4-week course syllabus for "Basic Scripting in Python" and Hands-On Exercises

  4-week course syllabus for "Basic Scripting in Python". 

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✅ Course Title: Basic Scripting in Python (4 Weeks)

Duration: 4 Weeks (5 Days per Week)
Target Audience: Beginners in programming or new to Python scripting
Prerequisites: Basic computer literacy (no prior programming experience required)

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🧭 Course Objectives:

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Understand the fundamental syntax and semantics of Python.

• Write simple to moderately complex scripts for everyday automation tasks.

• Handle files, directories, and text processing.

• Use Python to interact with operating system tools and external libraries.

• Understand how to debug, test, and improve basic scripts.

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📚 Course Syllabus (Week-by-Week Breakdown):

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🔹 Week 1: Python Fundamentals for Scripting

🎯 Objective: Build a strong foundation in Python syntax, data types, and control structures.

Day 1: Introduction to Python

• What is scripting?

• Installing Python (Windows/Mac/Linux)

• Introduction to Python REPL and IDEs (VS Code, IDLE)

• First script: print("Hello, world!")

• Running Python scripts (.py files)

Day 2: Basic Data Types and Variables

• Numbers (int, float)

• Strings (declaration, concatenation, formatting)

• Booleans

• Variable naming rules and conventions

Day 3: Input, Output, and Type Casting

• input() function

• String formatting: .format(), f-strings

• Type conversion: int(), str(), float()

Day 4: Operators and Expressions

• Arithmetic operators

• Comparison operators

• Logical operators

• Assignment operators

Day 5: Control Flow – If/Else Statements

• if, elif, else

• Nesting conditions

• Truthy and falsy values

🔁 Weekend Practice (Optional):

• Mini-project: Write a calculator script

• Exercises: Variable manipulation, conditionals, user input

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🔹 Week 2: Data Structures and Loops

🎯 Objective: Learn how to organize and manipulate collections of data and repeat tasks using loops.

Day 1: Lists and Tuples

• Creating and accessing lists

• List methods: .append(), .remove(), .sort(), etc.

• Tuples and immutability

• Iterating through lists/tuples

Day 2: Dictionaries and Sets

• Dictionary syntax and usage

• Dictionary methods: .get(), .keys(), .values(), .items()

• Sets and set operations (union, intersection)

Day 3: Loops – for and while

• Basic for loops

• range() function

• Loop control: break, continue, pass

• Nested loops

Day 4: Comprehensions and String Methods

• List, dictionary, and set comprehensions

• String methods: .split(), .join(), .replace(), .strip()

Day 5: Practical Looping and Data Structure Tasks

• Simple data processing scripts

• Counting occurrences, filtering data

🔁 Weekend Practice:

• Mini-project: Contact list manager (add/search/delete using a dictionary)

• Loop and data structure exercises

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🔹 Week 3: Functions, Modules, and File Handling

🎯 Objective: Modularize code using functions and learn to work with external files.

Day 1: Defining and Calling Functions

• def keyword

• Parameters and arguments

• Return values

• Default and keyword arguments

Day 2: Scope and Built-in Functions

• Local vs global scope

• Built-in functions: len(), max(), min(), sum()

• Using the help() function and documentation

Day 3: Modules and Imports

• Standard libraries: math, random, time, os

• Import styles: import, from ... import, as

• Creating your own module

Day 4: File Input and Output (Text Files)

• Opening files: open(), modes (r, w, a)

• Reading and writing: .read(), .readlines(), .write()

• Using with for safe file handling

Day 5: Working with CSV and Error Handling

• Introduction to csv module

• Reading/writing CSV files

• Exception handling: try, except, finally

🔁 Weekend Practice:

• Mini-project: CSV log file reader or student gradebook

• Practice with functions and file handling

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🔹 Week 4: Scripting for Automation and Practical Projects

🎯 Objective: Apply knowledge to real-world scripting tasks using Python libraries and the OS.

Day 1: Scripting with the OS

• Using os and sys modules

• Navigating directories

• Creating/deleting folders and files

• Getting system info

Day 2: Working with Date and Time

• datetime module basics

• Formatting and parsing dates

• Time difference calculations

Day 3: Basic Automation Tasks

• Automating backups

• Renaming files in bulk

• Writing scheduled scripts (with time.sleep())

Day 4: Web and Internet Scripting

• Making HTTP requests with requests

• Downloading web pages/files

• Simple web scraping with BeautifulSoup (intro only)

Day 5: Final Project Workshop

• Choose a scripting project:

  • File organizer

  • Automated email sender

  • CSV report generator

  • Daily weather notifier

• Build, test, debug, and document the script

🔁 Weekend Final Assignment:

• Submit and review the final project

• Optional peer code review and improvement

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📝 Assessment and Evaluation:

• Quizzes: Weekly quizzes to assess understanding of syntax, structures, and concepts.

• Mini-projects: Weekly coding projects to apply new concepts.

• Final project: A practical script demonstrating the use of all major topics learned.

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✅ Skills Gained After Completion:

• Proficient in writing Python scripts for real-world tasks.

• Able to read, understand, and modify basic Python programs.

• Able to automate routine tasks using Python.

• Familiar with standard libraries and documentation.

• Ready to move on to intermediate topics (APIs, regular expressions, object-oriented design).

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🛠️ Hands-On Exercises: Basic Scripting in Python (4 Weeks)

Each exercise focuses on practical scripting tasks and programming fundamentals. These can be used for practice, assignments, or mini-projects.

