Building Structured AI Workflows for Course Creation with Claude Code
Tara Schofield from Datadog demonstrates her systematic approach to using Claude Code for creating security training courses. She shows how proper setup with resource directories, structured Claude.md instructions, and branch-based organization creates a foundation for consistent, high-quality course creation. Key insights include the importance of context management to avoid context poisoning, using plan mode to iterate before implementation, and leveraging slash commands for repeatable workflows. Tara emphasizes how slowing down for proper setup ultimately speeds up the overall process, and discusses the strategic use of different AI models (Sonnet vs Opus) for different types of tasks in the content creation pipeline.
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Key Takeaways
- Proper setup and context management is crucial for successful AI-assisted workflows - slowing down to set up proper structure pays off
- Creating resource directories with relevant documentation, blog posts, and examples helps AI tools understand domain-specific context
- Using branch names to match course directories creates a systematic approach to project organization
- Plan mode in Claude Code allows iterating on approaches before making changes, avoiding 'YOLO mode' deployment
- Slash commands make repetitive AI workflows efficient and consistent across multiple projects
- Context poisoning is real - keeping context focused and relevant produces better AI results than overwhelming with information
- Different AI models (Sonnet vs Opus) serve different purposes - use Sonnet for structure and Opus for detailed creative work
- Subagents can handle validation and style checks separately to keep main context clean and focused
Resources
Datadog Learning Center
Security training courses and hands-on labs demonstrated in the episode
Cursor IDE
AI-powered code editor built on VS Code fork, used in conjunction with Claude Code
Reddit AI Communities
Community discussions and learning resources for AI tools mentioned by Tara