| name | add-instruction |
| description | Extract a lesson from recent agent struggles and create a .instructions.md file to prevent recurrence. Use when: agent made a mistake, discovered a new convention, found a recurring issue pattern. |
| user-invocable | true |
Add Instruction Skill
When to Use
- An agent made a mistake that should be prevented in the future
- You discovered a new convention or pattern during implementation
- A recurring issue keeps happening across stories/epics
- You want to codify a lesson learned into project-wide agent guidance
Procedure
- Identify the struggle: What mistake happened? What was the root cause?
- Define the file scope: What glob pattern matches files where this rule applies? (e.g.,
**/*.ts, **/schema.prisma)
- Create the file: Create
.github/instructions/<name>.instructions.md with:
- YAML frontmatter:
description (with "Use when..." trigger words) and applyTo (glob pattern)
- Body: clear DO/DON'T examples, concrete code snippets, reasoning
- Update copilot-instructions.md: Add a 1-2 line summary to the "Known Pitfalls" section
Template
---
description: "Use when {trigger scenarios}. Covers {what this instruction prevents}."
applyTo: "{glob pattern matching affected files}"
---
# {Title}
## Rule
{One sentence rule}
## ✅ DO
```typescript
{good example with explanation}
```
❌ DON'T
{bad example with explanation}
Reasoning
{Why this rule exists — helps agents make better decisions in edge cases}
## Reference
See standard instruction templates and examples in `.github/instructions/` folder.
