Table Of ContentREADY, SET, CODE!
CODING
with
Python
ÁLVARO
SCRIVANO
This Page This Page
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Intentionally Intentionally
READY, SET, CODE!
CODING
with
Python
®
Álvaro Scrivano
Illustrated by Sue Downing
Lerner Publications Minneapolis
First American edition published in 2019 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
First published in Great Britain in 2018 by Wayland
Copyright © Hodder and Stoughton, 2018
All rights reserved.
Editor: Hayley Fairhead
Design and illustrations: Collaborate
All rights reserved. International copyright secured. No part of this book may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of Lerner Publishing
Group, Inc., except for the inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review.
Lerner Publications Company
A division of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
241 First Avenue North
Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA
For reading levels and more information, look up
this title at www.lernerbooks.com.
Main body text set in Frutiger LT Pro 45 Light.
Typeface provided by Linotype AG.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
The Cataloging-in-Publication Data for Coding with Python is on file at the Library of Congress.
ISBN 978-1-5415-3876-4 (lib. bdg.)
ISBN 978-1-5415-4667-7 (pbk.)
ISBN 978-1-5415-4303-4 (eb pdf)
Manufactured in the United States of America
1-45059-35886-7/25/2018
“Python” is a registered trademark of the Python Software Foundation, used by
Hodder & Stoughton Limited with permission from the Foundation.
Contents
What Is Python? ........................................................4
Project 1: Turtle Talk .................................................6
Project 2: Argentina ................................................12
Project 3: Poppy Flower ..........................................18
Project 4: The Caterpillar .........................................24
Glossary ...................................................................30
Further Information .................................................31
Index .......................................................................32
What Is Python?
A programming language is a particular way to talk to a
computer. It is a set of instructions that you give the computer
to use. Python is a typed programming language that allows
you to create animations, graphics, and games. One of the
advantages of Python is that you can get things done with less
code than many other programming languages.
Many famous organizations such as Google, YouTube, NASA,
and Yahoo use Python. It has been used to produce the special
effects for the Harry Potter and Pirates of the Caribbean films.
Trinket
All the projects in this book will be done using Trinket
Blocks to create and run Python projects. This means
you will not need to type the code; you can just drag,
drop, and snap the coding blocks together!
!
Note to parents
To use Trinket, go to: https://trinket.io/.
Trinket allows your child to create and run Python projects in a web
browser, on your desktop, or on an iPad. In this book, the instructions
assume the user is working on a desktop. There is no software to
install. Children will be able to see their Python code and its output
side-by-side. Children can also save their code online or share it with
others with a link. Trinket Blocks is a free Trinket feature.
4
Creating Trinket accounts
Parental permission is required to create accounts for children
under 13. It is recommended that a Trinket account be created
by a parent or responsible adult.
Trinket can be used without downloading plug-ins or installing
software. For your child to be able to save and share his or her
projects, you will have to sign up and create a username and
a password.
Trinket
Click here
to view
These are the main features you will find
your Python
when you open a new Trinket Blocks project:
Click here program as
Save your
to run your text.
work here.
program.
Menu Project title
Coding block You will drop the blocks for your Drag blocks Your program will
menus program onto this white canvas. here to run here.
delete them.
Be share aware
Usernames and passwords are personal information
and, just like your toothbrush, YOU DO
NOT SHARE THEM WITH ANYBODY!
5
TURTLE TALK
GET YOUR TURTLES CHATTING!
READY Did you
know?
Turtles have been
on Earth since
In this project, you will
the time of the
use Python to create an
dinosaurs—over
animation of two turtles
200 million
talking. Turtles are used years ago!
in Python to show you
the position of your
program on the canvas.
1
GETTING STARTED
Go to Trinket: https://trinket.io/ and log in.
Type in your
username and
password.
6
SET
Now you’ve opened Trinket, it’s time
to begin a new program.
You will see the You will drop the blocks
2
OPEN A NEW TRINKET following window. for your program in this
Click on Click on Turtle. white canvas.
and you will see the
following drop-down
menu. Click on Blocks.
Did you know?
The following
Both tortoises and turtles
menu will open up
are reptiles. Both lay eggs
on the right when
and have hard, bony shells.
you click on Turtle.
Tortoises have flatter backs
Drag the
than turtles and they live on
block to the white
land in deserts, grasslands,
canvas. You are and forests. Turtles have
now ready to code. webbed feet for swimming and
live in rivers, lakes, or oceans.
7
Did you know?
Turtles have a hard shell that protects them like a shield. This upper
shell is called a carapace. Turtles also have a lower shell called a
plastron. Many turtle species can hide their heads inside their
shells when attacked by predators.
CODE!
If you select the
wrong block, you can
delete it by returning
Now you’re ready to start
it to the blocks
programming your turtles.
section on the left or
dragging and dropping
it in the bin in the
bottom right-
hand corner.
3 WRITE IN PYTHON
Add the following block from the Turtle menu and
type: “Hello! What are you doing?” inside the
quotes. Your program should look like this:
Press to test
your program. You
should see your message
disappearing off the right
side of the screen, with a
turtle overlapping the
first word.
8
