name	Claude Code Skills
description	Creating and optimizing Claude Code Skills including activation patterns, content structure, and development workflows. Use when creating new skills, converting memory files to skills, debugging skill activation, or understanding skill architecture and best practices.
allowed-tools	Read, Write, Edit, Glob, Grep, Bash, WebFetch(domain:docs.claude.com)

Claude Code Skills Development

Reference for developing effective skills. The context window is a public good - only include information Claude doesn't already possess.

Core Principles

Conciseness: Keep SKILL.md under 500 lines. Use progressive disclosure.
Appropriate Freedom: Text for flexible tasks, pseudocode for moderate variation, scripts for error-prone operations.
Cross-Model Testing: Validate across Haiku, Sonnet, and Opus.

Skill Structure

---
name: skill-name
description: Third-person capability description with trigger terms
allowed-tools: [Optional tool restrictions]
---

Storage: ~/.claude/skills/ (personal), .claude/skills/ (project), plugins (bundled)

Description: Third-person, includes trigger terms and use cases. This is the primary activation mechanism.

Bundled Resources

skill-name/
├── SKILL.md (required - overview, navigation)
├── references/ (documentation loaded as needed)
├── scripts/ (executable utilities)
└── assets/ (templates, images for output)

Naming: Reserve ALL CAPS for files with special meaning (SKILL.md, README.md, CONTRIBUTING.md). Use lowercase for all other files (setup.md, examples.md, troubleshooting.md).

Keep references one level deep. For files >100 lines, include a table of contents.

Development Process

Define 3 test scenarios before documentation
Measure baseline without skill
Iterative: one instance creates, another tests
Observe navigation patterns
Refine based on behavior

References

Load detailed guides as needed:

references/patterns.md - Progressive disclosure patterns, output templates, workflow design
references/troubleshooting.md - Activation issues, YAML errors, path problems, checklist

Quick Reference

Common Patterns: Read-only ([Read, Grep, Glob]), Script-based ([Read, Bash, Write]), Template-based ([Read, Write, Edit])

Anti-Patterns: Windows paths, too many options, vague descriptions, nested references, scripts that punt errors

Install Skill

SKILL.md