Guide · Agent skill
How to use the Zone-of-Proximal-Development Practice Lessons agent skill
Updated · written with AI from the project's own documentation and checked against our catalogue data
This skill helps an AI agent plan a review lesson built around a learner's own attempts. It starts with an independent try, adds targeted help matched to what the learner actually got stuck on, then rechecks with a fresh task with the hints removed. This guide explains what the skill does, how to install it from a ZIP or the Claude apps, how to trigger it, and what it needs.
Zone-of-Proximal-Development Practice LessonsTHU-MAIC/OpenMAIC · MIT Download the skill Quick start
- 1Download and unzip. Download the ZIP from the directory page and unzip the skill folder.
- 2Place the folder. Copy it to ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use, or to a project's .claude/skills/ folder.
- 3Or upload in the Claude apps. Go to Settings → Capabilities → Skills and upload the skill there.
- 4Make a clear request. Describe the learner, material, lesson length and goal, using a trigger phrase such as 测验习题课 or diagnostic review lesson.
- 5Answer the first task alone. When the agent gives an independent task, try it before asking for help so the diagnosis reflects your own work.
- 6Take the fresh recheck. Complete the new similar task with the hints removed, then follow the suggested next step.
What the skill makes the agent do
The skill plans a short practice lesson in six linked parts: stated goal, independent diagnosis, targeted feedback, supported practice, a fresh independent check, and a next step based on the evidence. It is meant to organise a lesson around the relationship between tasks, not to produce a pile of questions.
It also covers the case of a single practice cycle in chat. If you only ask for one exercise or a plain explanation of the theory, the skill says it should not expand that into a full lesson.
- Starts with the learner attempting a task alone, before any hints or solutions are shown.
- Gives hints or explanations matched to the difficulty observed in that attempt.
- Rechecks with a similar but new task after the hints are removed.
- Suggests a next step based on that evidence, and avoids claiming an exact measurement of the learner's zone of proximal development.
Install the skill from a ZIP file
Download the ZIP from the directory page and unzip it. The skill folder contains SKILL.md, references/exercise-lesson.md and references/theory.md.
For a personal install, place the folder in ~/.claude/skills/. For a single project, place it in that project's .claude/skills/ folder.
You can also upload the skill in the Claude apps under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
- Personal: ~/.claude/skills/
- Project: .claude/skills/ inside your project
- Claude apps: Settings → Capabilities → Skills
Trigger the skill with natural requests
Ask for the lesson in plain language. The skill's description names trigger phrases such as 习题课（最近发展区）, 最近发展区, 测验习题课, diagnostic review lessons, and guided-to-independent practice.
Be specific about the learner, the existing material, the length of the lesson and the goal. The skill asks follow-up questions only when missing information would change the teaching.
- Create a 20-minute diagnostic review lesson on solving linear equations with one unknown, for a Year 8 class, in OpenMAIC.
- Run one practice cycle in chat on rearranging a formula: give me an independent try first, then a hint, then a new problem without the hint.
- Make a 测验习题课 on paragraph revision for my writing course.
Know what the skill needs
The skill's instructions reference an OpenMAIC environment and its stage-design, pro-editing and stage-dsl skills. For full lesson pages, those skills are used to build and check the slides. The source files do not name any API keys or external accounts.
The skill runs no scripts and uses no network access, according to its metadata.
- Requires: OpenMAIC environment with stage-design, pro-editing and stage-dsl skills referenced by the instructions
- No API keys or external accounts are named in the provided files
- Runs scripts: no
- Uses network: no
Safety notes on scripts and network
Because the skill runs no scripts and uses no network, it works only through the instructions in its Markdown files and the tools your agent already has. Review the files after unzipping if you want to check this yourself.
The skill is marked experimental. The skill's own notes say that the diagnosis, scaffolding and fading steps are teaching design choices, not fixed steps from Vygotsky, and that a single activity cannot give a stable score.
- No scripts are included according to the metadata.
- No network use is stated in the metadata.
- Treat the output as a lesson design to check against your learners, not as an assessment result.
Tips for better lessons
Give the agent real learner work where you have it. The skill prefers observed answers over invented misconceptions, and it treats typical wrong answers in examples as illustrations only.
When you build pages in OpenMAIC, check that a later question or option does not reveal the answer to an earlier one. The skill's notes say a brief that says 'do not leak' does not prove the page avoids leaking.
- Keep the practice task and the fresh recheck similar in difficulty, changing numbers or surface context rather than adding new rules.
- Record what really happened: the first attempt, the help given, and what the learner did alone.
- Do not read one correct answer as mastery of the whole topic.
What people use it for
- A teacher building a guided quiz-review lesson in OpenMAIC with a diagnostic opening and a fresh recheck.
- A learner who wants one practice cycle run in chat, with hints given only after an attempt.
- A tutor who wants hints faded out gradually before an independent recheck.
- A course designer checking a review page for answer leaks between questions.
Frequently asked questions
How do I install the zone-of-proximal-development skill?
Download the ZIP from the directory page and unzip it. Place the folder in ~/.claude/skills/ for personal use or in a project's .claude/skills/ folder, or upload it in the Claude apps under Settings → Capabilities → Skills.
What does the zone-of-proximal-development skill require?
The instructions reference an OpenMAIC environment with its stage-design, pro-editing and stage-dsl skills. The provided files name no API keys or external accounts, and the metadata says it runs no scripts and uses no network.
Is the zone-of-proximal-development skill free?
The source files give the licence as MIT. They do not state any price, so check the directory page for any other terms.
Can the skill measure a student's zone of proximal development?
No. The skill is designed to avoid that claim. Its notes say a single activity can only show performance under specific task and help conditions, and cannot produce a stable measure of ability.
Can I use it for a single question or a theory explanation?
The skill says not to turn a request for one exercise or a plain theory explanation into a full lesson. It can run one practice cycle in chat, or answer the theory question directly.
What should I do if the lesson pages reveal answers?
Read the real questions on each page and check whether another question, option or example gives away the answer. Edit the saved page using the stage-dsl quiz guidance, then preview the lesson to recheck.
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Our verdict
This skill suits teachers and course designers building a guided quiz-review lesson in OpenMAIC, learners who want one practice cycle in chat, and tutors who want hints faded before an independent recheck. It is not suited to a single exercise, a plain theory explanation, or anyone expecting a reliable score of ability from one activity.
Download the skill