Episode 91: The New Beta Python Micro:bit Editor

Teaching Python

In this episode, we will learn about the new features of this great alpha product for the micro:bit.

Its main goals are to make coding with Python per se and Python on the micro:bit more accessible:

• An appealing user interface with bright colours
• Contextual help and autocomplete
• Example snippets of code you can browse and insert, like browsing blocks in MakeCode or Scratch
• Simple code structure highlighting to aid understanding about indents in Python
• Explanation of features of MicroPython useful in CS teaching, but not covered in device-oriented documentation
• Built-in serial console and REPL so you can do more traditional Python coding using your keyboard input and printing to the screen – the micro:bit is your Python runtime!

Special Guest: Giles Booth.

Support Teaching Python

Links:

• seantibor/uorganisms: Python micro:organisms on the BBC micro:bit — The uorganism, spoken: 'micro:organism' (get it?), project helps students understand how genetic information is passed from generation to generation using the BBC micro:bit. Each micro:bit holds a single virtual organism that can reproduce with other micro:bits in range using the built-in radio. Using the REPL, students can see how new organisms are created and track how genetic information is passed from parents to offspring.
• Python Editor for micro:bit — The Beta version!
• Micro:bit Educational Foundation | micro:bit — The Microbit foundation home page
• Talk - Kelly Schuster - Paredes/Sean Tibor: Learn Python Like a 12 Year Old - YouTube — Along the way to adulthood, we often lose that sense of wonder, enjoyment, and playfulness that we had as kids in our favorite school subjects. As adults, we can become better learners ourselves when we examine how kids learn coding with Python. In this session, we’ll talk about making thinking and coding visible, to the brain science behind how we learn new things, to the importance of playfulness in learning. We will share a variety of helpful tips to improve your learning whether you are new to Python or an experienced coder.