--- title: "Session Continuity" description: "How skills maintain context across sessions spanning days or weeks." type: skill canonical_url: https://claudary.paisolsolutions.com/skills/session-continuity source: "Claudary" difficulty: intermediate author: "Claude Code Knowledge Pack" date: 2026-07-10T11:46:42.307Z license: CC-BY-4.0 attribution: "Session Continuity — Claudary (https://claudary.paisolsolutions.com/skills/session-continuity)" --- # Session Continuity How skills maintain context across sessions spanning days or weeks. ## Overview # Session Continuity How skills maintain context across sessions spanning days or weeks. --- ## The Problem Creative and analytical work rarely completes in one sitting. You might brainstorm today, think overnight, and continue tomorrow. Traditional AI conversations lose context between sessions—you have to re-explain everything each time. Session continuity solves this through **versioned documents** that capture the full state of work. --- ## How It Works ### Versioned Documents Each session produces a new version of the working document: ``` project-name/ ├── _index.md # Version history, decision log ├── project-name-v1.md # Session 1 output ├── project-name-v2.md # Session 2 output ├── project-name-v3.md # Session 3 output └── ... ``` When you return, you provide the latest version file. Claude reads it and picks up exactly where you left off. ### What Gets Captured Version documents typically include: | Section | Purpose | | -------------------- | ------------------------------------------- | | **Quick Context** | 2-3 sentences on current state | | **Session Log** | Date, duration, energy level, methods used | | **Current Thinking** | The substance of where things stand | | **Ideas/Elements** | Organized by maturity or development status | | **Decisions Made** | With reasoning, not just conclusions | | **Open Questions** | Unresolved items needing thought | | **Next Steps** | Clear actionable items | ### The Index File A separate index file tracks the project across all versions: ```markdown # Project Index ## Version History - v1 (Jan 15): Initial brainstorm, identified 3 directions - v2 (Jan 18): Deep dive on direction A, parked B and C - v3 (Jan 22): Refined direction A, ready for validation ## Major Decisions 1. Target reader is mid-career professionals (v2) 2. Focus on transformation, not information (v3) ``` --- ## Session Patterns ### Starting a New Session ``` You: Let's continue the productivity app brainstorm. Claude: I'll need the latest version file to pick up where we left off. Can you share project-name-v3.md? You: [uploads file] Claude: Got it. Reading through v3... Last session (Jan 22), we refined the target reader to mid-career professionals and identified three key pain points. The overnight question was "Would you pay for this yourself?" How did that land? Ready to pick up there? ``` ### During a Session Claude tracks the conversation and captures significant developments: - When decisions crystallize - When thinking shifts meaningfully - When new questions emerge - At natural breakpoints ### Ending a Session Every session concludes with: 1. **Exit Summary** — Current state, key decisions, open questions, next steps 2. **The Overnight Test** — A question to sit with before next session 3. **Version Creation** — New versioned document capturing everything --- ## Session Energy Many skills ask about "session energy" at the start: | Mode | Best For | Behavior | | -------------------- | ---------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- | | **Deep exploration** | Long sessions, open-ended thinking | More questions, more methods, embrace tangents | | **Quick progress** | Short sessions, need decisions | Clear scope, primarily convergent, time-boxed | This lets the skill adapt to your available time and mental state. --- ## Multi-Week Projects For projects spanning weeks: ### Synthesis Documents After 3+ sessions, skills may offer: > "We've had 5 sessions on this. Want me to create a synthesis document that > distills our current best thinking?" Synthesis documents consolidate learning without losing the version history. ### Returning After a Break If significant time has passed, Claude won't assume you remember the context: ``` Claude: Welcome back! It's been 12 days since our last session. Reading through v4, here's where things stand... [provides comprehensive status summary] Does this still feel current, or has your thinking shifted? ``` --- ## Best Practices ### Do - **Keep version files** — The history matters; don't delete old versions - **Provide the latest version** — Always share the most recent file when continuing - **Use the overnight test** — Percolation between sessions often yields breakthroughs - **Let Claude summarize** — The status recap catches you up and verifies shared understanding ### Don't - **Overwrite files** — Create new versions, don't modify old ones - **Skip the exit summary** — This captures crucial context for next session - **Rush session endings** — Proper closure enables proper continuation --- ## Technical Implementation Skills implement continuity through: 1. **Document Templates** — Consistent structure for version files 2. **Session Flow** — Start/during/end patterns in SKILL.md 3. **Status Checks** — Questions at session start to orient 4. **Update Triggers** — When to capture changes in the document --- ## Related Concepts - [Pipelines](pipelines.md) — How skills chain together - [Handoffs](handoffs.md) — Documents that pass between skills - [Modes & Registers](modes-and-registers.md) — Adapting to different situations --- Source: [Claudary](https://claudary.paisolsolutions.com/skills/session-continuity) · https://claudary.paisolsolutions.com