Claude Code Fundamentals | BuildingWithAI Academy

📖 Sound Familiar?

You've been using Claude in your browser for months. It's helpful for writing, brainstorming, answering questions. But then you heard about Claude Code—an AI that doesn't just talk about building things, it actually builds them. On your computer. Right now.

The possibilities seemed endless: custom tools, automated workflows, apps you've imagined but couldn't create. You looked into it. And then you saw the instructions: "Open your terminal..."

💭 The Moment of Hesitation

"The terminal. That black screen where developers type mysterious commands. I've used computers for 20 years without touching it. What if I break something? What if I'm just not technical enough for this?"

This course exists because that hesitation is universal—and completely unnecessary. You don't need to become a developer. You just need a guide who speaks your language.

✨ Your Transformation

From stuck to shipping—in about four hours

WHERE YOU ARE NOW

❌ Terminal feels intimidating

❌ "Vibe-coding" without structure

❌ Starting over each session

❌ Ideas but no way to build them

→

WHERE YOU'LL BE

✅ Terminal feels like a tool, not a threat

✅ Plan before you build

✅ Sessions compound on each other

✅ A working project you actually built

🎯 What You'll Learn

🖥️

Terminal Basics

Navigate your computer with five simple commands. No fear, no mystery—just practical knowledge.

🤖

Claude Code Fluency

Install, run, and work with Claude Code like it's a natural extension of how you already use AI.

🎯

Planning Mindset

Stop vibe-coding. Learn to ask Claude to think before it builds—the shift that changes everything.

🔄

Compound Engineering

Create a system where every session makes the next one easier. Work smarter, not harder.

📝

Project Specs

Turn vague ideas into clear specifications that Claude can actually execute on.

🚀

Ship Something Real

Complete a real project from idea to working MVP. Not a tutorial—something you actually want to build.

🗺️ Your Learning Journey

Terminal Comfort

Before Claude Code, you need to speak your computer's language. Learn the five commands that unlock everything—and lose the fear forever.

~45 min

Hello, Claude Code

Install Claude Code and have your first real conversation. Build something visible in your browser. Experience the magic of AI that actually does things.

~55 min

The Planning Mindset

The biggest shift from amateur to effective: asking Claude to plan before it builds. Learn the prompts that transform scattered coding into structured creation.

~40 min

The Compound Engineering Loop

Create a Claude.md file that becomes your project's memory. Learn the 4-step workflow where session 5 is dramatically easier than session 1.

~50 min

Your First Real Project

Everything comes together. Write a spec, break it into phases, ship an MVP, and iterate. Walk away with a working project and the confidence to do it again.

2-3 hrs

Leveling Up (Optional)

Advanced techniques for ambitious builders: Git for version control, research-first planning, specialized AI agents, external tool connections via MCP, and parallel workflows.

~2 hrs

About This Course

Built for people who think in learning objectives, not code syntax.

🎓

For Instructional Designers

Your ID skills are your superpower here—clear instructions are exactly what AI needs

🚫

No Coding Background Required

If you can write an email, you can learn this. We start from true zero.

🔧

Practical, Not Theoretical

Every module ends with something real you've built or done

📈

Designed to Compound

The structure itself teaches the compound engineering mindset

Acknowledgment: The "compound engineering" framework taught in this course is based on the work of Dan Shipper at Every. His articles on AI-assisted development shaped the core methodology of Modules 2-4.

"I Want to Build Things With AI—But I'm Not a Developer"