Module 2 recap
Listen instead
Module 2 recap
1:47 · spoken companion to this lesson
You built a web page from a sentence, then learned how to ask for changes that come back right the first time. That is the craft of talking to the tool. From here you start changing real code with it.
The Module 2 cheatsheet
| Idea | The move |
|---|---|
| Anatomy of a prompt | Name a where, a what, and sometimes a why |
| Specificity | Aim for exactly one reasonable interpretation |
| When you don't know | Ask it to look and suggest before it acts |
| Context window | Claude's memory of this session — not your files |
/clear | Between unrelated tasks. One task per conversation |
/compact | Same task, long conversation — summarize and keep going |
/init | Write a CLAUDE.md so you stop re-explaining your project |
@file | Load a file's real contents; the picker stops typos |
The mental model
A good prompt is specific about the work and economical with context. You control what Claude can see (@), when to start fresh (/clear), and exactly what should change. Those three habits do more for output quality than any clever wording.
The classic beginner mistake is not a badly worded prompt. It is a vague prompt sent into a cluttered conversation. You now know how to avoid both.
Two things worth keeping
Look before you leap. When you are unsure, ask Claude to read and suggest rather than change. One extra message, and it removes most "that is not what I meant" loops.
Be specific about the noun. Not "better", not "clean up" — the colour, the heading, the spacing, the file. If your instruction would mean three different things to three different people, it will mean a fourth thing to Claude.
What you just learned
- You can write prompts that leave nothing to guess.
- You can manage the context window on purpose.
- You can point Claude at exactly the right file.
- You have a real page on your computer that you made this way.
Next module: making changes to code you did not write, and reading what changed before you accept it.
Next
Reading a diff