Introduction

Welcome to Intro to Python. This book teaches Python without building terminal text-mode UI apps: we do not use Textual, Rich, or similar console UI libraries.

The first part of the course is core Python: syntax, control flow, modules, automated testing with pytest, and Pydantic / JSON. HTTP, FastAPI, Uvicorn, and HTTPX are saved for the final chapters, after virtual environments and dependency setup—so the web stack comes last.

Your work lives in a GitHub Classroom repository created from a base template. The book gives theory, directions, and code samples; you implement in that template and push for review.

Grading: Assignments are checked in part by an autograder on GitHub Classroom that runs pytest. You will learn to run pytest locally early on; the official tests live on the grader side.

Warning

Do not push your own tests
Practice tests stay local. The autograder supplies hidden tests. Never commit or push personal test_*.py files, tests/ trees you wrote for practice, .pytest_cache/, or __pycache__ unless your instructor explicitly tells you otherwise. See Testing with pytest.

Important

GitHub Classroom

1. Open Accept the GitHub Classroom assignment.
2. Sign in to GitHub, accept the assignment, and wait for your personal repository.
3. Complete any email / invitation steps your course requires.
4. Clone your repo and open the project in your editor. (Virtual environments are covered near the end, right before the web chapters.)

Note

One template, whole series
Add files and features to the same Classroom project as you go. Do not assume a separate “chapter repo” per week unless your instructor says otherwise.

Tip

Submit after each milestone
When you finish a chapter’s exercises, commit with a clear message and push to main (or the branch your instructor uses).

Warning

Feedback pull request
If your repo has a Feedback PR for instructor comments, do not merge or close it. Keep working on main and pushing; treat that PR as a discussion thread only.

Capstone preview

The final project is a Python web server (FastAPI + Uvicorn) that exposes a custom route:

• Path: GET /ping
• Response body (JSON): {"message": "pong"}

The path through the book is: basics → pytest mindset → more Python → Pydantic/JSON → venv & packages → HTTP client → FastAPI → Uvicorn → capstone.

What you need

• Python 3.12+ (match your template’s requires-python if it specifies one).
• Git and a code editor.
• A terminal to run python, pip, and later pytest and uvicorn.

Next: getting started with main and your first program.