Plan-and-Solve
First set up the solution plan, then carry out the steps of that same plan.
- use
- levels
- simple · medium · hard
- links
- 3 related methods
- license
- CC BY 4.0 · View the card’s open source
What is it?
Plan-and-Solve proposes first identifying the necessary steps instead of solving the problem directly, and then carrying out the plan. The PS+ version includes additional guidance for variables and calculation details. Short, checkable operations are enough in the visible plan.
When does it help?
In small planning and calculation jobs where skipped steps or a wrong order of operations affect the result.
Examples
The situations and responses below are fictional teaching examples; they are not results from a model, tool or benchmark that was actually run.
Simple
Situation
You will calculate the number of pens in boxes.
Prompt
Prompt
There are 6 pens in each of 4 boxes; 7 pens are handed out. How many pens are left?
First write a two-point solution plan. Then carry out the plan with short calculation lines and give a single result. I do not want a dump of hidden thinking; only the plan and a checkable calculation.Sample output
Plan: “Find the total; subtract what was handed out.” Execution: “4 × 6 = 24; 24 − 7 = 17. Result: 17 pens.”
What did we get?
The order of operations became visible before the result.
Medium
Situation
The order of discount and shipping can be misread.
Prompt
Prompt
The basket is 625 TL. A 20% discount is applied first. If the amount after discount is 500 TL or more, shipping is free; below that, 50 TL.
With the PS+ approach, first list the variables and numbers, then write the plan, then carry it out. Keep the currency; check that the threshold is inclusive. The final answer should be one sentence.Sample output
“Plan: apply the discount, compare the discounted amount with the threshold, add shipping. 625 × 0.8 = 500; 500 ≥ 500; shipping 0. The amount to pay is 500 TL.”
What did we get?
A plan was created that checks the equality case at the boundary.
Hard
Situation
If a work schedule does not meet its constraints, the plan must be revised.
Prompt
Prompt
We start at 09:00. A takes 30 minutes; B takes 20 minutes and must finish by 09:30 at the latest; C takes 10 minutes and comes after A. The tasks are done by one person, without overlap.
First extract the constraints and plan an order. Then calculate the start/end times. The final check should test each rule against the plan. If the plan breaks a rule, make one revision; if it is still not suitable, say it could not be solved. Do not narrate internal thinking; a visible plan and a check table are enough.Sample output
“B 09:00–09:20; A 09:20–09:50; C 09:50–10:00. B's end-time condition is met; C comes after A; no overlap.”
What did we get?
The plan was not just listed; it was carried out and compared with the constraints.
Where should you stop?
Writing a plan does not guarantee that the plan is correct. Least-to-Most focuses on solving subquestions and carrying their results forward; Plan-and-Solve first lays out a path for the whole solution. Here, a short plan and check are used instead of the original prompts' request for long thinking; it is not an exact replication of the experiment.
Sources
Plan-and-Solve Prompting: Improving Zero-Shot Chain-of-Thought Reasoning by Large Language Models (new tab) — Wang, Lei; Xu, Wanyu; Lan, Yihuai; Hu, Zhiqiang; Lan, Yunshi; Lee, Roy Ka-Wei; Lim, Ee-Peng. 2023-05-06; version read 2023-05-26. Explains planning first, then solving, and the additional PS+ instructions; it does not follow that the same effect will appear with every model. Evidence level: relevant body sections of the original paper.
How this image was made
Original illustration made with Google Gemini · 1024 × 572
Generate an image: Create an original physically believable volumetric mineral sculpture photographed as a museum installation, horizontal 16:9. Deep anthracite void, porcelain mineral whites, restrained ice-blue and amber accents, fine structural particles, tactile surfaces, soft volumetric light, realistic depth and deliberate negative space. An elevated thin blueprint-like arrangement of blank stone bars aligns directly above a lower completed sequence of interlocking blocks, plan and execution separated vertically. No text, letters, numerals, logo, watermark, user interface, fake charts, identifiable people, or imitation of a particular artist. Depict the specified mechanism clearly; avoid generic clouds. One coherent original illustration.