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🔹 Week 1: Python Fundamentals for Scripting

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✅ Day 1 – Introduction to Python

Exercise 1.1: Write and run your first script that prints:

Welcome to Python Scripting!
This is my first Python script.

Exercise 1.2: Modify the script to:

• Print your name

• Print the current year (hardcoded)

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✅ Day 2 – Variables & Data Types

Exercise 2.1: Create variables for:

• Your name (string)

• Age (int)

• Height (float)

• Is_student (bool)

Print them in a single formatted sentence using f-strings.

Exercise 2.2: Convert string "45" to an integer, add 10, and print the result.

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✅ Day 3 – Input and Type Casting

Exercise 3.1: Prompt the user to enter:

• Their name

• Their age

Print:

Hello <name>, you will be <age + 5> in 5 years!

Exercise 3.2: Ask user to enter the price of two items. Add them and display total cost.

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✅ Day 4 – Operators and Expressions

Exercise 4.1: Write a script that calculates:

• Area of a rectangle (length × width)

• Perimeter of a rectangle

Exercise 4.2: Create a BMI calculator:

• Ask for weight (kg) and height (m)

• Calculate and print BMI = weight / height²

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✅ Day 5 – Conditional Statements

Exercise 5.1: Ask for user’s age and:

• Print whether they are a child, teen, adult, or senior.

Exercise 5.2: Ask for a number. Check and print:

• Whether it’s even or odd

• Whether it’s positive, negative, or zero

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🔹 Week 2: Data Structures and Loops

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✅ Day 6 – Lists and Tuples

Exercise 6.1: Create a list of 5 favorite fruits. Add a new fruit. Remove one.

Exercise 6.2: Create a tuple with 3 different city names. Try to modify one value and observe the result.

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✅ Day 7 – Dictionaries and Sets

Exercise 7.1: Create a dictionary for 3 students:

{"Alice": 88, "Bob": 76, "Carol": 93}

• Add one new student

• Update Bob’s grade

• Print average score

Exercise 7.2: Create two sets:

set1 = {1, 2, 3, 4}
set2 = {3, 4, 5, 6}

Print union, intersection, and difference.

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✅ Day 8 – Loops

Exercise 8.1: Print the first 10 even numbers using a for loop.

Exercise 8.2: Create a simple password checker:

• Ask user to enter password

• Loop until the correct password is entered

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✅ Day 9 – Comprehensions and String Methods

Exercise 9.1: Use a list comprehension to:

• Create a list of squares from 1 to 10

• Filter out only even numbers from a list

Exercise 9.2: Prompt user for a sentence. Print:

• Number of words

• Number of characters

• Reversed sentence

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✅ Day 10 – Practice Task

Mini-Project: Create a “To-Do List” manager:

• Add tasks to a list

• Mark tasks as completed

• Remove tasks

• Display current tasks

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🔹 Week 3: Functions, Modules, File Handling

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✅ Day 11 – Functions

Exercise 11.1: Write a function that:

• Takes two numbers and returns their sum

Exercise 11.2: Create a function to check if a number is prime.

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✅ Day 12 – Scope and Built-in Functions

Exercise 12.1: Write a script using:

• len(), max(), min(), and sum() on a list of numbers

Exercise 12.2: Demonstrate difference between local and global variables using a function.

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✅ Day 13 – Modules and Imports

Exercise 13.1: Use the math module to:

• Calculate square root

• Find the value of pi

• Use ceil() and floor()

Exercise 13.2: Create your own module with a greeting function and import it into another script.

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✅ Day 14 – File I/O

Exercise 14.1: Write a script that:

• Opens (or creates) a text file

• Writes 5 lines of text to it

Exercise 14.2: Read a file line by line and:

• Count number of lines

• Print all lines in uppercase

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✅ Day 15 – CSV and Exceptions

Exercise 15.1: Write a CSV reader that:

• Opens a CSV file of students’ names and grades

• Calculates and prints average grade

Exercise 15.2: Add try/except blocks around file operations to handle:

• File not found

• Division by zero

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🔹 Week 4: Automation and Real-World Scripting

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✅ Day 16 – OS Scripting

Exercise 16.1: Use os module to:

• List all files in the current directory

• Create a new directory called backup

• Move a specific file to backup

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✅ Day 17 – Date and Time

Exercise 17.1: Write a script that:

• Prints today’s date and time

• Calculates days left until a specific date (e.g., New Year)

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✅ Day 18 – Automation Tasks

Exercise 18.1: Write a script to:

• Rename all .txt files in a folder to file_1.txt, file_2.txt, etc.

Exercise 18.2: Write a Python timer:

• Ask user to enter number of seconds

• Countdown and then print “Time’s up!”

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✅ Day 19 – Web and Internet Scripting

Exercise 19.1: Use requests to fetch a webpage (e.g., example.com) and print its HTML content.

Exercise 19.2 (Bonus): Use BeautifulSoup to extract all hyperlinks (<a href>) from a webpage.

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✅ Day 20 – Final Project Workshop

Choose 1 of the following:

• File Organizer Script:

  • Sorts files into folders based on extensions.

• Daily Task Logger:

  • Logs daily notes to a dated .txt file.

• Weather Notifier:

  • Uses an API to get weather for a city.

• CSV Report Generator:

  • Reads student grades and generates a summary report.

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🎓 Optional Weekly Quizzes & Challenge Tasks

• Week 1 Quiz: Data types, operators, input/output

• Week 2 Quiz: Loops, lists, dictionaries

• Week 3 Quiz: Functions, files, modules

• Week 4 Quiz: Automation, date/time, API basics

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