Week 16: Final project

In this last week you bring together the keys and structures you learned over fifteen weeks in one project. The project will define a variable, add up values with a loop, then check the result with a condition and write it to the screen. The project itself can be short. What matters is that every line is typed with the right keys and the right indentation. The target this week is 25 wpm with 95% accuracy. This is the highest target in the course, but accuracy still comes before speed, so do not hesitate to slow down.

What you will learn

This week has no new symbols. Every symbol from the earlier weeks may appear in your project. If you forget where a symbol sits, return to its week and watch the keyboard demo again. Part of a project might look like this:

total = 0
For i = 1 To 5
  total = total + i
EndFor

This code adds the numbers from 1 to 5 and keeps the result in the total variable. The result is 15. In your own project, try the same structure with your own values.

Technique tips

• Divide the project into sections. Write the variables first, then the loop, and finally the condition, checking each section on its own.
• Add the closing line of each block right away. Leaving the closing line for last makes it easy to forget inside a long block.
• Keep closing parentheses and quotes in pairs, as you did throughout the course. This habit saves the most time in a long project.
• Enter fills in the indentation of the next line. Keep the indentation intact and focus on the code rather than the screen.
• Pause about once a minute to read over the latest version of your project. Short breaks lower your error rate.

Lessons

1. Lesson 1, 10 to 15 minutes: Write the addition example above and run it. Check that the result is 15.
2. Lesson 2, 10 to 15 minutes: Build the skeleton of your own project: one variable, one loop and one condition. Add a closing line to every block.
3. Lesson 3, 10 to 15 minutes: Review what you practiced, then take the 2-minute test.

This week’s goal

The targets are 25 wpm and 95% accuracy. Finishing the lessons earns one star. Reaching 95% accuracy earns the second star. The third star also needs 25 wpm. In this project, clean and complete typing matters as much as speed. Well done for reaching the final week.