Included in your vault download

Skills & Tools

Start with the workspace skills. They make the loop work: set up the folder, tune the Script after Obsidian works, check what Claude can see, save one lesson, promote what matters, and hand off before the thread gets stale.

Then add tools only when the work needs them. Exa and Firecrawl are optional research MCPs. The real skill files live in .claude/skills/. Obsidian gives you the readable map at skills/Skills.md.

Download the workspace Download core skills Research tools Download Anthropic add-ons Run setup
Contact sheet of the course skill workflow sketchpads.

The model

A skill is a command with a trigger.

Each skill has a short description and a longer instruction file. Claude reads the description first. The full instructions load when the task matches, or when you call the command by name.

Mapped in ObsidianOpen skills/Skills.md to see the skill list and one note per command.
Run by Claude CodeThe runtime files live in .claude/skills/. Obsidian hides dot folders by default.
Called when neededType /reflect, /see-your-setup, or any command name.
Easy to moveDownload the whole pack, or grab one skill at a time below.

Research tools

Exa finds sources. Firecrawl turns pages into usable material.

Both are optional MCP tools. Claude can keep them installed and call them only when the task needs web research, scraping, crawling, or extraction. Both have generous free tiers. For the install videos, have students create API keys first, then keep those keys off camera.

Demo video

Watch the Firecrawl and Exa setup walkthrough.

Use this before the replay or while following along. The demo shows where to get each API key, how to add the MCP connection, and how to run the first test prompt for each tool.

5:56. Pause before copying API keys if you are following along.

Search and source discovery

Use Exa when Claude needs to find the right sources.

Ask Exa for current sources, docs, companies, people, competitors, papers, code examples, or pages worth reading. Exa answers the question: where should Claude look?

Web search Code search Company research Deep research
Find Exa gives Claude candidate sources. Read Firecrawl extracts the page or site. Use

Scrape, crawl, map, extract

Use Firecrawl when Claude has a page or site to process.

Give Firecrawl a URL, a domain, or a small site. It can scrape clean Markdown, map available pages, crawl a site, or extract structured data. Firecrawl answers the question: what is actually on this source?

Scrape pages Map sites Crawl domains Extract data

API keys are credentials.

Put keys in Claude Desktop's connector field, Claude Desktop's private MCP config, or a user-scoped Claude Code MCP command. Do not paste keys into the course workspace, public chats, screenshots, GitHub, or a screen recording. If a key appears on video, rotate it before sharing the replay.

Claude Desktop local config paths:

~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

%APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

Video 1

Install Exa for search.

  1. Go to exa.ai, create an account, and open the API dashboard.
  2. Create an API key. Pause or blur the screen before copying it.
  3. In Claude Desktop, click + or Add connectors, open the Connectors tab, search for Exa, and add it.
  4. If Claude asks for a key, paste it into the connector prompt. If it does not ask, finish the test and keep the key for rate limits or local config fallback.
  5. Test it with: Use Exa to find three current sources on MCP connectors.
Desktop fallback and Claude Code command

If the built-in connector is not available, add Exa to Claude Desktop's private config file and fully restart Claude Desktop.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "exa": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "exa-mcp-server"],
      "env": {
        "EXA_API_KEY": "YOUR_EXA_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}
claude mcp add --transport http exa https://mcp.exa.ai/mcp

Local npx fallback if the client needs a key-backed server:

claude mcp add exa -s user --env EXA_API_KEY=<your-key> -- npx -y exa-mcp-server

Video 2

Install Firecrawl for scraping.

  1. Go to firecrawl.dev, create an account, and open API keys.
  2. Create an API key. Pause or blur the screen before copying it.
  3. In Claude Desktop, open the private config file and add Firecrawl as a remote MCP server.
  4. Fully restart Claude Desktop. If Claude cannot reach the hosted server, use the local npx config and store the key as FIRECRAWL_API_KEY.
  5. Test it with: Use Firecrawl to scrape https://firecrawl.dev and summarize the page.
Claude Desktop config and Claude Code commands 
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "firecrawl": {
      "url": "https://mcp.firecrawl.dev/v2/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_FIRECRAWL_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Local npx fallback for Claude Desktop:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "firecrawl": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "firecrawl-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "FIRECRAWL_API_KEY": "YOUR_FIRECRAWL_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}
claude mcp add --transport http firecrawl https://mcp.firecrawl.dev/<your-key>/v2/mcp

