Day 6

Meeting Claude Code

~60 min

Goal — Start Claude Code, learn how it asks permission, and give it project context.

By the end — A running Claude Code session and a CLAUDE.md that seeds your project's memory.

Tip

Map first — What can Claude Code do natively, before you add anything?

1Start Claude Code

Claude Code is an AI agent that lives in your terminal. Starting it opens an interactive session — you are now talking to the agent.

Run in the terminal

claude

From here you type in plain English, not commands. Say what you want; the agent works out how.

2Ask it to look around

Claude can read your project on its own. Ask it what is here and watch it work out the structure without you explaining it.

Paste into Claude Code

What files and folders are in this project?

3Practice the guided habit immediately

Never accept work you do not understand. From the very first prompt, ask Claude to explain — reading its answer is the point, not a detour.

Paste into Claude Code

Explain what an index.html file is for, in simple terms.

Important

Guided, not blind. You are the designer directing the work — you keep the intent and understanding, Claude keeps the typing. Blind prompting is how people end up with software they cannot fix.

4Understand permissions

When Claude wants to change a file or run a command, it asks first and shows you exactly what it will do. You approve or decline each time.

Note

This is your safety net — nothing happens to your project without your yes. As you trust a task you can let it proceed without asking, but start by reading each request.

5Give the project a memory with CLAUDE.md

CLAUDE.md is a plain file Claude reads automatically every session. It holds facts about your project so you do not repeat yourself. Ask Claude to create one, then open it and read what it made.

Paste into Claude Code

Create a CLAUDE.md that says this is a simple practice website with css and js folders.

6See what Claude is working with

Run /context to show what Claude currently has loaded — your files, the CLAUDE.md, and more. Understanding what is in context is understanding what Claude knows right now.

Run in the terminal

/context

Recap — You started Claude Code, saw how it asks permission before changing anything, and gave the project its first memory with a CLAUDE.md.