Claude Power Tools: Skills, Connectors (MCP), Claude Code and agents

01

The power-tools map

In simple words

Claude is like a smart helper. Skills are recipe cards that teach it how to do a job your way. Connectors are keys to your other apps. Claude Code is the helper sitting at your computer and working on files. Plugins are a toolbox that holds several of these at once.

Key facts

The Future Market Academy is not affiliated with Anthropic.
The main power tools:

Tool	What it is	Where it works
Skills	Folders of instructions, scripts and resources that Claude loads only when they're needed	claude.ai, Claude Desktop, Claude Code, the API
Connectors	Links from Claude to other apps and data (for example a calendar, Notion or GitHub), built on MCP	Web, desktop and mobile (remote connectors); Claude Desktop and Claude Code (desktop extensions)
MCP	The open standard connectors use to talk to Claude	Any app that supports MCP
Plugins	Bundles of skills, connectors and sub-agents in one package (paid plans)	Chat on the web, Claude Desktop, Cowork; they sync to Claude Code
Claude Code	An agentic coding tool that reads your project, edits files and runs commands	Terminal, VS Code and JetBrains, the desktop app (Code tab), the web

How they differ, from Anthropic's Help Center:
Projects give always-loaded background knowledge for chats in that project. Skills switch on only when a task needs them, in any chat.
Custom instructions apply to every chat. Skills are task-specific.
MCP connectors give Claude access to outside services and data. Skills teach Claude how to use them. They work well together.
In the sidebar, Customize is now called Plugins: one page for your plugins, skills and connectors (generally available to Free, Pro, Max, Ultra and Team from November 9, 2026). Older Help Center articles still say "Customize".

Step by step

Open claude.ai or Claude Desktop and sign in.
In the left sidebar, find Plugins (or Customize in the older layout) and open it.
Use the quick filters to show only skills, then only connectors. Note what is already installed under Your plugins.
Open Settings and find Capabilities. Look for Code execution and file creation (or Create and edit files).
Write down one task you repeat every week and decide: is it a skill (a "how-to"), a connector (needs another app) or Claude Code (needs files on your computer)?
Check: you can name where skills, connectors and the capabilities setting live in your own account.

Watch on YouTube

Chat and Cowork are now one ClaudeClaude · YouTube · youtube.com

Videos by other creators on YouTube, for reference. They are not made by or affiliated with The Future Market.

LESSON 01The power-tools map

LESSON 01 / ANIMATED LESSON / AI VOICE00:00 / 01:00

Voice

Read the video script

[Host] "Skills, connectors, MCP, plugins, Claude Code. Let's untangle them in one minute."
[Text on screen: Skills = how] "Skills are recipe cards: they teach Claude how to do a task your way."
[Text on screen: Connectors = access] "Connectors are keys to your other apps, built on an open standard called MCP."
[Text on screen: Plugins = toolbox] "Plugins bundle skills and connectors together."
[Text on screen: Claude Code = hands on your files] "And Claude Code works directly with the files and commands on your computer."
[Host] "Pick the smallest tool that does the job."

Try it now

Make a three-column table: "Task", "Tool" (skill, connector, plugin, Claude Code or just a Project) and "Why". Fill in five tasks from your own week.

ClaudeStuck? Copy a ready-made prompt for Claude

Copy this, open Claude, paste it, and Claude will walk you through the lesson step by step.

For a grown-up: Claude is for adults (18+). Copy this, paste it into Claude, and use the answer to explain the lesson to your child.

I'm learning "Claude Power Tools: Skills, Connectors (MCP), Claude Code and agents" on The Future Market. Lesson 1: "The power-tools map".

What the lesson teaches:
- The Future Market Academy is not affiliated with Anthropic.
- The main power tools:
- Skills - Folders of instructions, scripts and resources that Claude loads only when they're needed - claude.ai, Claude Desktop, Claude Code, the API
- Connectors - Links from Claude to other apps and data (for example a calendar, Notion or GitHub), built on MCP - Web, desktop and mobile (remote connectors); Claude Desktop and Claude Code (desktop extensions)
- MCP - The open standard connectors use to talk to Claude - Any app that supports MCP
- Plugins - Bundles of skills, connectors and sub-agents in one package (paid plans) - Chat on the web, Claude Desktop, Cowork; they sync to Claude Code
- Claude Code - An agentic coding tool that reads your project, edits files and runs commands - Terminal, VS Code and JetBrains, the desktop app (Code tab), the web

The exercise I'm working on:
Make a three-column table: "Task", "Tool" (skill, connector, plugin, Claude Code or just a Project) and "Why". Fill in five tasks from your own week.

I'm stuck. Please:
1. Explain the main idea in plain, simple words with one everyday example.
2. Walk me through the exercise one small step at a time. Ask me what I've done so far before giving the next step.
3. Don't just give me the final answer. Help me do it myself, and check my work when I share it.

I'm a parent helping my child (about 8 years old) with a lesson called "The power-tools map" from the course "Claude Power Tools: Skills, Connectors (MCP), Claude Code and agents".

Here's what the lesson says:
Claude is like a smart helper. Skills are recipe cards that teach it how to do a job your way. Connectors are keys to your other apps. Claude Code is the helper sitting at your computer and working on files. Plugins are a toolbox that holds several of these at once.

The activity:
Make a three-column table: "Task", "Tool" (skill, connector, plugin, Claude Code or just a Project) and "Why". Fill in five tasks from your own week.

Please explain this so an 8-year-old understands: short sentences, a fun everyday example, and no hard words.
Then give me 3 simple questions I can ask my child to check they understood, and a way to do the activity together, one tiny step at a time.

Open Claude

Sources

Claude Help Center, What are skills?: support.claude.com/en/articles/12512176-what-are-skills
Claude Help Center, Use connectors to extend Claude's capabilities: support.claude.com/en/articles/11176164-use-connectors-to-extend-claud
Claude Help Center, Use plugins in Claude: support.claude.com/en/articles/13837440-use-plugins-in-claude
Claude Help Center, Manage plugins, skills, and connectors from one Plugins page: support.claude.com/en/articles/17740565-manage-plugins-skills-and-conn
Claude Code docs, Overview: code.claude.com/docs/en/overview

My notes

I learned this

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