Python Foundations

  • Stages: 13
  • Articles: 17
  • Examples: 60
  • Quizzes: 19
  • Beginner

Everything you need to go from your first print() to writing your own functions, in the order that makes sense. Each stage mixes a short article, runnable examples you can edit in the browser and a quiz to check what stuck.

  1. Stage 1

    Pre-flight

    Install Python, meet the online editor and run your first program.

    1. 1 A Practical Guide to Getting Started with Programming Optional
    2. 2 How to Start Programming in Python Fast
    3. 3 Online Python Editor Optional
    4. 4 Check Python Version
    5. 5 First Program - Hello Space
    6. 6 Comments in Code
    7. 7 Python Books for Beginners Optional
  2. Stage 2

    Mission log: print()

    Show text and numbers on screen, and format them the way you want.

    1. 8 Python print() Function
    2. 9 Print Function Basics
    3. 10 Text Formatting with f-strings
    4. 11 Print Parameters sep and end
    5. 12 Special Characters in Print
    6. 13 Python print() Quiz
  3. Stage 3

    Cargo hold: variables and types

    Store data in variables and learn the basic data types.

    1. 14 Variables and data types in Python
    2. 15 Creating Variables
    3. 16 Basic Data Types
    4. 17 Type Conversion
    5. 18 Dynamic Typing
    6. 19 Python Variables Quiz
  4. Stage 4

    Navigation math

    Operators, order of operations and reading numbers from the user.

    1. 20 Numbers and Basic Math Operations in Python
    2. 21 Basic Math Operations
    3. 22 Floor Division and Modulo
    4. 23 Exponentiation and Roots
    5. 24 Order of Operations
    6. 25 Python Math Operations Quiz
    7. 26 Python Type Conversion and input() Quiz
  5. Stage 5

    Signal decoding: strings

    Join, slice, search and change text.

    1. 27 Creating and Joining Strings
    2. 28 String Indexing and Slicing
    3. 29 String Methods - upper, lower, strip
    4. 30 Methods find, count, replace and split
    5. 31 Python Strings Quiz
  6. Stage 6

    Decision engine: if/elif/else

    Let your program choose what to do.

    1. 32 Python If/Else for Beginners
    2. 33 Basic if Statement
    3. 34 If-else Statement
    4. 35 If-elif-else Statement
    5. 36 Logical Operators and, or, not
    6. 37 Python If/Else Quiz
  7. Stage 7

    Crew roster: lists and tuples

    Keep many values in order, and know when they should never change.

    1. 38 Creating Lists
    2. 39 List Indexing and Modification
    3. 40 List Methods - append, insert, pop
    4. 41 Sorting and Reversing Lists
    5. 42 Python Lists Quiz
    6. 43 Creating Tuples
    7. 44 Tuple Unpacking
    8. 45 Tuples vs Lists - Differences
    9. 46 Tuple Methods count and index
    10. 47 Python Tuples Quiz
  8. Stage 8

    Orbits: loops

    Repeat work with for and while, and stop exactly when you need to.

    1. 48 For Loop Basics
    2. 49 For Loop with enumerate and range
    3. 50 Python For Loop Quiz
    4. 51 While Loop Basics
    5. 52 Break and Continue in Loops
    6. 53 Python While Loop Quiz
    7. 54 Nested Loops in Python
  9. Stage 9

    Star catalogue: dictionaries and sets

    Look data up by key and work with unique values.

    1. 55 Creating Dictionaries
    2. 56 Modifying Dictionaries
    3. 57 Iterating Over Dictionary
    4. 58 Nested Dictionaries
    5. 59 Python Dictionaries Quiz
    6. 60 Creating Sets
    7. 61 Set Operations
    8. 62 Mathematical Set Operations
    9. 63 Comparing Sets
    10. 64 Python Sets Quiz
    11. 65 Python Data Types Quiz
  10. Stage 10

    Mission modules: functions

    Package code into functions that take values and give results back.

    1. 66 Creating Simple Functions
    2. 67 Functions with Parameters
    3. 68 Default Parameter Values
    4. 69 Documenting Functions
    5. 70 Return Statement Basics
    6. 71 Returning Multiple Values
    7. 72 Early Exit from Function
    8. 73 Returning Dictionary or List
    9. 74 Python Return Values Quiz
    10. 75 Converting Temperatures in Python
    11. 76 Calculate your weight on different planets in Python
  11. Stage 11

    Advanced controls: arguments and scope

    Flexible arguments, and where your variables actually live.

    1. 77 Positional and Keyword Arguments
    2. 78 Variable Number of Arguments *args
    3. 79 Variable Keyword Arguments **kwargs
    4. 80 Combining Different Argument Types
    5. 81 Python *args and **kwargs Quiz
    6. 82 Local and Global Variables
    7. 83 The global Keyword
    8. 84 Scope in Nested Functions
    9. 85 Separating Namespaces
    10. 86 Python Variable Scope Quiz
    11. 87 Python Functions Quiz
  12. Stage 12

    Systems check: modules and errors

    Use code others wrote, and read the error messages Python gives you.

    1. 88 Import System Modules
    2. 89 Python Random Module
    3. 90 Python Error Messages Quiz
  13. Stage 13

    Launch

    A final check across the whole path, then real mini projects.

    1. 91 Python Basics Quiz
    2. 92 Base 6 Number System in Python
    3. 93 Calculating Escape Velocity in Python
    4. 94 Medical dispenser - Don’t trust the user
    5. 95 Drawing Planetary Orbits in Python Optional
    6. 96 Managing Astronaut Medical Data with Python Optional