Variables and Input
Intro to Python Programming Grades 9–12 3-day lesson 27 deliverables Teach students how Python stores values in variables and uses answers from the user. Students trace changing values in labeled boxes, finish programs that ask questions and predict the exact words they print. They also learn naming rules and write a club sign-up program that uses the answers in a welcome message.
● Instant download · Lifetime access · Editable & print-ready
Print + digitalPDF, PowerPoint, Word & Google
Answer keysA key for every page
Built-in assessmentExit tickets + lesson quiz
45-minute daysEvery day planned and timed
Short coding levels practice this lesson in CodeGrove, our code lab that runs in the browser. Students write the program, run it and check it, with no account and nothing to install. Use them with the lesson or as practice later.
See the levelsWhat does this lesson cover?
New coders can confuse a variable's name with the value it holds. This lesson makes values visible in boxes before students use variables to store answers and print messages.
The lab on Day 2 and the activity on Day 3 have online versions that use CodeGrove, our in-browser code lab, in the Ask and Answer level. It practices writing programs that ask the user questions, store the answers and print them back. Every online version comes with a paper version, so no internet is needed. CodeGrove is free, with no accounts or sign-ins.
Ask and Answer
Students finish three programs that ask the user questions, write each exact output and explain why it works, on paper or in CodeGrove.
Everything that's included
00 Start Here
- READ FIRST: every file in the lesson and when you use it
- Teacher Guide and Pacing: the plan for each day, what to print and how to grade
- Skills map: which standards each day teaches
01 Present
- One editable PowerPoint deck for all three days, 29 slides, with speaker notes
- Slide script: the speaker notes, printed
- Bell ringers: a short warm-up for each day
02 Student Handouts
- Guided notes: one packet for all three days, in PDF and editable Word. Students fill in the blanks during the slides, with the word bank on the page
- Vocab slip: the lesson's words and what they mean, on one page
03 Labs
- Ask and Answer: students finish three programs that ask the user questions, write each exact output and explain why it works, on paper or in CodeGrove
04 Activities
- Variable Boxes: students trace five short programs in labeled boxes and write each one's exact output, on paper with computers closed
- Club Sign-Up: students write a short club sign-up program, on paper or in CodeGrove
05 Assessment
- Exit tickets: quick questions that show who needs more help
- Lesson quiz: 8 multiple-choice questions and 2 written answers about all three days
06 Answer Keys
- 5 answer key files: a key for each day (its bell ringer, notes and exit ticket) and the activity and lab keys, plus the quiz key
Digital: Google Forms™ + Google Slides™
- 4 Google Forms™ of the exit tickets and the quiz, ready to copy into your Drive
- The multiple choice grades itself, and you grade the written answers
- A Google Slides™ copy of the deck, with the same slides and speaker notes, for Google Classroom™
- Give a Form that asks students to read code only on school-managed Chromebooks in locked mode, and use the paper version on other devices
Online: CodeGrove
- CodeGrove, Ask and Answer level: the online version of the lab on Day 2 and the activity on Day 3
- Every online version has a paper version, so no internet is needed
- Free to use, with no accounts or sign-ins
Why teachers love this lesson
Boxes show how stored values changeStudents follow short programs from top to bottom and update the boxes before writing the output.
The welcome uses the user's answersA club sign-up task connects clear variable names, questions and a message built from the answers.
Print and digitalEvery page is a print-ready PDF, and the Google Forms™ and Google Slides™ let you teach the same lesson in Google Classroom™.
Real online activitiesStudents can use CodeGrove, our in-browser code lab, on a computer or tablet, and every online version has a paper version that works with no internet.
A key for every pageEvery day has its own answer key, and every written question has a sample answer and what to look for.
Every day fits a 45-minute classEach day's plan is timed activity by activity against real reading and writing speeds.
What Teachers Say
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How do I get the files after I buy?
Instant download right after checkout: PowerPoint and Word files you can edit, print-ready PDFs, and links that copy the Google Forms™ and Google Slides™ into your Drive.
Can I buy the whole unit or course instead?
Yes. This lesson is part of the Unit 1 bundle and the complete Intro to Python Programming course. Both cost less than buying the lessons one at a time.
Is this AP Computer Science?
No. It is a full-year, non-AP intro to Python course for grades 9 to 12. For AP, see our AP Computer Science A and AP CSP courses.
What should students know before this lesson?
Students can write comments and use print() to show text, with an empty print() for a blank line. They know that Python runs the lines in order, from top to bottom, and that exact output counts, letter by letter.
What formats are the files in?
Every page is a print-ready PDF. The slides are an editable PowerPoint and the guided notes an editable Word file. The exit tickets and the quiz also come as Google Forms™, and the deck as Google Slides™.
Which standards does it cover?
Written for Florida's Foundations of Programming course (9007210). The skills map in the lesson shows which standards each day teaches.