Using This Book

Throughout this book, you will find a variety of different sections and practice exercises. We are writing this guide to help you make the most of the book.

Learning Objectives and Key Terms

The cover page for each chapter outlines the learning objectives for that chapter as well as the key terms you need to make note of as you read the chapter. You can use this section to guide your reading and guide the questions you may want to ask of your instructor or instructional assistants. For example, if one of the objectives for the chapter is “Set up a formula in a spreadsheet to sum multiple values in a column” and after completing the reading and exercises, you are still not sure how to do so, you should ask your instructional assistant before class or ask during the in-class time. You never know who may have the same question!

Concept Checks

Many pages end with a “Check Your Understanding” header. This section is full of questions for you to double check that you understand the concepts in the reading. Although your score does not count towards your final grade in the class, you should use it to help evaluate your understanding of the main concepts. After you read the chapter, you will take a quiz in Canvas that includes all of these questions.

Examples

Examples are times when we tie a concept we have just learned to a potential real world application.

The label “Try It” signals an example that includes code you can modify and augment to quickly reinforce what you have just read. Open up your code editor and play around with these!

Supplemental Content

Occasionally, you will find a link to another resource. While not required reading, these additional resources can boost your learning with videos, other examples, and more information about the code. The home to most of the supplemental content is each chapter’s “Next Steps” page. This page has articles that either serve as an additional resource in case you feel that you are not confident about any of the learning objectives or serve as a stepping off point if you want to explore a topic more.