Web3 Blockchain Mastery — 4-Week Intensive Curriculum

Target: Software engineer with React, Node.js, MongoDB background + basic Solidity
Goal: Industry-ready Web3 developer (DeFi + NFTs + Smart Contracts)
Duration: 4 weeks, ~6–8 hours/day

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Learning Objectives

Technical Objectives

• Deploy production-grade smart contracts on Ethereum mainnet and testnets
• Build full DeFi applications (AMMs, lending protocols, yield aggregators)
• Create and deploy NFT collections with on-chain/off-chain metadata
• Build NFT marketplaces with listing, buying, royalty, and auction flows
• Integrate smart contracts with React frontends using Ethers.js, Wagmi, Viem
• Understand and protect against smart contract security vulnerabilities
• Work with Layer 2 networks (Arbitrum, Optimism, zkSync)
• Use professional tools: Hardhat, Foundry, OpenZeppelin, Chainlink

Conceptual Objectives

• Deeply understand how blockchains work at the protocol level
• Understand the full transaction lifecycle from wallet to finality
• Master AMM mechanics (Uniswap v2/v3, x·y=k curve, impermanent loss)
• Understand DeFi primitives: DEXs, lending, staking, flash loans, MEV
• Know how NFT marketplaces work end-to-end (OpenSea model)

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Expected Outcomes After 4 Weeks

Skill	Level
Smart Contract Development	Advanced
DeFi Protocol Understanding	Deep
NFT Systems	Production-ready
Frontend Web3 Integration	Professional
Security Awareness	Solid
Layer 2 Networks	Working knowledge
Professional Tools	Proficient

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Required Tools & Setup

Core Development Environment

# Node.js (v18+)
node --version

# Package managers
npm install -g pnpm

# Hardhat
npm install --save-dev hardhat

# Foundry (Rust-based, fastest testing)
curl -L https://foundry.paradigm.xyz | bash
foundryup

# Forge + Cast + Anvil (comes with Foundry)
forge --version
cast --version
anvil --version

Wallets & Browser Tools

• MetaMask — https://metamask.io (browser extension)
• Rabby Wallet — more advanced alternative
• WalletConnect — multi-wallet support

Testnets & Faucets

Network	RPC	Faucet
Sepolia (Ethereum)	https://rpc.sepolia.org	https://sepoliafaucet.com
Mumbai (Polygon)	https://rpc-mumbai.maticvigil.com	https://faucet.polygon.technology
Arbitrum Goerli	https://goerli-rollup.arbitrum.io/rpc	https://faucet.arbitrum.io
Optimism Goerli	https://goerli.optimism.io	https://faucet.optimism.io

Key Libraries

# Smart contract dev
npm install --save-dev @openzeppelin/contracts
npm install --save-dev @chainlink/contracts

# Frontend
npm install ethers wagmi viem @wagmi/connectors
npm install @rainbow-me/rainbowkit  # beautiful wallet modal

# Testing
npm install --save-dev chai mocha

APIs & Services

Service	Purpose	Free Tier
Alchemy (https://alchemy.com)	RPC Node Provider	300M compute units/mo
Infura (https://infura.io)	Alternative RPC	100K req/day
Etherscan (https://etherscan.io)	Block explorer + contract verification	Free
Pinata (https://pinata.cloud)	IPFS pinning for NFT metadata	1GB free
OpenZeppelin Defender	Contract monitoring + automation	Free tier

VS Code Extensions

• Solidity by Nomic Foundation (syntax highlighting, compilation)
• Hardhat for Visual Studio Code
• GitLens
• Prettier (with Solidity plugin)

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Curriculum Map

Week 1 — Blockchain Foundations
├── Day 1: How Blockchains Work (Deep)
├── Day 2: Transactions, Gas, Mempool
├── Day 3: Consensus (PoW vs PoS)
├── Day 4: Solidity In-Depth
├── Day 5: Hardhat + First Deployment
├── Day 6: ERC-20 Token Standard
└── Day 7: Mini Project — Launch Your Own Token

Week 2 — DeFi & AMMs
├── Day 1: ERC-721 & ERC-1155 Standards
├── Day 2: Liquidity Pools & AMM Theory
├── Day 3: Uniswap Deep Dive (x·y=k)
├── Day 4: DeFi Protocols (DEX, Lending, Staking)
├── Day 5: Frontend — Ethers.js & Wagmi
├── Day 6: Full DeFi Frontend Integration
└── Day 7: Mini Project — Simple AMM Contract

Week 3 — NFTs & Marketplaces
├── Day 1: NFT Architecture & Metadata
├── Day 2: IPFS & Decentralized Storage
├── Day 3: NFT Marketplace Architecture
├── Day 4: OpenSea Model Deep Dive
├── Day 5: Royalties & ERC-2981
├── Day 6: NFT Frontend (Mint + Gallery + Buy)
└── Day 7: Mini Project — NFT Marketplace

Week 4 — Advanced Topics & Capstone
├── Day 1: Layer 2 (Optimism, Arbitrum, ZK-Rollups)
├── Day 2: Smart Contract Security
├── Day 3: MEV & Flash Loans
├── Day 4: Oracles & Chainlink
├── Day 5: Capstone Architecture Design
├── Day 6: Capstone Implementation
└── Day 7: Capstone — Final Deploy & Review

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Navigation

Folder	Contents
Week 1 — Foundations	Blockchain core, Solidity, ERC-20
Week 2 — DeFi & AMMs	Uniswap, liquidity, DeFi protocols
Week 3 — NFTs & Marketplaces	NFTs, OpenSea model, IPFS
Week 4 — Advanced & Capstone	L2, security, MEV, final project
Resources	Docs, repos, videos, whitepapers
Exercises	Coding challenges, bug fixes, gas optimization
Capstone	Final project architecture and specs

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Daily Time Allocation (6–8 hours)

Block	Duration	Activity
Morning	2 hrs	Deep theory + concept study
Midday	2 hrs	Coding exercises + tutorials
Afternoon	2 hrs	Mini project / capstone work
Evening	1 hr	Review, debug, reflect, notes

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Start with Week 1 → Day 1