---

name: skill-creator description: Guide for creating effective skills. This skill should be used when users want to create a new skill (or update an existing skill) that extends Daycare's capabilities with specialized knowledge, workflows, or tool integrations. license: Complete terms in LICENSE.txt

Skill Creator

This skill provides guidance for creating effective skills.

About Skills

Skills are modular, self-contained packages that extend Daycare's capabilities by providing specialized knowledge, workflows, and tools. Think of them as "onboarding guides" for specific domains or tasks—they transform Daycare from a general-purpose agent into a specialized agent equipped with procedural knowledge that no model can fully possess.

What Skills Provide

1. Specialized workflows - Multi-step procedures for specific domains
2. Tool integrations - Instructions for working with specific file formats or APIs
3. Domain expertise - Company-specific knowledge, schemas, business logic
4. Bundled resources - Scripts, references, and assets for complex and repetitive tasks

Core Principles

Concise is Key

The context window is a public good. Skills share the context window with everything else Daycare needs: system prompt, conversation history, other Skills' metadata, and the actual user request.

Default assumption: Daycare is already very smart. Only add context Daycare doesn't already have. Challenge each piece of information: "Does Daycare really need this explanation?" and "Does this paragraph justify its token cost?"

Prefer concise examples over verbose explanations.

Set Appropriate Degrees of Freedom

Match the level of specificity to the task's fragility and variability:

High freedom (text-based instructions): Use when multiple approaches are valid, decisions depend on context, or heuristics guide the approach.

Medium freedom (pseudocode or scripts with parameters): Use when a preferred pattern exists, some variation is acceptable, or configuration affects behavior.

Low freedom (specific scripts, few parameters): Use when operations are fragile and error-prone, consistency is critical, or a specific sequence must be followed.

Think of Daycare as exploring a path: a narrow bridge with cliffs needs specific guardrails (low freedom), while an open field allows many routes (high freedom).

Anatomy of a Skill

Every skill consists of a required SKILL.md file and optional bundled resources:

skill-name/
├── SKILL.md (required)
│   ├── YAML frontmatter metadata (required)
│   │   ├── name: (required)
│   │   └── description: (required)
│   └── Markdown instructions (required)
└── Bundled Resources (optional)
    ├── scripts/          - Executable code (Python/Bash/etc.)
    ├── references/       - Documentation intended to be loaded into context as needed
    └── assets/           - Files used in output (templates, icons, fonts, etc.)

SKILL.md (required)

Every SKILL.md consists of:

• Frontmatter (YAML): Contains required name and description fields, plus optional execution fields like sandbox and permissions.
• Body (Markdown): Instructions and guidance for using the skill. Only loaded AFTER the skill triggers (if at all).

Frontmatter fields used by Daycare:

• name (required): skill selector shown in prompt metadata.
• description (required): when/why to use the skill.
• sandbox (optional boolean): when true, runs the skill in a forked subagent.
• permissions (optional string array): permission tags (for example @read:/workspace, @write:/workspace, @network) granted to sandbox subagent; must be a subset of caller permissions.

Sandbox policy:

• Use a strong default bias toward sandbox: true.
• Choose sandbox: true when the skill can run autonomously from one prompt, may be long-running, may produce lots of intermediate output, may need isolated permissions, or should avoid polluting the caller context.
• Choose non-sandbox (omit sandbox) only when the skill is intentionally conversational and requires tight in-context collaboration with frequent back-and-forth decisions.
• When using sandbox: true, declare the minimal required permissions explicitly (principle of least privilege).

Bundled Resources (optional)

Scripts (scripts/)

Executable code (Python/Bash/etc.) for tasks that require deterministic reliability or are repeatedly rewritten.

• When to include: When the same code is being rewritten repeatedly or deterministic reliability is needed
• Example: scripts/rotate_pdf.py for PDF rotation tasks
• Benefits: Token efficient, deterministic, may be executed without loading into context
• Note: Scripts may still need to be read by Daycare for patching or environment-specific adjustments

References (references/)

Documentation and reference material intended to be loaded as needed into context to inform Daycare's process and thinking.

• When to include: For documentation that Daycare should reference while working
• Examples: references/finance.md for financial schemas, references/mnda.md for company NDA template, references/policies.md for company policies, references/api_docs.md for API specifications
• Use cases: Database schemas, API documentation, domain knowledge, company policies, detailed workflow guides
• Benefits: Keeps SKILL.md lean, loaded only when Daycare determines it's needed
• Best practice: If files are large (>10k words), include grep search patterns in SKILL.md
• Avoid duplication: Information should live in either SKILL.md or references files, not both. Prefer references files for detailed information unless it's truly core to the skill—this keeps SKILL.md lean while making information discoverable without hogging the context window. Keep only essential procedural instructions and workflow guidance in SKILL.md; move detailed reference material, schemas, and examples to references files.

Assets (assets/)

Files not intended to be loaded into context, but rather used within the output Daycare produces.

