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CHALLENGES

github-actions[bot] edited this page May 5, 2026 · 1 revision

Challenge Hub

Welcome to the Challenge Hub -- your guide to all 16 core challenges and 5 bonus challenges.

How challenges work

  1. Go to the Issues tab of this repository.
  2. Find issues assigned to you (filter by your username).
  3. Each issue has step-by-step instructions, evidence prompts, and buddy checks.
  4. Complete the challenge, post your evidence as a comment, and close the issue.

Curriculum chapters: Every challenge links to chapters in the curriculum repository where you can read the full material.


Day 1: You Belong Here (Challenges 1-9)

Challenge 1: Find Your Way Around

Chapters: Ch02-04 | Evidence: Comment

Navigate the learning-room repository like a scavenger hunt. Find the tabs, explore the file tree, read the README, and locate key files.

What to do:

  • Find the Code tab and count files in the root
  • Open the Issues tab and find an open issue
  • Navigate to docs/welcome.md and read the first paragraph
  • Find the repository description and the README

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 2: File Your First Issue

Chapter: Ch05 | Evidence: Comment

Find a TODO comment in docs/welcome.md and file an issue describing the problem with a clear title and description.

What to do:

  • Open docs/welcome.md and search for TODO
  • Create a new issue with a descriptive title
  • Explain what needs to change, where, and why

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 3: Join the Conversation

Chapter: Ch05 | Evidence: Comment

Comment on a buddy's issue using @mentions and reactions.

What to do:

  • Find your buddy's Challenge 2 issue
  • Leave a meaningful comment with an @mention
  • Add a reaction to their original issue

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 4: Branch Out

Chapter: Ch06 | Evidence: Comment

Create a personal branch named learn/YOUR-USERNAME for your Day 1 work.

What to do:

  • Find the branch dropdown on the Code tab
  • Type learn/YOUR-USERNAME and create the branch from main

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 5: Make Your Mark

Chapter: Ch06 | Evidence: Comment

Edit docs/welcome.md on your branch to fix the TODO, then commit with a meaningful message.

What to do:

  • Switch to your learn/YOUR-USERNAME branch
  • Edit docs/welcome.md to replace the TODO with real content
  • Write a commit message that explains what you changed and why

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 6: Open Your First PR

Chapter: Ch06 | Evidence: Comment

Open a pull request from your branch to main, linking it to your issue with Closes #XX.

What to do:

  • Go to Pull requests > New pull request
  • Set base to main, compare to learn/YOUR-USERNAME
  • Write a clear title and include Closes #XX in the description

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 7: Survive a Merge Conflict

Chapter: Ch07 | Evidence: Comment | Autograded

Resolve a facilitator-triggered merge conflict by removing conflict markers and keeping the right content.

What to do:

  • Wait for the facilitator to trigger the conflict
  • Find conflict markers (<<<<<<<, =======, >>>>>>>) in the file
  • Decide which content to keep and delete all marker lines
  • Commit the resolution

The autograder checks that no conflict markers remain.

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 8: The Culture Layer

Chapter: Ch08 | Evidence: Comment

Reflect on open source culture and triage an issue with labels.

What to do:

  • Answer a reflection question about your workshop experience
  • Add a label to an open issue that describes its type
  • Leave a comment explaining your triage decision

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 9: Merge Day

Chapter: Ch10 | Evidence: Comment

Get your Day 1 PR merged, verify your changes on main, and celebrate.

What to do:

  • Verify your PR has no conflicts and a meaningful commit message
  • Merge your PR (or wait for the facilitator to approve)
  • Confirm your changes appear on the main branch
  • Check that your linked issue was automatically closed

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.


Day 2: You Can Build This (Challenges 10-16)

Challenge 10: Go Local

Chapters: Ch11-14 | Evidence: Comment | Autograded

Clone the repo, create a feature branch, edit, commit, and push from your local tool.

