DeepTutor CLI
HKUDS/DeepTutor
Teaches the agent to set up and run DeepTutor from the command line: chat and capabilities, knowledge bases, partners, memory, sessions, notebooks and the server or Web app.
When a request is vague, assumption-laden, or "obvious," ask the few load-bearing questions that expose hidden requirements before building or committing.
Install Thinking Socratic
$ npx skills add tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills --skill thinking-socratic -a claude-codeProject install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.
$ gh skill install tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills thinking-socratic --agent claude-codeProject scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/thinking-socratic .claude/skills/thinking-socratic && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.
Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/
Install the "thinking-socratic" agent skill from https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills/tree/main/skills/thinking-socratic into .claude/skills/thinking-socratic/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "thinking-socratic", then confirm the skill loads.Claude Code copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$skill-installer install https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills/tree/main/skills/thinking-socraticType this inside Codex. $skill-installer <name> installs a curated skill from openai/skills. The installer writes to $CODEX_HOME/skills (default ~/.codex/skills). Restart Codex if the skill does not show up.
$ npx skills add tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills --skill thinking-socratic -a codexProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.
$ gh skill install tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills thinking-socratic --agent codexProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/thinking-socratic .agents/skills/thinking-socratic && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.
Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/
Install the "thinking-socratic" agent skill from https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills/tree/main/skills/thinking-socratic into .agents/skills/thinking-socratic/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "thinking-socratic", then confirm the skill loads.Codex copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ npx skills add tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills --skill thinking-socratic -a cursorProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.
$ gh skill install tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills thinking-socratic --agent cursorProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/thinking-socratic .cursor/skills/thinking-socratic && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.
Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/
Install the "thinking-socratic" agent skill from https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills/tree/main/skills/thinking-socratic into .cursor/skills/thinking-socratic/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "thinking-socratic", then confirm the skill loads.Cursor copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ gemini skills install https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills.git --path skills/thinking-socratic--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.
$ npx skills add tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills --skill thinking-socratic -a gemini-cliProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.
$ gh skill install tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills thinking-socratic --agent gemini-cliProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/thinking-socratic .gemini/skills/thinking-socratic && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.gemini/skills/ instead of .gemini/skills for a personal install, then run /skills reload.
Gemini CLI skills documentation · loads skills from .gemini/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "thinking-socratic" agent skill from https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills/tree/main/skills/thinking-socratic into .gemini/skills/thinking-socratic/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "thinking-socratic", then confirm the skill loads.Gemini CLI copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ gh skill install tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills thinking-socraticInstalls for Copilot at project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Preview a skill first with gh skill preview. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ npx skills add tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills --skill thinking-socratic -a github-copilotProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/thinking-socratic .github/skills/thinking-socratic && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.copilot/skills/ instead of .github/skills for a personal install. Commit .github/skills so cloud agent and code review can use it.
GitHub Copilot skills documentation · loads skills from .github/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "thinking-socratic" agent skill from https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills/tree/main/skills/thinking-socratic into .github/skills/thinking-socratic/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "thinking-socratic", then confirm the skill loads.GitHub Copilot copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ npx skills add tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills --skill thinking-socratic -a opencodeOpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.
$ gh skill install tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills thinking-socratic --agent opencodeProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/skills/thinking-socratic .opencode/skills/thinking-socratic && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.
OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "thinking-socratic" agent skill from https://github.com/tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills/tree/main/skills/thinking-socratic into .opencode/skills/thinking-socratic/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "thinking-socratic", then confirm the skill loads.OpenCode copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
Facts
- Skill name
thinking-socratic- GitHub stars
- 1.6k
- Token cost
- ~846 tokens
- SKILL.md length
- 423 words
- Files
- 1
- Skills in repo
- 26
- Repo updated
- First seen
- Licence
- MIT
At a glance
When a request is vague, assumption-laden, or "obvious," ask the few load-bearing questions that expose hidden requirements before building or committing.
