Once you've learned and experimented in Scratch, it's time to advance to the next level of programming! Python is a language that is both easy to learn and is used by computer scientists for real-world applications. Python shares certain aspects with Scratch, since it has output and input commands and ways to control time and repeat actions.
However, you can build more complex function structures with it and need to code commands yourself instead of dragging and dropping them. Though this allows for more interesting programs, it means that you need to translate what you want the computer to do into a form the computer can understand. This means that if you write code and the computer cannot understand it, you receive an error message and your program cannot run. However, don't let this deter you! There are plenty of easy ways to fix errors!
Let's get started!
What can you do with Python? Python is not as visually oriented as Scratch, so it is considerably harder to create video games and animations. However, you can still create games such as quizzes and logic games, and learn how to do simple video games such as Pong and Asteroids.
How can you learn Python? First, you need a way to start coding! There are two ways you can do this: download Python on your computer, or use a browser coding environment similar to how you coded in Scratch. If you want to download Python, you can choose the latest version. For the purpose of simple games, the version of Python you have does not matter. Now, you are probably thinking, why download Python when you can just code right in your browser?
While the browser environment, CodeSkulptor, is essentially Python, certain commands, particularly for user input, are different. This means there are fewer tutorials for CodeSkulptor. However, I took a great online class through Rice University on Coursera that used CodeSkulptor to create games such as Pong, Blackjack, a logic guessing game, and Asteroids. This class is meant for beginners who have no prior knowledge. At the end of the course, you can code and play your own Asteroids video game!
However, I would suggest taking this class as an intermediate programmer instead of a beginner. To begin, check out my teacher's awesome online class here on FundaFunda!
Happy coding!
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