What to do:

  • Clone the repository to your computer (VS Code, GitHub Desktop, or CLI)
  • Create a branch named fix/YOUR-USERNAME
  • Edit a file in docs/
  • Commit and push to GitHub

The autograder verifies a commit on a non-default branch.

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 11: Open a Day 2 PR

Chapters: Ch14-15 | Evidence: Comment

Open a PR from your locally-pushed branch. Notice the workflow pattern is the same as Day 1.

What to do:

  • Open a PR from fix/YOUR-USERNAME to main
  • Write a clear title and description
  • Recognize: the pull request step is identical whether you edit online or locally

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 12: Review Like a Pro

Chapter: Ch15 | Evidence: Comment

Perform a full code review of your buddy's Day 2 PR.

What to do:

  • Open your buddy's PR and go to Files changed
  • Leave at least two inline comments (one praise, one suggestion)
  • Use the Suggest changes feature for at least one comment
  • Submit your review with a verdict (Approve, Request changes, or Comment)

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 13: AI as Your Copilot

Chapter: Ch16 | Evidence: Comment

Use GitHub Copilot to improve documentation, then critically evaluate the output.

What to do:

  • Use Copilot to improve a documentation file
  • Apply the trust-verify-reject framework to each suggestion
  • Document what you accepted, modified, and rejected

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 14: Template Remix

Chapter: Ch17 | Evidence: Comment | Autograded

Create a custom issue template by remixing the registration template.

What to do:

  • Study the sample at docs/samples/challenge-14-registration-remix-example.yml
  • Create a new YAML template in .github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/
  • Include a name, description, title, and at least one form field
  • Commit and push

The autograder verifies a valid YAML template with a name field.

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 15: Meet the Agents

Chapter: Ch19 | Evidence: Comment

Discover accessibility agents, run one, and read one agent's instructions.

What to do:

  • Browse the accessibility-agents repository
  • Find and name at least 3 different agents
  • Run one agent and describe what happened
  • Read one agent's .agent.md file and identify its purpose and guardrails

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.

Challenge 16: Build Your Agent (Capstone)

Chapters: Ch18, Ch20 | Evidence: Comment | Autograded

Fork the accessibility-agents repo, write your own agent, and open a cross-fork PR.

What to do:

  1. Fork the accessibility-agents repository
  2. Clone your fork and create a branch agent/YOUR-USERNAME
  3. Write an .agent.md file with YAML frontmatter, responsibilities, and guardrails
  4. Push and open a cross-fork PR to the original repository
  5. Review a classmate's capstone PR

Use the agent file template and fork workflow checklist for guidance.

The autograder verifies your agent file exists, has valid YAML, and contains required sections.

Compare your work: When you are done, you can view a completed example to see how your approach compares. Different is fine. The learning objective is what matters.


Bonus Challenges

For students who finish early and want to keep building.

Bonus A: Improve an Existing Agent

Choose an existing agent, identify an improvement, and open a PR.

Compare your work: View a completed example

Bonus B: Document Your Journey

Write a structured reflection about your workshop experience using proper Markdown.

Compare your work: View a completed example

Bonus C: Create a Group Challenge

Design a collaborative challenge for 3-5 students that future cohorts can use.

Compare your work: View a completed example

Bonus D: Notification Mastery

Configure GitHub notification settings for a productive workflow.

Compare your work: View a completed example

Bonus E: Explore Git History Visually

Use GitHub Desktop or GitHub.com to explore repository history as a visual timeline.

Compare your work: View a completed example

Skills-Inspired Optional Scenarios

For advanced students who finish early, use the curated optional scenarios in learning-room/docs/skills-bonus-scenarios.md.

These scenarios adapt selected GitHub Skills exercises into this workshop environment without changing the official 21-challenge progression.


If you get stuck

Every challenge issue includes an "If you get stuck" table with common problems and solutions. You can also:

Clone this wiki locally