Learning path
A hands-on course on how AI coding agents work inside, built around Claude Code. Go in order: each chapter uses only what the chapters before it taught.
| # | Chapter | Level | Time | Needs | You'll build | Quiz |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Understand | ||||||
| 00 | Foundations | Beginner | 3 min | — | — | Quiz |
| 01 | Runtime lifecycle | Beginner | 4 min | 00 | — | Quiz |
| 02 | Settings and defaults | Beginner | 7 min | 01 | A project settings file you can see load | Quiz |
| 03 | Context engineering | Beginner | 5 min | 01 | — | Quiz |
| Build | ||||||
| 04 | Permissions | Intermediate | 5 min | 02 | A deny rule you watch work | Quiz |
| 05 | Hooks | Intermediate | 5 min | 04 | A hook that blocks rm -rf, and a logger |
Quiz |
| 06 | Skills and plugins | Intermediate | 5 min | 03 | A one-skill plugin | Quiz |
| 07 | Subagents | Intermediate | 6 min | 03, 04 | A log-scanning subagent | Quiz |
| 08 | MCP fundamentals | Intermediate | 6 min | 01 | A listing of a server's tools, resources and prompts | Quiz |
| 09 | Build an MCP server | Hands-on | 6 min | 04, 08 | The notes MCP server, over stdio and HTTP | Quiz |
| Secure | ||||||
| 10 | Control layers | Intermediate | 4 min | 04, 05 | — | Quiz |
| 11 | MCP security | Hands-on | 7 min | 09, 10 | A hardened notes server | Quiz |
| Ship | ||||||
| 12 | Capstone: one plugin | Hands-on | 4 min | 05, 06, 09 | The notes-kit plugin: server, skill and hook |
Quiz |
| Production | ||||||
| 13 | Build your own harness | Hands-on | 7 min | 04, 05, 07, 08 | A tiny agent host with one read-only tool | Quiz |
| 14 | Agents in CI/CD | Intermediate | 5 min | 04, 08, 10 | A read-only GitHub Actions workflow | Quiz |
| 15 | Agents in production | Hands-on | 7 min | 02, 05, 10 | Settings and a hook for a read-only infra agent | Quiz |
| 16 | Leaving your agent running | Intermediate | 5 min | 04, 10 | A deny rule that blocks curl, and the prompt you get without it |
Quiz |
"Time" is the reading only. Hands-on steps take longer.
For the hands-on parts you need Claude Code, a Claude subscription or Anthropic Console account (or a supported third-party provider), and Node.js LTS (v22 or later).
Accuracy
Every chapter was checked against the pages in its Sources section on 2026-10-27. If they disagree with a chapter, trust them.