H.4 — Claude Code essentials

Status: drafted · Time: 3 min · Audience: everyone Outcome: The permission system, slash commands, and daily rhythm of working with Claude Code.

Printable card · Companion to W.7, W.11, Y.7, and G.10. The keyboard rhythm of working with Claude Code.

The permission system

Every time Claude Code wants to do something that affects your environment (run a command, edit a file, fetch a URL), it asks. You answer one of three ways.

Key	Meaning	When to use
y	Yes, this once	Default for anything you want to think about
n	No, stop this action	When the proposed action looks wrong
a	Yes, and always say yes to this kind of action	For trusted, repetitive actions only

The trap: pressing a too often. The permission system protects you; an “always yes” is a small piece of trust permanently given. See W.11 for the discipline.

Common slash commands

Type / in a Claude Code conversation to invoke a slash command. Common ones:

Command	What it does
`/help`	Shows the available commands
`/skills`	Lists available skills
`/clear`	Clears the current session and starts fresh
`/cd <path>`	Changes working directory

Custom slash commands defined in your project’s CLAUDE.md or by installed plugins are also available; /help lists them.

The setup colour check

Every White Belt module ends with a colour question. W.5 and W.8 provide the current manual setup gate; the underlying framing is:

Colour	What it means
GREEN	Everything works. You can claim Quest W-0.
YELLOW	Things work, but with caveats worth fixing.
RED	Something is broken. Quest W-0 not yet claimable.

When in doubt, run the direct checks in W.5. The in-repo setup-verify definition is a broader reference, not proof of an installed command.

The daily rhythm

A typical day with Claude Code as a White or Yellow Belt:

Open the project. cd into the repo. Claude Code reads CLAUDE.md automatically.
Start a session. Describe what you want to do in plain English. Be specific about success criteria.
Watch the permission prompts. Each y is a decision; each a is a small piece of trust.
Inspect changes before commit. git status and git diff are how you verify what Claude actually did.
Commit with a useful message. The commit message is what your team reads later. See H.3 — Git essentials.

What to do when stuck

Situation	The move
Claude is doing something you did not ask for	Press `n` to stop. Re-prompt with what you actually wanted.
Claude says it cannot do something	The refusal is usually correct. Re-read the refusal; the explanation is the path forward.
Claude is going in circles	Type `/clear` and start fresh. Long sessions accumulate confusion.
Claude does not have context	Read CLAUDE.md, or paste the relevant file content explicitly.
Something looks wrong but you cannot tell what	Ask Claude: “What did you just do? Show me the diff.”

What this card is not

Not a Claude Code manual. The full reference is in the Anthropic docs and in W.7.

Not a substitute for the chapters. W.7, W.11, Y.7, and G.10 cover the patterns this card lists at the level of why they work.

Not a permission to always say yes. The “always” option (a) is a tool; using it for everything defeats the safety the permission system provides. See §0.11 The safety brief.

Remember: every a is permanent for the session. Use it sparingly.

Up to: ↑ Appendix H · Companion: W.7, W.11