# Set Curriculum > Build or update the teaching curriculum for a learning sub-project from its source materials. Use whenever the user wants to plan, structure, or refresh the learning path for a sub-project — phrases like "set curriculum for X", "update the curriculum", "plan the teaching path", "build a curriculum from these materials", or general intent to organize source material into an ordered teaching plan. This skill reads the sub-project's source materials and writes ai-agent-materials/curriculum.md. It does not start a session and does not update PROGRESS.md. - Skill: `timbogp/set-curriculum` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add timbogp/set-curriculum` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/timbogp/set-curriculum/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: AI & ML - Author: TimboGP (https://skillmd.com/u/timbogp) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/timbogp/set-curriculum --- # Set or update a sub-project's curriculum This skill builds the teaching plan for a learning sub-project. The curriculum is a **reference document** the agent consults when proposing what to study next — it does not force the order, but it makes the route through the material explicit and reviewable. ## When to use The user has bootstrapped a sub-project (via the `bootstrap` skill) and dropped source materials into `.studyenv//source-materials/`. They want to organize that material into an ordered teaching plan. Phrases: "set curriculum for tasep", "update the curriculum for spanish-b2", "plan how we should work through these papers". This skill is **not a session** — it does **not** update `PROGRESS.md`. It only writes the curriculum file. ## What you need from the user **Required:** - The **sub-project name** to act on. If the user did not name one, **ask** — never default to "all sub-projects" or guess. If multiple sub-projects exist in the harness, prefer asking over assuming. ## What to read Before writing or updating the curriculum, load context: 1. The sub-project's `.studyenv//AGENTS.md`, falling back to `.studyenv//CLAUDE.md` for older projects — for `Domain:`, `Language:`, learning goals, and Tools & Materials. 2. The harness conventions at `../../reference/conventions.md` — for the curriculum format and status legends. 3. The sub-project's `.studyenv//ai-agent-materials/` — especially any existing `curriculum.md` and source extractions (concept maps, copied excerpts). 4. The sub-project's `.studyenv//source-materials/` — the canonical source content. If `.studyenv//ai-agent-materials/` does not exist, create it. Concept maps and excerpts are added here over time; this skill primarily writes `curriculum.md`. ## What to write Render or update `.studyenv//ai-agent-materials/curriculum.md` with the structure documented in `../../reference/conventions.md` (Curriculum format section): - An **overview** paragraph — what this sub-project teaches and the intended end state. - A **topics** section: an ordered list of topic entries, each with - a stable **id** (`T1`, `T2.a`, …) so `PROGRESS.md` can cross-reference - a one-line **description** - **prerequisites** (other topic ids; `none` if root) - suggested **session type** — one of the four core types `theory`, `practice`, `role-play`, `onboarding` (or `both` for theory + practice). `theory`/`practice`/`role-play` are run via `start-session`; `onboarding` via the dedicated `onboard-session` skill. Where the active overlay flavors `role-play`, the curriculum may name the flavor — `simulation` (`Domain: speech-therapy`), `defense` (`Domain: academic-research`), `review` / `interview` (`Domain: coding`). See `../../reference/conventions.md` → *Session types vs. flavors*. - **source references** — page numbers, section anchors, URLs - **exercise hooks** — short outlines of proposed practice/theory exercises; the actual exercise artifacts live in `work/`, created at session time per the active domain overlay. If `curriculum.md` already exists, **update** rather than overwrite: - Integrate any newly added source materials. - Fold in user-provided corrections or additions. - Re-check dependencies and ordering. The curriculum is **reference-only**. It does not constrain `start-session` or `onboard-session` — the agent may consult it when proposing a route, but is free to deviate. ## Stay source-faithful; label any departures This skill produces a **source-faithful** curriculum by default — every topic should be traceable to the user's `source-materials/`. If the source assumes a prerequisite it doesn't itself cover, you have two options: (a) name the prereq as a gap to fill at session time and don't add a curriculum topic for it, or (b) add a short bridging topic and label it `[ext]` per the *External-source labeling* rules in `../../reference/conventions.md`. **Do not silently weave training knowledge into a curriculum that's supposed to track the user's source.** If the user wants a curriculum that genuinely shifts level (simpler / more advanced), they should use `adjust-level` instead, which is explicitly built for that. ## Source-material handling When extracting material from sources, build intermediate fixed representations under `.studyenv//ai-agent-materials/` alongside `curriculum.md`: - **Terse concept maps** — with references back to the source (page numbers for PDFs, section/heading anchors or URLs for other formats). - **Copied verbatim excerpts** — sections, examples, definitions for explicit use during sessions. Keep these in the source's original language regardless of the sub-project's `Language:` setting. Do **not** duplicate exercise content here; the curriculum's exercise hooks point at `work/`, but `work/` is populated at session time by `start-session`. ## Why these rules - The curriculum is the explicit teaching plan, separate from `PROGRESS.md` (which tracks what's been done). Splitting plan from progress lets the user revise the plan without rewriting history. - Topic ids are stable identifiers so `PROGRESS.md` can record `T1: exercised` without restating the topic description — and so reordering the curriculum doesn't break those references. - Updating rather than overwriting matters when the user has been corresponding about plan revisions; the existing curriculum may carry their edits. ## Related skills - `bootstrap` mints the sub-project. - `start-session`, `onboard-session` consult the curriculum (among other inputs) when proposing what to study next.