https://github.com/lsvekis/5-Simple-Google-Apps-Script-Exercises-Using-Gemini

🚀 5 Simple Google Apps Script Exercises Using Gemini (With Full Code + Downloadable Repo)

AI is transforming how we work inside Google Workspace—and with Google Apps Script + Gemini, you can now add AI superpowers directly into Docs, Sheets, and your everyday workflows.

To help you get started quickly, I’ve created a set of five simple, beginner-friendly Apps Script exercises. Each one introduces a different way Gemini can integrate into your Workspace tools—from answering questions to summarizing Docs to generating ideas based on cell values.

These exercises are perfect for:

• Students learning Apps Script
• Developers experimenting with Gemini
• Educators building AI-enhanced tools
• Anyone looking to automate Google Workspace with AI

A GitHub-ready project + ZIP download is included at the end.

---

🌟 What You’ll Build

Across the exercises, you’ll learn how to:

✅ Send prompts to Gemini
✅ Build a custom menu inside Google Sheets
✅ Summarize selected text in Google Docs
✅ Generate creative ideas from spreadsheet data
✅ Build a custom spreadsheet function: =GEMINI("your prompt")
(Just like a built-in formula!)

Each exercise includes:
✔ Code
✔ Test functions
✔ Practical use cases

Let’s begin.

---

🧪 Exercise 1 — Ask Gemini a Simple Question

The easiest possible starting point: send a prompt to Gemini and log the answer.

Perfect for testing that your API key + permissions are working correctly.

Use Cases

• Ask coding questions
• Generate writing prompts
• Create learning summaries

---

🧪 Exercise 2 — Add a Custom Menu to Google Sheets

Next, you’ll add a new Gemini menu inside Sheets.

Clicking Ask Gemini triggers an AI request and displays the result in a popup. This pattern is powerful—it mirrors how real add-ons are built.

Use Cases

• Explain formulas
• Provide writing feedback
• Generate step-by-step instructions

---

🧪 Exercise 3 — Summarize Selected Text in Google Docs

Highlight text → run the function → get an instant, AI-generated summary.

This is one of the most practical Docs automations you can build.

Use Cases

• Summaries for meetings, articles, research
• Simplify educational content
• Rewrite content for clarity

---

🧪 Exercise 4 — Generate Creative Ideas From a Cell

In Sheets:

• Put a topic inside A1
• Run the script
• Gemini writes ideas into A2

A simple structure, but extremely powerful.

Use Cases

• Brainstorming project ideas
• Generating marketing concepts
• Creating topic lists for blogs or courses

---

🧪 Exercise 5 — Create a Custom Function: =GEMINI()

This one is a game changer.

You can now use Gemini like a regular spreadsheet function:

=GEMINI("Write a haiku about coding.")

Your sheet becomes an AI-powered productivity tool with infinite possibilities.

Use Cases

• Rewrite text
• Explain concepts
• Create summaries automatically
• Generate variations of content

---

🔍 Testing Your Exercises

Every exercise includes a matching test function so you can validate it directly from the Script Editor.

Also included is a master test runner:

function test_allGeminiExercises() {
  ...
}

Run it once and it will sequentially verify all 5 exercises.

---

📦 Download the GitHub-Ready Project

To help you get up and running fast, I’ve packaged everything into a GitHub-ready ZIP:

👉 Download the full project

https://github.com/lsvekis/5-Simple-Google-Apps-Script-Exercises-Using-Gemini

The ZIP includes:

• Code.gs with all exercises + helpers + tests
• appsscript.json configuration
• README.md with setup instructions

You can drop this directly into a bound Google Sheet/Doc project or upload it to GitHub as a sample repository.

---

🧠 Why Learn Apps Script + Gemini?

Because together, they let you:

• Automate daily tasks
• Build custom AI tools
• Enhance student learning
• Improve workplace productivity
• Prototype ideas extremely fast

You don’t need servers, frameworks, or deployments.
Just open a Google Doc or Sheet → Extensions → Apps Script → start coding.