• When to include: When the skill needs files that will be used in the final output
• Examples: assets/logo.png for brand assets, assets/slides.pptx for PowerPoint templates, assets/frontend-template/ for HTML/React boilerplate, assets/font.ttf for typography
• Use cases: Templates, images, icons, boilerplate code, fonts, sample documents that get copied or modified
• Benefits: Separates output resources from documentation, enables Daycare to use files without loading them into context

What to Not Include in a Skill

A skill should only contain essential files that directly support its functionality. Do NOT create extraneous documentation or auxiliary files, including:

• README.md
• INSTALLATION_GUIDE.md
• QUICK_REFERENCE.md
• CHANGELOG.md
• etc.

The skill should only contain the information needed for an AI agent to do the job at hand. It should not contain auxilary context about the process that went into creating it, setup and testing procedures, user-facing documentation, etc. Creating additional documentation files just adds clutter and confusion.

Progressive Disclosure Design Principle

Skills use a three-level loading system to manage context efficiently:

1. Metadata (name + description) - Always in context (~100 words)
2. SKILL.md body - When skill triggers (<5k words)
3. Bundled resources - As needed by Daycare (Unlimited because scripts can be executed without reading into context window)

Progressive Disclosure Patterns

Keep SKILL.md body to the essentials and under 500 lines to minimize context bloat. Split content into separate files when approaching this limit. When splitting out content into other files, it is very important to reference them from SKILL.md and describe clearly when to read them, to ensure the reader of the skill knows they exist and when to use them.

Key principle: When a skill supports multiple variations, frameworks, or options, keep only the core workflow and selection guidance in SKILL.md. Move variant-specific details (patterns, examples, configuration) into separate reference files.

Pattern 1: High-level guide with references

# PDF Processing

## Quick start

Extract text with pdfplumber:
[code example]

## Advanced features

- **Form filling**: See [FORMS.md](FORMS.md) for complete guide
- **API reference**: See [REFERENCE.md](REFERENCE.md) for all methods
- **Examples**: See [EXAMPLES.md](EXAMPLES.md) for common patterns

Daycare loads FORMS.md, REFERENCE.md, or EXAMPLES.md only when needed.

Pattern 2: Domain-specific organization

For Skills with multiple domains, organize content by domain to avoid loading irrelevant context:

bigquery-skill/
├── SKILL.md (overview and navigation)
└── reference/
    ├── finance.md (revenue, billing metrics)
    ├── sales.md (opportunities, pipeline)
    ├── product.md (API usage, features)
    └── marketing.md (campaigns, attribution)

When a user asks about sales metrics, Daycare only reads sales.md.

Similarly, for skills supporting multiple frameworks or variants, organize by variant:

cloud-deploy/
├── SKILL.md (workflow + provider selection)
└── references/
    ├── aws.md (AWS deployment patterns)
    ├── gcp.md (GCP deployment patterns)
    └── azure.md (Azure deployment patterns)

When the user chooses AWS, Daycare only reads aws.md.

Pattern 3: Conditional details

Show basic content, link to advanced content:

# DOCX Processing

## Creating documents

Use docx-js for new documents. See [DOCX-JS.md](DOCX-JS.md).

## Editing documents

For simple edits, modify the XML directly.

**For tracked changes**: See [REDLINING.md](REDLINING.md)
**For OOXML details**: See [OOXML.md](OOXML.md)

Daycare reads REDLINING.md or OOXML.md only when the user needs those features.

Important guidelines:

• Avoid deeply nested references - Keep references one level deep from SKILL.md. All reference files should link directly from SKILL.md.
• Structure longer reference files - For files longer than 100 lines, include a table of contents at the top so Daycare can see the full scope when previewing.

Skill Creation Process

Skill creation involves these steps:

1. Understand the skill with concrete examples
2. Plan reusable skill contents (scripts, references, assets)
3. Initialize the skill in workspace
4. Edit the skill (implement resources and write SKILL.md)
5. Deploy the skill to config/skills/
6. Iterate based on real usage

Follow these steps in order, skipping only if there is a clear reason why they are not applicable.

Step 1: Understanding the Skill with Concrete Examples

Skip this step only when the skill's usage patterns are already clearly understood. It remains valuable even when working with an existing skill.

To create an effective skill, clearly understand concrete examples of how the skill will be used. This understanding can come from either direct user examples or generated examples that are validated with user feedback.

For example, when building an image-editor skill, relevant questions include:

• "What functionality should the image-editor skill support? Editing, rotating, anything else?"
• "Can you give some examples of how this skill would be used?"
• "I can imagine users asking for things like 'Remove the red-eye from this image' or 'Rotate this image'. Are there other ways you imagine this skill being used?"
• "What would a user say that should trigger this skill?"

To avoid overwhelming users, avoid asking too many questions in a single message. Start with the most important questions and follow up as needed for better effectiveness.

Conclude this step when there is a clear sense of the functionality the skill should support.