- Works in 5 steps: Name the gap. State what is undefined,… → Ask the load-bearing question first.… → Resolve or branch. From the answer,… → …
- Tasks that involve Tutoring and explanations
- SKILL.md covers When to Use, When NOT to Use, Procedure and Output, plus 1 more section
- Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md
What it does
Thinking Socratic is an agent skill from tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills. When a request is vague, assumption-laden, or "obvious," ask the few load-bearing questions that expose hidden requirements before building or committing.
Its SKILL.md is about 850 tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.
It sits in Education, covering Tutoring and explanations. The repository describes itself as: 28 eval-informed mental models and critical-thinking skills for Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, Codex, Cursor, and other Agent Skills-compatible tools. The licence is MIT.
When your agent uses it
- Tasks that involve Tutoring and explanations
Example prompts
- “obvious,”
- “/thinking-socratic”
Workflow steps
5 steps, taken from the first numbered list in SKILL.md.
- Name the gap. State what is undefined, assumed, or uncheckable. If you can fill it from tools/repo without the user, do that and stop.
- Ask the load-bearing question first. Prefer one question whose answer most changes what you will build. Categories (use only what the gap…
- Resolve or branch. From the answer, either (a) write the clarified requirement/decision and proceed, or (b) ask at most one follow-up that…
- Make assumptions explicit. Restate: "This assumes X; success means Y; out of scope is Z." Confirm only if still ambiguous after your…
- Stop at decision-ready clarity. When the next action no longer depends on a hidden premise, end questioning and act or hand off. Cap…
What it can do on your machine
Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 7b8fece. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.
Tool permissions
Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.
From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.
Runs code
No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md.
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
Network
No URLs in SKILL.md.
From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.
Credentials
Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.
From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.
Context cost
Thinking Socratic loads about 846 tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 43 tokens; SKILL.md has 423 words of instructions outside code blocks.
Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.
Safety
Auto-check passed
The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.
Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.
SKILL.md
The full file from tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills at commit 7b8fece, republished under its MIT licence (© tjboudreaux). 423 words, ~846 tokens.
Download SKILL.mdSave it as
.claude/skills/thinking-socratic/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).- name
- thinking-socratic
- description
- When a request is vague, assumption-laden, or "obvious," ask the few load-bearing questions that expose hidden requirements before building or committing.
- disable-model-invocation
- true
Socratic Questioning
Core rule: Surface the load-bearing assumption or undefined term before you build. Ask only what you cannot resolve yourself; stop when the next action is decision-ready.
When to Use
- Request is underspecified ("make it fast", "add a dashboard", "fix the bug") and a guess would misbuild.
- Claim rests on an unstated assumption that may be the real problem.
- Someone treats a premise as "obvious" or jumps to a solution before the problem is defined.
- Debugging a vague symptom that needs a checkable specific before investigation.
When NOT to Use
- Spec is already clear and actionable — do the work; do not interrogate for theater.
- Ambiguity is resolvable by reading code, running a command, or checking docs — resolve it yourself.
- Mid-execution of an agreed plan — re-questioning every step is friction, not rigor.
- Emergency where one load-bearing fact is enough to act — clarify that fact, then act (prefer ooda).
- You need the strongest opposing case, not clarification — use steel-manning.
- You need causal chain depth on a defined failure — use five-whys-plus or scientific-method.
Procedure
- Name the gap. State what is undefined, assumed, or uncheckable. If you can fill it from tools/repo without the user, do that and stop.
- Ask the load-bearing question first. Prefer one question whose answer most changes what you will build. Categories (use only what the gap needs):
- Clarification — "What does X mean / for whom / success looks like?"
- Assumption — "What must be true? What if it is false?"
- Evidence — "What supports this? What would disprove it?"
- Perspective — "Who is affected / who would disagree?"
- Implication — "What follows if we do this?"
- Meta — "Is this the right question?"
- Resolve or branch. From the answer, either (a) write the clarified requirement/decision and proceed, or (b) ask at most one follow-up that still gates the work. Do not run all six categories by default.
- Make assumptions explicit. Restate: "This assumes X; success means Y; out of scope is Z." Confirm only if still ambiguous after your restatement.