Local npx fallback:

claude mcp add firecrawl -s user --env FIRECRAWL_API_KEY=<your-key> -- npx -y firecrawl-mcp
ToolUse it whenFirst test prompt
Exa You need fresh sources, examples, docs, companies, people, or pages worth reading. Use Exa to find current sources on [topic].
Firecrawl You already have a URL or domain and need clean page content, a crawl, a map, or structured extraction. Use Firecrawl to scrape [URL] and return clean Markdown.
Together Exa finds the candidate sources. Firecrawl reads the best ones cleanly. Find five sources with Exa, then scrape the best two with Firecrawl.

Start here

Run these before you get clever.

These are the commands that make the downloaded vault usable: setup, visibility, memory, and clean handoff.

Day 1 loop

Start, save, promote.

Use these on Day 1. They make the workspace usable before it gets clever.

Reflect skill workflow sketchpad.
/vault-setup

Make the workspace yours

Interviews you, updates the Script, creates the first client file, starts today's note, and points to the skill map.

Download
/advanced-script-interview

Tune the Script after Obsidian works

Runs a deeper interview, then proposes CLAUDE.md and support-file changes before editing anything.

Download
/see-your-setup

Check what is installed

Lists installed skills, checks the Script, checks links, and shows whether the folder is getting messy.

Download
/reflect

Promote the lesson

Ends a working session by deciding what should become memory and where it should live.

Download
/remember-this

Capture a rule mid-session

Files one rule, fact, or preference while the work is still moving.

Download
/handoff

Restart without re-explaining

Writes the current state, changed files, open loops, exact next step, and resume prompt before sleep, compaction, or switching sessions.

Download

Review and build

Use these when the task has stakes.

Plans, reviews, diagrams, and reusable workflows need sharper instructions than a blank chat box gives you.

Shape and pressure

Make the work less vague.

Use these before Claude makes a big move, ships a recommendation, or explains a process to someone else.

Plan as page skill workflow sketchpad.
/plan-as-page

Turn the plan into a page

Creates a readable HTML plan with the goal, steps, decisions, reasons, and done state.

Download
/adversarial-review

Find what breaks before it ships

Reviews the work as a skeptic: weak claims, thin proof, unclear logic, and places a client would push back.

Download
/convince-me

Make Claude earn the move

Forces Claude to explain what it is about to do and why before an expensive wrong turn.

Download
/security-check

Check before risky moves

Reviews installs, GitHub backups, bypass permissions, public sharing, client files, and destructive commands before Claude acts.

Download
/create-workflow-diagram

Draw the workflow

Turns a plain-text process into a diagram image for docs, teaching, or client explanation.

Download
Build the system

Make repeated work reusable.

Use these when a move repeats enough times that it deserves a place in the system.

Save as skill workflow sketchpad.
/save-as-skill

Turn a repeated move into a command

Creates a new skill after a workflow repeats enough times to deserve one.

Download
/upskill

Keep the library lean

Audits stale, duplicate, or bloated skills and proposes a smaller sharper set.

Download
/dashboard-setup

Build a decision screen

Creates a dashboard from one decision, trusted data, a plan, a working page, and a final check.

Download

Anthropic Add-Ons

Official skills to add when the job calls for them.

These come from Anthropic's public skills repo. They are optional downloads, separate from the core workspace, so the Day 1 setup stays lean.

Official Anthropic skills

Drop one folder into .claude/skills/.

Use these for Website Day, App Day, and building new course skills. Source is preserved with license files inside each download.

Skill-building workflow sketchpad.
/frontend-design

Make web work look designed

Anthropic's frontend skill for distinctive pages, apps, dashboards, components, and HTML/CSS layouts.

Source: anthropics/skills

Download
/skill-creator

Build and improve skills

Anthropic's skill builder for creating, testing, improving, and packaging new skills with support scripts included.

Source: anthropics/skills

Download
Download Anthropic add-ons Frontend only Skill builder only

Start with the workspace. Add tools when the job needs them.

The workspace download is the best Day 1 path. It includes the core skills. Exa, Firecrawl, and the Anthropic add-ons are optional until the work calls for them.

Download core skills Download add-ons Open setup
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