Step 2: Planning the Reusable Skill Contents

To turn concrete examples into an effective skill, analyze each example by:

1. Considering how to execute on the example from scratch
2. Identifying what scripts, references, and assets would be helpful when executing these workflows repeatedly

Example: When building a pdf-editor skill to handle queries like "Help me rotate this PDF," the analysis shows:

1. Rotating a PDF requires re-writing the same code each time
2. A scripts/rotate_pdf.py script would be helpful to store in the skill

Example: When designing a frontend-webapp-builder skill for queries like "Build me a todo app" or "Build me a dashboard to track my steps," the analysis shows:

1. Writing a frontend webapp requires the same boilerplate HTML/React each time
2. An assets/hello-world/ template containing the boilerplate HTML/React project files would be helpful to store in the skill

Example: When building a big-query skill to handle queries like "How many users have logged in today?" the analysis shows:

1. Querying BigQuery requires re-discovering the table schemas and relationships each time
2. A references/schema.md file documenting the table schemas would be helpful to store in the skill

To establish the skill's contents, analyze each concrete example to create a list of the reusable resources to include: scripts, references, and assets.

Step 3: Initializing the Skill in Workspace

Important: Always create and edit skills in the workspace folder first, never directly in config/skills/. This ensures atomic deployment and prevents partial/broken skills from being loaded.

Create a new skill directory in the workspace:

mkdir -p workspace/skills/<skill-name>

Then create the SKILL.md with proper frontmatter:

---
name: <skill-name>
description: <clear description of what the skill does and when to use it>
---

# <Skill Name>

<instructions>

Create subdirectories as needed:

mkdir -p workspace/skills/<skill-name>/scripts
mkdir -p workspace/skills/<skill-name>/references
mkdir -p workspace/skills/<skill-name>/assets

Step 4: Edit the Skill

When editing a skill, remember that it is being created for another instance of Daycare to use. Include information that would be beneficial and non-obvious to Daycare. Consider what procedural knowledge, domain-specific details, or reusable assets would help another Daycare instance execute these tasks more effectively.

Editing an existing skill: Copy the skill from config/skills/<skill-name> to workspace/skills/<skill-name> first, make edits in the workspace copy, then deploy back.

# Copy to workspace for editing
cp -r config/skills/<skill-name> workspace/skills/

# ... make edits ...

# Deploy back (see Step 5)

Learn Proven Design Patterns

Consult these helpful guides based on your skill's needs:

• Multi-step processes: See references/workflows.md for sequential workflows and conditional logic
• Specific output formats or quality standards: See references/output-patterns.md for template and example patterns

These files contain established best practices for effective skill design.

Start with Reusable Skill Contents

To begin implementation, start with the reusable resources identified above: scripts/, references/, and assets/ files. Note that this step may require user input. For example, when implementing a brand-guidelines skill, the user may need to provide brand assets or templates to store in assets/, or documentation to store in references/.

Added scripts must be tested by actually running them to ensure there are no bugs and that the output matches what is expected. If there are many similar scripts, only a representative sample needs to be tested to ensure confidence that they all work while balancing time to completion.

Any example files and directories not needed for the skill should be deleted.

Update SKILL.md

Writing Guidelines: Always use imperative/infinitive form.

Frontmatter

Write YAML frontmatter with required and execution fields:

• name: The skill name
• description: This is the primary triggering mechanism for your skill, and helps Daycare understand when to use the skill.
  • Include both what the Skill does and specific triggers/contexts for when to use it.
  • Include all "when to use" information here - Not in the body. The body is only loaded after triggering, so "When to Use This Skill" sections in the body are not helpful to Daycare.
  • Example description for a docx skill: "Comprehensive document creation, editing, and analysis with support for tracked changes, comments, formatting preservation, and text extraction. Use when Daycare needs to work with professional documents (.docx files) for: (1) Creating new documents, (2) Modifying or editing content, (3) Working with tracked changes, (4) Adding comments, or any other document tasks"
• sandbox (recommended): default to true unless the skill must be collaborative in-context.
• permissions (required for sandboxed skills that need extra access): minimal list of permission tags.

Do not include unrelated custom fields in YAML frontmatter.

Body

Write instructions for using the skill and its bundled resources.

Step 5: Deploy the Skill

Once the skill is ready in the workspace, deploy it atomically to config/skills/:

# Remove existing skill (if updating)
rm -rf config/skills/<skill-name>

# Copy from workspace to config
cp -r workspace/skills/<skill-name> config/skills/

This atomic operation ensures:

• The skill is never in a partial/broken state in config
• Other agents don't see incomplete changes
• Easy rollback by keeping the workspace copy

After deployment, optionally clean up the workspace copy:

rm -rf workspace/skills/<skill-name>

Step 6: Iterate

After testing the skill, users may request improvements. Often this happens right after using the skill, with fresh context of how the skill performed.

Iteration workflow:

1. Copy skill back to workspace: cp -r config/skills/<skill-name> workspace/skills/
2. Make changes in workspace
3. Test the changes
4. Deploy atomically: rm -rf config/skills/<skill-name> && cp -r workspace/skills/<skill-name> config/skills/
5. Repeat as needed