

Three things you will use all day. Each one opens in a new tab.

Your 10-prompt AI library

Open a prompt, click copy, fill in the [brackets], and paste it into Claude. Use a new chat for each module.

Prompt 1Brand briefModule 2
You are my brand strategist for an instructional design portfolio. Ask me up to 5 questions, one at a time, about my background, audience, and goals. Then write a one-page brand brief with: a positioning statement, 3 voice words, a two-color palette with hex codes, a font pairing, and a 60-word bio. My background: [paste 3 to 4 sentences]. My target audience: [who]. Keep it plain and specific.
Prompt 2Site mapModule 2
Here is my brand brief: [paste]. Create a site map for a 4-page instructional design portfolio: Home, About, Portfolio, Contact. For each page, list the sections, the headline, and what content I need to supply. Mark anything I do not have yet as PLACEHOLDER and write temporary text I can swap later. Keep each page to the minimum.
Prompt 3Build the shellModule 2
Using this brand brief and site map: [paste both], build my portfolio website as a single self-contained HTML page with sections for Home, About, Portfolio, and Contact. Use my colors and fonts. Make it mobile friendly. Include a case study template section with these placeholders: Problem, My Role, Process, Solution, Results. Use clearly marked placeholder text and image boxes. Keep the code clean.
Prompt 4Project intakeModule 3
I am building an instructional design case study. Here is my project: [paste notes or the generator brief]. Interview me one question at a time to cover: context, my role, audience, process, solution, evidence, and reflection. If I do not know something, help me decide what to do or measure. Then summarize everything as structured case study notes.
Prompt 5Draft the case studyModule 3
Using these case study notes: [paste], write a one-page case study with these headings: Problem, My Role, Process, Solution, Results, Reflection. Write in first person, in plain language, with short sentences. Do not invent results. Where I have no data, write [PLACEHOLDER: what to add]. End with a list of the 3 visuals I should add.
Prompt 6Critique and tightenModule 3
Act as a hiring manager reviewing an instructional design portfolio. Review this case study: [paste]. Tell me: 1) what is clear and strong, 2) the top 3 gaps, 3) any claims that need evidence, and 4) a stronger opening sentence. Be direct and specific. Do not rewrite the whole thing.
Prompt 7Needs analysis and objectivesModule 4
Act as a senior instructional designer. Using this case study: [paste], write a one-page needs analysis. Include: 1) the business problem and the performance gap (what people do now versus what they should do), 2) root causes sorted into knowledge or skill, motivation, and environment or tools, 3) the audience: role, prior knowledge, and constraints, and 4) the 2 to 3 key decisions learners face on the job. Then write 3 objectives in ABCD format (Audience, Behavior with an observable verb, Condition, Degree), each tied to one decision. Finish with an assessment map: for each objective, a scenario-based check where learners apply the skill, not recall facts. Mark anything I must confirm as [VERIFY]. Do not invent data.
Prompt 8StoryboardModule 4
Act as a senior instructional designer. Using these objectives: [paste], create a storyboard for a short eLearning module of 8 to 10 screens. Open with a realistic problem, not an agenda. Put it in a table with one row per screen: screen title, objective supported, on-screen text, narration, visual description, activity (what the learner does or decides), interaction (how it works and the feedback shown), navigation (buttons, menu, progress indicator, and what happens after a wrong answer), and accessibility (alt text, captions or transcript, keyboard access, reading order, contrast, no color-only cues, no timers). Meet WCAG 2.1 AA. Practice screens give guidance and feedback; the last screen gives none. Audience: [who]. Tone: [your voice words].
Prompt 9Interactive scenarioModule 4
Using these objectives and this audience: [paste], build an interactive branching scenario as a single self-contained HTML page. Include a realistic situation, 3 decision points with 3 choices each, immediate feedback for each choice, and a final summary of how the learner did. Use my brand colors: [hex codes]. Make it work on mobile.
Prompt 10Job aidModule 4
Create a one-page job aid for this task: [describe]. Audience: [who]. They will use it: [at a desk, on a phone, or printed]. Include a title, a purpose line, a "use this when" trigger, numbered steps with action verbs (each under 15 words), a common mistakes section, and a quick reference box. Apply my brand style. Colors: [primary, secondary, accent, text, and background hex codes]. Fonts: [heading and body]. Style: [for example clean and minimal, bold and playful, or editorial]. Icons: [for example simple line icons]. Voice: [your voice words]. Logo or name: [where it goes]. Use color for hierarchy, not decoration. Make it accessible: 4.5:1 contrast, 11pt minimum text, and no color-only meaning. Output a clean, printable HTML page.
30-Day Plan Prompt30-day completion planModule 5
Build my personalized 30-day portfolio completion plan. Here is where I am today: [what you finished: site, case study, artifact]. My target role: [role]. Hours I can spend each week: [number]. Create a week-by-week plan with 3 to 5 tasks per week, each task under 90 minutes, a clear finish line on Day 30, and a checkpoint at the end of each week. Front-load the work so nothing depends on ongoing upkeep after Day 30. Flag any task that needs real results or feedback from another person.
A gift for Portfolio Lab

Finish your portfolio. Then keep going.

You started something real today. If you want guidance, feedback, and a community behind you, here is 10% off IDOL Academy tuition.

10% off IDOL Academy tuition

UNICOURSE

Use this code when you enroll. It is named after our unicorn mascot.

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IDOL Academy is a career school authorized by GNPEC that trains instructional designers and eLearning developers through real portfolio work and deliberate practice.

In love + learning,
Dr. Robin Sargent
Founder, IDOL Academy