HTML Skill
Overview
Guidance for writing semantic, accessible HTML following modern web standards.
Objective
Enable developers to create properly structured HTML with semantic elements, accessibility attributes, and best practices.
When to Use
Use this skill when:
- •Writing HTML markup for web pages
- •Creating document structure with semantic elements
- •Building forms with proper labels and inputs
- •Adding metadata and head elements
- •Ensuring valid, semantic HTML
Don't use this skill for:
- •React JSX patterns (use react skill)
- •Accessibility specifics (use a11y skill for detailed guidance)
Critical Patterns
✅ REQUIRED: Use Semantic Elements
<!-- ✅ CORRECT: Semantic elements -->
<header>
<nav>
<ul>
<li><a href="/">Home</a></li>
</ul>
</nav>
</header>
<main>
<article>
<h1>Title</h1>
<p>Content</p>
</article>
</main>
<footer>Footer content</footer>
<!-- ❌ WRONG: Generic divs -->
<div class="header">
<div class="nav">...</div>
</div>
<div class="main">...</div>
✅ REQUIRED: Proper Heading Hierarchy
<!-- ✅ CORRECT: Sequential hierarchy --> <h1>Page Title</h1> <h2>Section</h2> <h3>Subsection</h3> <!-- ❌ WRONG: Skipping levels --> <h1>Page Title</h1> <h4>Section</h4> <!-- Skipped h2, h3 -->
✅ REQUIRED: Button vs Anchor
<!-- ✅ CORRECT: Button for actions --> <button type="button" onclick="doSomething()">Click</button> <!-- ✅ CORRECT: Anchor for navigation --> <a href="/page">Go to Page</a> <!-- ❌ WRONG: Anchor for actions --> <a href="#" onclick="doSomething()">Click</a>
Conventions
Refer to conventions for:
- •Code organization
- •Documentation
Refer to a11y for:
- •Semantic elements
- •ARIA attributes
- •Keyboard navigation
HTML Specific
- •Use semantic elements (
<nav>,<main>,<article>) - •Maintain proper heading hierarchy
- •Include alt text for images
- •Use
<button>for actions,<a>for navigation - •Validate HTML markup
Decision Tree
Interactive element? → Use <button> for actions (submit, toggle), <a> for navigation (page links).
Text content? → Use semantic elements: <article> for content, <section> for grouped content, <aside> for related info.
Form field? → Wrap in <label>, associate with htmlFor/id, use appropriate type attribute.
List of items? → Use <ul> for unordered, <ol> for ordered, <dl> for definition lists.
Heading? → Use <h1> through <h6> in sequential order, one <h1> per page.
Image? → Use <img> with descriptive alt text, or empty alt="" for decorative images.
Tabular data? → Use <table> with <thead>, <tbody>, <th>, <td>, and scope attributes.
Example
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8" />
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" />
<title>Page Title</title>
</head>
<body>
<header>
<nav aria-label="Main navigation">
<ul>
<li><a href="/">Home</a></li>
</ul>
</nav>
</header>
<main>
<article>
<h1>Article Title</h1>
<p>Content</p>
</article>
</main>
</body>
</html>
Edge Cases
Multiple h1 elements: HTML5 allows multiple <h1> tags, but screen readers work better with one per page.
Empty links: Avoid <a href="#"> without purpose. Use <button> for actions or provide proper href.
Div soup: Overuse of <div> harms semantics. Use semantic elements first, div as last resort.
Form without action: Forms should have action attribute or JavaScript handler. Omitting both causes page reload.
Button without type: Default type is submit. Always specify type="button" for non-submit buttons.