It’s one of the fastest ways to create real, useful AI-powered tools.

Full code

{
  "timeZone": "America/Toronto",
  "dependencies": {},
  "exceptionLogging": "STACKDRIVER",
  "runtimeVersion": "V8",
  "oauthScopes": [
    "https://www.googleapis.com/auth/script.properties",
    "https://www.googleapis.com/auth/script.external_request",
    "https://www.googleapis.com/auth/spreadsheets.currentonly",
    "https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly"
  ]
}

/**
 * Gemini Apps Script Exercises
 *
 * Requirements:
 * 1. Create a Gemini API key in your Google account.
 * 2. In the Apps Script editor, go to:
 *    - Project Settings → Script properties
 *    - Add key: GEMINI_API_KEY
 *    - Paste your API key as the value.
 *
 * This file contains:
 * - 5 exercises using Gemini
 * - Test functions for each exercise
 * - A master test runner
 */

const GEMINI_MODEL_ID = 'gemini-2.5-flash';

/**
 * Get Gemini API key from Script Properties.
 */
function getGeminiApiKey_() {
  const scriptProps = PropertiesService.getScriptProperties();
  const key = scriptProps.getProperty('GEMINI_API_KEY');
  if (!key) {
    throw new Error('GEMINI_API_KEY is not set in Script Properties.');
  }
  return key;
}

/**
 * Core Gemini helper: send a text prompt, get a text response.
 *
 * @param {string} prompt
 * @returns {string}
 */
function callGemini(prompt) {
  const apiKey = getGeminiApiKey_();

  const url =
    'https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/v1beta/models/' +
    GEMINI_MODEL_ID +
    ':generateContent?key=' +
    apiKey;

  const payload = {
    contents: [
      {
        parts: [{ text: prompt }]
      }
    ]
  };

  const res = UrlFetchApp.fetch(url, {
    method: 'post',
    contentType: 'application/json',
    payload: JSON.stringify(payload),
    muteHttpExceptions: true
  });

  const result = JSON.parse(res.getContentText());

  if (!result.candidates ||
      !result.candidates[0] ||
      !result.candidates[0].content ||
      !result.candidates[0].content.parts ||
      !result.candidates[0].content.parts[0] ||
      !result.candidates[0].content.parts[0].text) {
    throw new Error('Unexpected Gemini response: ' + res.getContentText());
  }

  return result.candidates[0].content.parts[0].text;
}

/**
 * ============================
 *  EXERCISE 1 – Simple Prompt
 * ============================
 * Logs a one-sentence explanation of JavaScript from Gemini.
 */
function exercise1_simplePrompt() {
  const answer = callGemini('Explain JavaScript in one sentence.');
  Logger.log(answer);
}

/**
 * Test for Exercise 1.
 */
function test_exercise1_simplePrompt() {
  Logger.log('Running Exercise 1 test...');
  exercise1_simplePrompt();
  Logger.log('Check Logs for Gemini response.');
}

/**
 * ==============================================
 *  EXERCISE 2 – Custom Menu in Google Sheets
 * ==============================================
 * Adds a "Gemini" menu with "Ask Gemini".
 * When clicked, it shows tips in an alert.
 */
function onOpen(e) {
  // Only runs in Sheets UI
  SpreadsheetApp.getUi()
    .createMenu('Gemini')
    .addItem('Ask Gemini', 'runGeminiMenu')
    .addToUi();
}

/**
 * Triggered from the custom menu in Sheets.
 */
function runGeminiMenu() {
  const prompt = 'Give me 3 tips for learning JavaScript faster.';
  const answer = callGemini(prompt);
  SpreadsheetApp.getUi().alert(answer);
}

/**
 * Test for Exercise 2 (without using UI menu).
 */
function test_runGeminiMenu() {
  Logger.log('Running Exercise 2 test (no UI)...');
  const prompt = 'Give me 3 tips for learning JavaScript faster.';
  const answer = callGemini(prompt);
  Logger.log('Gemini answer:\n' + answer);
}

