Job Ready Python

Lesson 3Exploring Basic Python Syntax

In this lesson, we will start programming Python. We will begin with an introductory look at Python syntax, comments, variables, user input, and data types.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

• Create one-line and multiline expressions to perform basic tasks in Python.
• Include comments in a Python program.
• Declare and use variables in a Python program.
• Write a Python program that accepts user input.

NOTE As you go through this and future lessons, you will need an integrated development environment, as mentioned in Lesson 2. We recommend that you enter each listing from the book into your development environment and run the code. The best way to learn is by doing, so you should enter and play with the code by making changes and seeing the results.

There are a number of key terms you will see in this lesson. These include the following:

• Syntax refers to the order in which letters, words, and characters appear in the code, including when to use punctuation symbols that serve as operators (like semicolons, brackets, parentheses, and slashes). While all programming languages have syntax rules, they are different from one language to another. Putting words in the wrong order or including characters in the wrong place leads to syntax errors that prevent the code from running.
• Comments are code within Python that does not execute. Comments can be used to explain Python code, or make it more readable, ...