Everything you need to get your AI tutor running on Windows.
About 15–20 minutes — and most of that is just waiting for things to download.
Mac guide coming soon
Before you start
You don't need to understand the commands — just follow along. If you get
stuck at any point, message Becky or the WhatsApp group. Tell us which step
you're on and copy in anything you see on screen. There are no silly questions here.
A quick heads-up about your data
Free Gemini may use your chats with the tutor to improve Google's AI, by default.
If you'd rather it didn't, you can turn off "Keep Activity" for
Gemini at
myactivity.google.com/product/gemini.
The tutor will never ask you to paste passwords or anything sensitive, but it's
worth knowing.
A few steps ask you to type a command into a window. Step 1 installs that window
(it's called Git Bash), and from then on everything happens in that
one window. Don't worry if it looks intimidating — you'll only ever copy, paste, and
press Enter.
1Install Git — this also gives you the window you'll type into
The download should start on its own. If it asks, choose the 64-bit standalone installer.
Open the downloaded file. The installer asks a lot of questions — you can safely click Next on every screen, then Install. The standard choices are exactly what we want.
When it finishes, untick "View Release Notes" if it's ticked, and click Finish.
Check it worked
Click the Windows Start menu, type Git Bash, and click it. A small
dark window should open. That's your terminal — leave it open, you'll
use it for everything from here.
60 seconds with your terminal — before you type your first command
The terminal doesn't quite behave like the rest of your computer. A few quick
things will save you some "why isn't this working?!" moments:
Your mouse can't move the cursor. Once you've typed something,
you can't click in the middle of a line to edit it. Use ← and →
to move along the line; ↑ and ↓ scroll through commands
you typed before.
Press Enter to actually run a command. Nothing
happens until you do. If it looks stuck, you may not have pressed it.
Commands are case-sensitive.cd and
CD are different.
Press Tab to autocomplete. Start typing a folder
or filename, hit Tab, and it finishes the name for you. Saves typos.
Copying and pasting use different shortcuts here.To copy: highlight text with your mouse, then press
Ctrl+Insert (or right-click → Copy). To
paste: press Shift+Insert (or right-click
→ Paste). Heads up: the usual Ctrl+C and
Ctrl+V don't work the way you'd expect at the
Git Bash prompt — Ctrl+C interrupts a running
command instead.
~ means your home folder. When you see
~/Documents, that's your Documents folder — the same one you see
in File Explorer.
That's it. Your tutor explains the rest as it comes up. (And if a key-press
catches you out later, the Troubleshooting page
has the common ones.)
Download the button labelled LTS (it'll show a number like 20.x.x LTS or higher — anything 20 or above is fine).
Open the downloaded file and click Next / Install through it, accepting the standard choices.
Important: close your Git Bash window and open it again (Start menu → Git Bash). This lets it notice that Node is now installed.
In Git Bash, type this and press Enter:
node --version
Check it worked
You should see a number like v20.x.x or higher. If it says
"command not found", close and reopen Git Bash and try again. If it still won't work,
message Becky or the group.
3Install the tutor's engine — Gemini CLI
In Git Bash, type this exactly and press Enter:
npm install -g @google/gemini-cli
It'll print several lines and take a minute or so. Wait until the typing cursor comes back and sits there ready.
Then check it's there:
gemini --version
Check it worked
You should see a version number.
4Sign in with Google
In Git Bash, type this and press Enter:
gemini
The first time, it asks how you'd like to sign in. Choose Sign in with Google.
Your web browser will open. Pick your Google account and allow access.
Once it's done, come back to the Git Bash window — Gemini is now running.
Good to know
This is free to use — up to 1,000 messages a day, far more than
you'll need for learning.
It'll print a few lines as it works. When you see "All set." your
tutor is on your computer and ready.
What that command does, in plain words
Downloads a small setup script from this tutor's repository.
Creates a visible project folder for your work at
~/Documents/my-gemini-project, plus a hidden
.gemini-tutor in your home folder where the tutor keeps
its teaching material.
Downloads the tutor files — the tutor's brain (a file called
GEMINI.md, inside your project folder) and its teaching
material (the curriculum, diagnostic, and playbook).
Sets one preference so the tutor doesn't pop up a confirmation box
for every small file change — it pauses in the chat instead,
which is the review moment.
Adds a single-word command, tutor, that takes you into
the project folder and starts the tutor — so you don't have to
remember a long command each day.
If you've used Gemini before, anything already in those folders is
quietly backed up before being replaced. Nothing is lost.
6Say hello to your tutor
One last thing before you meet the tutor: close this Git Bash
window and open a fresh one (Start menu → Git Bash). That's so the
new tutor command becomes available.
In the fresh window, type this and press Enter:
tutor
That one word takes you into your project folder and starts your tutor.
It'll introduce itself and take it from there.
Starting and stopping — two phrases to save
Once you're set up, two simple phrases run everything. Worth saving them somewhere
(a sticky note or Notepad) — your tutor also reminds you at the end of every session.
(Also lives on the Helpful notes page for ongoing
reference.)
To stop for the day — type this and press Enter:
End lesson
Your tutor saves where you got to and tells you it's safe to close the window.
(A full stop on the end is fine — End lesson. works too.)
To come back next time — open Git Bash and type:
tutor
Then, once your tutor is running, type Continue learning and press Enter.