Welcome to your AI coding adventure! 🚀 This week you'll meet Claude Code - your new
AI coding buddy that lives right in your terminal. By the end of this week, you'll be having conversations with AI,
asking it to explain code, and even writing your first programs together! Let's GO! 🎮
DAY 1
Meet Your AI Coding Buddy! 🤖
🤖💬✨
Today's the day! You're about to meet Claude Code - an AI assistant that can help you write code, explain confusing stuff, fix bugs, and build cool projects!
🎮 Think of it like this:
Remember helpful NPCs in video games? Claude Code is like that - but for REAL coding! It's in your terminal, ready to help whenever you need it!
What Can Claude Code Do?
💡
Explain Code
Claude breaks down confusing code in simple terms!
✍️
Write Code
Need a function? Claude writes it and explains how it works!
🐛
Fix Bugs
Got an error? Claude helps you find and squash those bugs!
🎨
Build Projects
Want to make a game? Claude guides you step by step!
How To Install Claude Code
🍎 Mac (Easiest Way)
$ brew install --cask claude-code
🐧 Mac or Linux (One-liner)
$ curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash
🪟 Windows
> irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex
🎯 Today's Mission: Install & Say Hello!
- Install Claude Code using one of the methods above
- Open your terminal
- Type
claude and press Enter
- Log in when prompted
- Say hello to your new AI buddy!
$ claude
Welcome to Claude Code! 🎉
you: Hello Claude! I'm 12 and just starting to learn coding!
Claude: Hello! 👋 That's awesome! What kind of things are you interested in building?
💡 Pro Tip: Run claude --version to check if it installed correctly!
DAY 2
The Art of Talking to AI! 🎨
🎯💬🎨
The better you talk to Claude, the better help you get! Today you'll learn the art of prompting - how to ask questions so Claude gives you EXACTLY what you need!
🍕 Pizza Order Analogy:
"I want pizza" might get you anything. But "I want a large pepperoni pizza with extra cheese, no onions, delivered at 6 PM" gets you exactly what you want! Talking to Claude is the same!
Good vs. Bad Prompts
❌ Vague Prompt (Bad)
you: help me with code
Claude doesn't know what you need! 😕
✅ Specific Prompt (Good)
you: I'm making a game in JavaScript. I need a function that generates a random number between 1 and 100. Can you write it and explain how it works?
Now THAT'S helpful! 🎉
📝 The Perfect Prompt Recipe
- Context: What are you working on?
- Task: What do you need?
- Details: Any specific requirements?
- Format: How do you want the answer?
🎯 Today's Mission: Prompt Practice!
Try these prompts with Claude:
- "Explain what a variable is like I'm playing a video game"
- "Write a JavaScript function that says 'Hello' followed by my name"
- "What's the difference between == and === in JavaScript?"
🏆 Prompt Master Challenge!
Write prompts for: adding a score counter to a game, understanding loops, and fixing an "undefined is not a function" error!
DAY 3
Become a Code Detective! 🔍
🔍🕵️💻
Today you become a Code Detective! You'll learn how to use Claude to investigate code and understand how projects are built!
🔎 Detective Analogy:
Imagine you're a detective examining clues. Reading code is the same! You examine files, ask Claude about confusing parts, and piece together how the program works!
🛠️ The @ Symbol - Your Magnifying Glass!
Use @ to point Claude directly at a file:
you: Explain what @src/game.js does
Claude: Looking at src/game.js... This file contains your main game logic!
Detective Questions to Ask
🏗️ Understanding Structure
- "Give me an overview of this codebase"
- "What are the main files and what do they do?"
- "How is this project organized?"
🎯 Today's Mission: Investigate a Mystery File!
Create a mystery.js file with inventory management code, then ask Claude to investigate it!
you: I found this @mystery.js file. Can you tell me:
1. What is this code for?
2. What does each function do?
3. What type of game might use this?
🎮 Real Developer Secret: Professional developers spend MORE time READING code than writing it! Understanding existing code is a superpower! 🚀
DAY 4
Your Code Writing Partner! ✍️
✍️🤝💻
Time to CREATE! Today Claude becomes your coding partner. You'll learn how to ask Claude to write code FOR you!
🎬 Movie Director Analogy:
You're the movie director, and Claude is your screenwriter. You tell Claude what scene you want, they write it, you review it, suggest changes, and together you create something amazing!
🔄 The Collaboration Flow
- You Request: "I need a function that..."
- Claude Proposes: Shows you the code
- You Review: Like it? Need changes?
- Claude Adjusts: Makes your requested changes
- You Approve: Claude saves the file! ✅
🎯 Today's Mission: Build a Mad Libs Generator!
Ask Claude to create a Mad Libs game in JavaScript!
you: Create a Mad Libs generator in JavaScript. It should have a story template with blanks for [noun], [verb], [adjective], take user inputs, and display the funny result.
Then ask Claude to add more story templates and better styling!
⚠️ Important: Claude asks for permission before changing files! Make sure you review what Claude wants to do before saying yes! You're the boss! 👔
🏆 Code Partner Challenge!
Build one of these with Claude: Number Guessing Game 🎯, Simple To-Do List 📝, or Color Picker 🎨
DAY 5
Terminal Power User! ⚡
⚡💻🚀
Congratulations! FINAL DAY of Week 1! 🎉 Today you'll learn the power user shortcuts that make you a Claude Code NINJA! 🥷
🎮 Game Controller Analogy:
Remember learning controller shortcuts in games? Terminal shortcuts are the same! Once you learn them, you'll be SO much faster!
Essential Keyboard Shortcuts
🚀 Quick Commands
Continue Last Session: claude -c
Quick Question: claude -p "What does git push do?"
Resume Session: claude --resume
🎯 Final Mission: Create Your Portfolio!
Organize everything you learned this week!
$ mkdir -p my-coding-journey/week1-fundamentals/{day1-hello,day2-prompts,day3-detective,day4-projects,day5-mastery}
Save your conversations, prompts, detective reports, and projects!
🎉 WEEK 1 COMPLETE! 🎉
✅ Installed Claude Code
✅ Mastered the art of prompting
✅ Became a code detective
✅ Built projects WITH Claude
✅ Learned power user shortcuts
You're ready for Week 2! 🚀