/**
 * ==================================================
 *  EXERCISE 3 – Summarize Selected Text in a Doc
 * ==================================================
 * In Google Docs:
 * 1. Select some text.
 * 2. Run summarizeSelection() from the editor.
 * 3. A popup shows Gemini’s summary.
 */
function summarizeSelection() {
  const doc = DocumentApp.getActiveDocument();
  const selection = doc.getSelection();

  if (!selection) {
    DocumentApp.getUi().alert('Select some text first!');
    return;
  }

  let text = '';

  selection.getRangeElements().forEach(function (el) {
    const element = el.getElement();
    if (element.editAsText) {
      text += element.asText().getText() + '\n';
    }
  });

  if (!text.trim()) {
    DocumentApp.getUi().alert('Selected text is empty.');
    return;
  }

  const prompt = 'Summarize this text in a short paragraph:\n' + text;
  const summary = callGemini(prompt);
  DocumentApp.getUi().alert(summary);
}

/**
 * Test for Exercise 3 using sample text (no Doc selection needed).
 */
function test_summarizeSelection_withSampleText() {
  const sampleText =
    'JavaScript is a programming language used to add interactivity to web pages. ' +
    'It runs in the browser and allows developers to create dynamic user interfaces.';

  const prompt =
    'Summarize this in one short paragraph:\n' + sampleText;

  Logger.log('Running Exercise 3 test with sample text...');
  const summary = callGemini(prompt);
  Logger.log('Summary:\n' + summary);
}

/**
 * =======================================================
 *  EXERCISE 4 – Idea Generator (Sheet cell A1 → A2)
 * =======================================================
 * In Sheets:
 * - Put a topic in A1.
 * - Run ideaGenerator().
 * - Gemini’s ideas are written to A2.
 */
function ideaGenerator() {
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSheet();
  const topic = sheet.getRange('A1').getValue();

  if (!topic) {
    sheet.getRange('A2').setValue('Please enter a topic in A1.');
    return;
  }

  const prompt = 'Give me 5 creative ideas about: ' + topic;
  const answer = callGemini(prompt);

  sheet.getRange('A2').setValue(answer);
}

/**
 * Test for Exercise 4.
 */
function test_ideaGenerator() {
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSheet();

  if (!sheet.getRange('A1').getValue()) {
    sheet.getRange('A1').setValue('beginner JavaScript projects');
  }

  Logger.log('Running Exercise 4 test...');
  ideaGenerator();
  Logger.log('Check cell A2 for Gemini’s generated ideas.');
}

/**
 * =================================================
 *  EXERCISE 5 – Custom Function =GEMINI("prompt")
 * =================================================
 * Usage in Sheets:
 *   =GEMINI("Write a haiku about coding.")
 */
function GEMINI(prompt) {
  if (typeof prompt !== 'string') {
    return 'Prompt must be a string.';
  }
  return callGemini(prompt);
}

/**
 * Test for Exercise 5.
 */
function test_GEMINI() {
  Logger.log('Running Exercise 5 test for GEMINI()...');
  const result = GEMINI(
    'Write a short motivational message for new coders.'
  );
  Logger.log('GEMINI() result:\n' + result);
}

/**
 * ========================
 *  Master Test Runner
 * ========================
 * Runs all test functions in sequence.
 */
function test_allGeminiExercises() {
  Logger.log('=== Testing Exercise 1 ===');
  test_exercise1_simplePrompt();

  Logger.log('=== Testing Exercise 2 ===');
  test_runGeminiMenu();

  Logger.log('=== Testing Exercise 3 (sample text) ===');
  test_summarizeSelection_withSampleText();

  Logger.log('=== Testing Exercise 4 ===');
  test_ideaGenerator();

  Logger.log('=== Testing Exercise 5 ===');
  test_GEMINI();

  Logger.log(
    'All test functions executed. Check Logs and Docs/Sheets for results.'
  );
}