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Module 4 of 1616 min read7 sub-lessons Docs view

Module 4: Prompt Engineering Fundamentals

Master the prompt patterns that 2026 production engineers actually use: roles, few-shot, chain-of-thought, structured outputs, JSON mode, guardrails, and the most common anti-patterns.

Module 4: Prompt Engineering Fundamentals

What this module gives you

Replace "ask politely and hope" with a repertoire of repeatable, production-grade prompt patterns. By the end, you can pick the right pattern for any task and ship outputs reliable enough for a real product.

Skills you will pick up

  • Writing system prompts that lock behavior
  • Few-shot prompting with carefully chosen examples
  • Chain-of-thought and reasoning prompts
  • Structured outputs and JSON mode
  • Prompt guardrails and safety patterns
  • Iterative prompt debugging

Why it matters in production

Prompt engineering is the single highest leverage skill of any AI engineer in 2026. A 30-line system prompt can replace a week of fine-tuning. Knowing the patterns saves real money and real reputation.

Lessons in this module

  1. 1

    Lesson 4.1

    The "instruct like a junior employee" mental model

    2 min
  2. 2

    Lesson 4.2

    Role, persona, and system prompts

    2 min
  3. 3

    Lesson 4.3

    Few-shot prompting: examples beat instructions

    2 min
  4. 4

    Lesson 4.4

    Chain-of-thought and structured reasoning

    2 min
  5. 5

    Lesson 4.5

    JSON mode and structured outputs

    2 min
  6. 6

    Lesson 4.6

    Prompt guardrails and safety

    2 min
  7. 7

    Lesson 4.7

    Iterative prompt debugging in production

    2 min

Recap

You now own 10 prompt patterns. You can write a production system prompt, few-shot for subtle tasks, get structured JSON, add safety layers, and run evals. This is the skill that gets you hired.

Ready to start?

Open Lesson 4.1: The "instruct like a junior employee" mental model

Start first lesson