Slices and String Methods
Python Programming 2 Grades 9–12 5-day lesson 33 deliverables Teach students to take text apart in Python by copying pieces of a string and calling methods on it. Students work out what slices of one word give for bookstore shelf labels. Then they write functions that return initials, the end of a gift card code and a palindrome test. They clean up text, split it into words and join rules with and, or and not.
● 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?
Students often expect a method like upper() to change a string, but a string never changes. This lesson has them trace slices and method results by hand and save each new string. They then use the same tools in short functions.
The try-its on Days 1 and 3, the labs on Days 2 and 4 and the quiz task on Day 5 run online in CodeGrove, our in-browser code lab, so students need a computer or tablet on those days. The Slice Shop and Word Rules levels practice writing functions that slice text, clean it up with string methods and check it with rules made of and, or and not. CodeGrove is free, with no accounts, sign-ins or installs.
Slice Shop
Students write functions in CodeGrove that return initials, the end of a gift card code and a palindrome test.
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 five days, 40 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 five 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
- Slice Shop: students write functions in CodeGrove that return initials, the end of a gift card code and a palindrome test
- Word Rules: students write functions in CodeGrove that clean up a street name, count words and check a tag against four rules
04 Activities
- Slice It: students work out what slices of one word give and write what two programs print, on paper with computers closed
- Method Results: students write what three method calls give and what two programs print, on paper with computers closed
- Quiz task: students fix a username bug in CodeGrove, working alone, and then take the lesson quiz on paper
05 Assessment
- Exit tickets: quick questions that show who needs more help
- Lesson quiz: 8 multiple-choice questions and 2 written answers about all five days, on paper
06 Answer Keys
- 7 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™
- 6 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
- In CodeGrove: the labs on Days 2 and 4 (Slice Shop and Word Rules) and the quiz task on Day 5, on a computer or tablet for each student
- Try-its on Days 1 and 3: students practice the new code in CodeGrove, and nothing is turned in
- Free to use, with no accounts, sign-ins or installs
Why teachers love this lesson
Strings never change, so students build new onesStudents see that upper() and the other text methods return a new string. They must save it to keep the result.
Rules combine small checksStudents write conditions that give True or False. They join them with and, or and not to clean up a street name, count words and check a tag.
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 labsStudents write and run real Python in CodeGrove, our in-browser code lab, on a computer or tablet, with no accounts or installs.
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 2 bundle and the complete Python Programming 2 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 second course in Python 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 get one character of a string with an index, count its characters with len() and loop over text with a for loop.
Do students need computers?
Yes, on the CodeGrove days. Each student needs a computer or tablet that's online, and CodeGrove needs no account or install. The bell ringers, notes, exit tickets and quiz are on paper.
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 Intermediate Programming course (9007220). The skills map in the lesson shows which standards each day teaches.