skill-template
Template for creating new Agent Skills for context engineering. Use this template when adding new skills to the collection.
49
37%
Does it follow best practices?
Impact
Pending
No eval scenarios have been run
Passed
No known issues
Optimize this skill with Tessl
npx tessl skill review --optimize ./template/SKILL.mdQuality
Discovery
67%Based on the skill's description, can an agent find and select it at the right time? Clear, specific descriptions lead to better discovery.
The description adequately covers both what the skill does and when to use it, earning full marks on completeness. However, it lacks specificity about the concrete actions involved (e.g., generating YAML frontmatter, scaffolding markdown structure) and could include more natural trigger terms users might use. The domain is somewhat niche but not sharply distinguished from other template or scaffolding skills.
Suggestions
Add specific concrete actions like 'Scaffolds YAML frontmatter, generates markdown structure, and populates metadata fields for new skill files'.
Include more natural trigger terms users might say, such as 'scaffold skill', 'new skill.md', 'create skill file', 'boilerplate skill', or 'add skill template'.
| Dimension | Reasoning | Score |
|---|---|---|
Specificity | It names the domain ('Agent Skills for context engineering') and one action ('creating new'), but doesn't list concrete steps or multiple specific actions like 'generate frontmatter, scaffold markdown structure, add YAML metadata'. | 2 / 3 |
Completeness | It answers both 'what' ('Template for creating new Agent Skills for context engineering') and 'when' ('Use this template when adding new skills to the collection') with an explicit trigger clause. | 3 / 3 |
Trigger Term Quality | Includes some relevant terms like 'template', 'new Agent Skills', 'skills', and 'collection', but misses natural variations users might say such as 'scaffold skill', 'add a new skill file', 'skill.md', 'create skill', or 'boilerplate'. | 2 / 3 |
Distinctiveness Conflict Risk | The focus on 'Agent Skills' and 'template' provides some distinctiveness, but 'context engineering' is broad and could overlap with other meta/scaffolding skills. The description doesn't clearly delineate its niche from general template or documentation skills. | 2 / 3 |
Total | 9 / 12 Passed |
Implementation
7%Reviews the quality of instructions and guidance provided to agents. Good implementation is clear, handles edge cases, and produces reliable results.
This is a blank template/scaffold for creating skills, not an actual skill with actionable content. Every section contains placeholder text and meta-commentary about what should go there rather than concrete, executable guidance. While it demonstrates reasonable structural organization principles, it fails on conciseness (explaining things Claude already knows about writing), actionability (no concrete instructions), and workflow clarity (no sequenced process).
Suggestions
Transform this from a descriptive template into an actionable skill by providing a concrete step-by-step workflow for creating a new skill file, including specific commands (e.g., `cp template.md skills/new-skill/SKILL.md`) and validation steps.
Replace placeholder sections with a single concrete before/after example showing a poorly-written skill section transformed into a well-written one, rather than abstract advice about what makes good content.
Remove meta-commentary that Claude already knows (e.g., explanations of what conciseness means, what progressive disclosure is) and replace with a concise checklist of specific, verifiable criteria for skill quality.
Add a clear sequential workflow with validation checkpoints, e.g.: 1. Create directory structure → 2. Write frontmatter → 3. Draft body → 4. Validate against checklist → 5. Test with sample query.
| Dimension | Reasoning | Score |
|---|---|---|
Conciseness | This is a meta-template full of placeholder text and instructional commentary rather than actual skill content. It explains concepts Claude already knows (like what a skill is, how to write descriptions, what progressive disclosure means) and is padded with generic advice that doesn't teach any specific task. | 1 / 3 |
Actionability | The content is entirely abstract and descriptive—it tells you what to put in each section rather than providing any concrete, executable guidance. There are no real code examples, commands, or specific instructions; the 'Example' section contains placeholder brackets like '[describe input]' and '[show expected output]'. | 1 / 3 |
Workflow Clarity | There is no clear workflow or sequenced process. The template lists section headings with vague instructions about what to fill in, but provides no step-by-step process for actually creating a skill, no validation checkpoints, and no feedback loops. | 1 / 3 |
Progressive Disclosure | The template does demonstrate good structural organization with clear section headings and mentions linking to references/ directory for detailed content. However, it's all meta-instruction about how to organize rather than actually organized content, and the references section contains only placeholders. | 2 / 3 |
Total | 5 / 12 Passed |
Validation
100%Checks the skill against the spec for correct structure and formatting. All validation checks must pass before discovery and implementation can be scored.
Validation — 11 / 11 Passed
Validation for skill structure
No warnings or errors.
- Commit
7a95d94
- Reviewed
Table of Contents
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