Claude Crash Course: Beginner to Expert, Fully Up to Date

• No mode to choose first

  Anthropic’s release notes: “Ask a quick question or hand Claude a bigger task, like a report, spreadsheet, or presentation, without choosing a mode first.” Modules 1, 4 and 10 show how. Claude release notes

• One usage pool

  The pricing page: “Your activity across Claude on web, desktop, mobile, and Claude Code all draws from the same pool.” Module 8 shows how to plan around it. Claude pricing

• Skills for repeat work

  The Claude Code docs: “Create a skill when you keep pasting the same instructions, checklist, or multi-step procedure into chat.” Module 9 shows you how to write and test one. Claude Code docs: Skills

1. Module 1. Start here: plans, models and apps

   • What Claude is now, and how this course worksWhat Claude does today across chat, Cowork, documents and code, how the three levels work, and the one rule that runs through the course.
   • Plans: which one you need, from the starter plan to EnterpriseWhat each Claude plan includes, how usage limits work, and how to choose the one that fits your work.
   • Models and apps: Fable, Opus, Sonnet and Haiku, on web, desktop and mobileThe four current model families, when to use each, and where you can use Claude.
   • Project: P1 Your plan, model and usage picker
2. Module 2. Your first real conversations

   • Ask well: the job, the context and the finished resultA simple three-part ask that gets useful answers the first time, based on Anthropic’s own prompting guidance.
   • Files, images, web search and ResearchHow to give Claude files and images, when it searches the web, and when to use Research for a deeper report.
   • Check, push back and iterate until it’s rightHow to check Claude’s answers, ask for changes without starting over, and use voice mode to think out loud.
   • Project: P2 Your prompt card and self-check
3. Module 3. Set Claude up once: preferences, memory and Projects

   • Your preferences: tell Claude once how you like to workHow to write account-wide preferences so every chat starts with your role, your style and your standing rules.
   • Memory, Topics and incognito chatsHow Claude’s memory works, how to review and edit what it remembers, how sensitive topics are handled, and when to use an incognito chat.
   • Your first Project: a home for one stream of workWhat a Project holds, how many you get on each plan, and how to set one up for a real stream of work.
   • Project: P3 Your project system sheet
4. Module 4. Make finished work: artifacts, Docs, Slides, Design and files

   • Artifacts, charts and small toolsWhat artifacts are, how to ask for charts, diagrams and small interactive tools, and how to check them.
   • Claude Docs, Slides and Design: documents and decks in one conversationHow to make documents, slide decks and designs in a conversation, and how to edit them in place.
   • Spreadsheets, Excel and PowerPoint, and handing work overHow to get working spreadsheets and files out of Claude, use the Office add-ins, and hand finished work to other people.
   • Project: P4 Your finished-work set
5. Module 5. Advanced prompting: examples, structure, roles and chains

   • Examples and structure: show Claude what good looks likeHow to use examples and simple tags to get consistent format, tone and structure, following Anthropic’s guidance.
   • Roles, long documents and harder problemsHow to give Claude a role, work with long documents and quotes, and get careful reasoning on harder problems.
   • Prompt chains: break big jobs into checked stepsHow to split a big job into a short chain of prompts, check between steps, and reduce made-up details.
   • Project: P5 Your advanced prompt set
6. Module 6. Projects as systems

   • Project instructions that work every timeHow to write Project instructions as a short operating brief: purpose, reader, rules, format and checks.
   • Knowledge files and project memoryHow to choose, name and maintain the files a Project relies on, and how project memory works alongside them.
   • A set of Projects: one per stream of work, kept currentHow to design a small set of Projects that covers your work, share them on team plans, and keep them current.
   • Project: P6 Your Project system
7. Module 7. Connect your apps: connectors, custom MCP and extensions

   • Connectors: give Claude your email, calendar, files and toolsWhat connectors are, how to add one from the directory, and how to choose what to connect first.
   • Custom connectors: remote MCP servers in the appsHow to add a custom connector with a remote MCP server URL, the limits by plan, and the safety rules.
   • Interactive apps, desktop extensions and your connector registerHow interactive connectors and desktop extensions work, and how to keep a register of what Claude can reach.
   • Project: P7 Your connector register
8. Module 8. Model choice, usage and cost

   • How usage limits work, and what to do when you hit oneThe 5-hour and weekly limits, the shared usage pool, where to check your usage, and your options at a limit.
   • Choosing a model by job: quality, speed and usageA simple model-by-job table for your own work, based on Anthropic’s guidance and your plan.
   • Habits that save usage without losing qualityPractical habits that cut usage: fresh chats, Projects instead of pasting, the right tool for the job, and planning heavy work.
   • Project: P8 Your usage and model plan
9. Module 9. Skills: write, test and maintain your own

   • What a skill is, and when to make oneWhat skills are, how Claude decides to use them, and how to spot the jobs worth turning into one.
   • Write a SKILL.md: name, description and instructionsThe SKILL.md format, how to write a description Claude can match, and how to keep instructions short and reliable.
   • Test, install and maintain your skillsHow to install a skill, test it with real and tricky cases, and keep a small set of skills current.
   • Project: P9 Your skill builder and test log
10. Module 10. Cowork hand-offs, Chrome and scheduled tasks

    • Hand off a task: briefs, approvals and checking the resultHow to hand Claude a bigger task in Cowork, write a hand-off brief, set approvals and review what comes back.
    • Scheduled tasks: work that runs on its ownHow scheduled tasks work, how to set one up, where they run, and how to review and log them.
    • Claude in Chrome, computer use and newer previewsWhat Claude in Chrome and computer use can do, how to keep them safe, and what the newest previews are.
    • Project: P10 Your hand-off brief and scheduled-task log
11. Module 11. MCP and Claude Code, part 1

    • What Claude Code is, and where it runsWhat Claude Code does, who it’s for (including non-developers), the places you can use it, and which plans include it.
    • Install, your first session, and CLAUDE.mdHow to install Claude Code, run a first session in plain English, and give it standing context with CLAUDE.md.
    • Permission modes: what Claude Code can do without askingThe permission modes, how to switch, when to use plan mode and auto mode, and why bypass is only for isolated machines.
    • MCP in Claude Code: connect your toolsWhat MCP gives Claude Code, how to add and manage a remote server, scopes, and how to stay safe.
    • Project: P11 Your Claude Code starter kit
12. Module 12. Claude Code, part 2: real workflows and API basics

    • A real workflow: plan, change, test, reviewA dependable four-step loop for real Claude Code work, using plan mode, tests and git so every change can be checked and undone.
    • Skills and hooks in Claude CodeHow to use your skills in Claude Code, and how hooks run your own checks automatically before or after Claude’s actions.
    • Automate: one-shot commands, scheduled tasks and loopsHow to run Claude Code without a chat using -p, schedule cloud tasks with /schedule, and use /loop, with the guardrails automation needs.
    • API basics: your first request and what it costsHow the Claude API differs from your plan, how to make a first request safely, and how to estimate cost per job.
    • Project: P12 Your Claude Code workflow and API cost estimate
13. Module 13. Capstone: your Claude Operating Manual

    • Your Claude Operating Manual: setup and three real jobsBring your templates together into one Claude Operating Manual, then set up three real jobs end to end: one Beginner, one Intermediate and one Expert.
    • Review routine, rubric and level assessmentsSet your monthly review routine, score your manual on the rubric, and pass the three level assessments.
    • Project: Capstone rubric (self-assessed)

Course types, not named providers. Anthropic’s own docs and Claude Academy are excellent, and this course links to them throughout.