copilot-cert-prep: Skill for Claude Code

Skill: gh300.practice_exercises.micro.validated

Description: Create short GH-300 practice exercises (10-20 minutes) that are executable and self-validating.

Grounding

Required sources:

• Microsoft Learn (primary truth source for feature and policy behavior; access via the Microsoft Learn MCP server)
• Microsoft Learn code samples for syntax when applicable

Guardrails

• Keep the exercise within GH-300 scope.
• Prefer low-risk actions that can run in a local repo or demo org.
• No contractions.
• Always include rollback or cleanup steps.
• Always use current terminology.

Bundled assets

Use the skill-local bundle to keep outputs consistent and auditable.

• resources/source-pack.md
• resources/microsoft-voice-principles.md
• resources/lab-quality-checklist.md
• scripts/validate-output.js

Fictional company randomization (non-negotiable)

Use fictional company names from references/fictional-companies.md for any scenario context. Randomize the company selection.

Timebox guidance

An exercise should contain no more than 12 steps total across all tasks. If content exceeds that, split into two exercises.

Workflow

1. Choose a single GH-300 objective from references/gh300-objectives.md and state it at the top.
2. Ground the intended behavior in Microsoft Learn.
3. Draft steps using one primary surface (VS Code, GitHub.com, or CLI).
4. Verify command syntax if commands are included.
5. Add validation gates after each major step.
6. Add rollback that exactly reverses the changes.
7. Run the checks in resources/lab-quality-checklist.md and apply scripts/validate-output.js rules before final delivery.

Output format

exercise:
  title: "<Action + focus area>"
  objective: "<One sentence outcome tied to GH-300>"
  skill_area: "<GH-300 skill area>"
  estimated_time: "<10-20 min>"
  prerequisites:
    - "<Workspace and account requirements>"
  starting_state:
    - "<What must already exist>"
  tasks:
    - name: "<Task 1 name>"
      steps: |
        <Numbered steps only when sequencing matters.>
      validation:
        - "<Validation action + expected result>"
    - name: "<Task 2 name>"
      steps: |
        <...>
      validation:
        - "<...>"
  troubleshooting:
    - symptom: "<common failure>"
      fix: "<precise fix>"
  cleanup:
    steps: |
      <Exact rollback steps>
    validation:
      - "<Check that rollback succeeded>"
  references:
    - "<Microsoft Learn URL(s)>"