- Stop at decision-ready clarity. When the next action no longer depends on a hidden premise, end questioning and act or hand off. Cap user-facing questions tightly; prefer batching the few that truly gate work.
Show full SKILL.md (60 more words)Show less
Output
gap: <what was vague or assumed>
resolved_by: self | user | mixed
questions_asked:
- <only questions actually needed>
assumptions_made_explicit:
- <X must be true / success = Y>
clarified_requirement: <decision-ready statement>
next_action: <build | investigate | re-scope | stop>
stop_reason: clear_enough | self_resolved | blocked_on_<fact>Verification
- Falsify / stop: If answers do not change the plan, you asked non-load-bearing questions — stop interrogating. If the "clarification" is still a guess, do not build; name the remaining blocker.
- Over-application guard: Do not Socratic-interview a well-specified task. Do not outsource facts you can read or measure. Do not turn every step of execution into a new question round.
© tjboudreaux, MIT. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file
Files
Just SKILL.md in skills/thinking-socratic of tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills.
Open the folder on GitHubat commit 7b8fece
Compare with similar skills
Thinking Socratic next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.
| Skill | Stars | Used in | Tokens | Auto-check | Licence | Repo updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thinking Socratic this skilltjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills | 1.6k | — | ~846 | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| DeepTutor CLIHKUDS/DeepTutor | 41k | — | ~2.8k | Automated safety check: Pass | Apache-2.0 | |
| AI Engineering Project Tutorrohitg00/ai-engineering-from-scratch | 66k | — | ~1.6k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Hung-Yi Lee Teaching Stylevoidful/hung-yi-lee-skill | 1.3k | — | ~13k | Automated safety check: Pass | None | |
| Claude Certification Tutorrohitg00/ai-engineering-from-scratch | 66k | — | ~3k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| StudyVault Quiz Tutorbevibing/tutor-skills | 1.3k | — | ~1.4k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT |
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Related
Categories
Questions about Thinking Socratic
What does Thinking Socratic do?
When a request is vague, assumption-laden, or "obvious," ask the few load-bearing questions that expose hidden requirements before building or committing. Thinking Socratic is an agent skill from tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills. When a request is vague, assumption-laden, or "obvious," ask the few load-bearing questions that expose hidden requirements before building or committing.
When should I use Thinking Socratic?
Thinking Socratic fits situations like: tasks that involve Tutoring and explanations.
How do I install Thinking Socratic in Claude Code?
Run `npx skills add tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills --skill thinking-socratic -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/thinking-socratic in tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills) into .claude/skills/thinking-socratic in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.
How do I install Thinking Socratic in Codex?
Run `npx skills add tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills --skill thinking-socratic -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (skills/thinking-socratic in tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills) into .agents/skills/thinking-socratic in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.
Can I use Thinking Socratic in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?
Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills --skill thinking-socratic -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/thinking-socratic, .gemini/skills/thinking-socratic, .github/skills/thinking-socratic and .opencode/skills/thinking-socratic in your project.
What does Thinking Socratic need to run?
SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Thinking Socratic is instructions for the agent only.
Does Thinking Socratic access the network?
SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.
Is Thinking Socratic safe to install?
Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.
What licence does Thinking Socratic use?
Thinking Socratic is published under the MIT licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.
How many tokens does Thinking Socratic use?
About 846 tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 3.4k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.
What are the alternatives to Thinking Socratic?
Skills that share tags, products or a category with Thinking Socratic: DeepTutor CLI (HKUDS/DeepTutor, 41k stars), AI Engineering Project Tutor (rohitg00/ai-engineering-from-scratch, 66k stars), Hung-Yi Lee Teaching Style (voidful/hung-yi-lee-skill, 1.3k stars) and Claude Certification Tutor (rohitg00/ai-engineering-from-scratch, 66k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.
Who maintains Thinking Socratic?
tjboudreaux (a GitHub user) maintains it in tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills, which has 1,613 GitHub stars. The repository holds 26 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on August 7, 2026.
Source: tjboudreaux/cc-thinking-skills on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.