Python for Kids: Coding a Progress Tracker

Introduction
Prerequisites
Setup
Creating the Progress Tracker
Using the Progress Tracker
Conclusion

Introduction

Welcome to the tutorial on coding a progress tracker in Python! In this tutorial, we will learn how to create a simple progress tracker that can be used to keep track of your tasks, goals, or any other type of progress you want to monitor. By the end of this tutorial, you will have a complete understanding of how to implement a progress tracker in Python.

Prerequisites

Before starting this tutorial, you should have a basic understanding of Python programming language concepts. It will be helpful if you are familiar with variables, functions, loops, and if statements. If you’re new to Python, it is recommended to go through some introductory Python tutorials to get a better understanding of the language.

Setup

To get started, make sure you have Python installed on your system. You can download the latest version of Python from the official Python website (https://www.python.org/downloads/). Follow the installation instructions specific to your operating system.

Once Python is installed, you’re ready to start coding!

Creating the Progress Tracker

Create a new Python file and name it “progress_tracker.py”.
Open the file in your favorite text editor or IDE.

Begin by defining a class called ProgressTracker using the following code:

 class ProgressTracker:
     def __init__(self, goal):
         self.goal = goal
         self.progress = 0

Inside the __init__ method, initialize two instance variables goal and progress with the provided values. The goal variable will store the total goal or target you want to achieve, and the progress variable will keep track of your current progress.

Next, let’s add a method called update_progress to the ProgressTracker class:

 def update_progress(self, amount):
     self.progress += amount

The update_progress method takes a parameter called amount which represents the amount of progress you want to add.
Inside the method, increment the progress variable by the specified amount.
Now let’s add a method called get_percentage to compute and return the current progress percentage:
```
 def get_percentage(self):
     return (self.progress / self.goal) * 100
```
The get_percentage method divides the current progress by the goal and multiplies it by 100 to get the percentage.
Finally, let’s add a method called is_goal_reached to check if the goal has been reached:
```
def is_goal_reached(self):
    return self.progress >= self.goal
```
The is_goal_reached method returns True if the current progress is greater than or equal to the goal, and False otherwise.
Save the file.

Using the Progress Tracker

Now that we have created the ProgressTracker class, let’s see how we can use it in our Python code.

Create an instance of the ProgressTracker class by calling the constructor and passing the goal value:
```
 tracker = ProgressTracker(1000)
```
This creates a new progress tracker with a goal of 1000.
Update the progress using the update_progress method:
```
 tracker.update_progress(500)
```
This adds 500 to the current progress.

To get the current progress percentage, use the get_percentage method:

 percentage = tracker.get_percentage()
 print(f"Progress: {percentage}%")

This will print the current progress percentage.

Finally, check if the goal has been reached using the is_goal_reached method:

 if tracker.is_goal_reached():
     print("Congratulations! Goal reached!")
 else:
     print("Keep going!")

This will print a message based on whether the goal has been reached or not.
Run the Python script and verify the output.

Conclusion

In this tutorial, you have learned how to code a progress tracker in Python. You now have the knowledge to create a progress tracker to monitor your tasks, goals, or any other type of progress. Remember, you can customize the progress tracker by adding more features and functionality according to your specific needs. Keep coding and exploring the possibilities of Python!

Published: 1 March 2022