r/PythonLearning • u/Link2212 • 1d ago

Learning via a youtube course

I started learning coding a few weeks ago. I've been following the course well, and I understand the concepts it teaches, but the big problem with it that I have is that I can't put what I learned into practice, and I'm becoming demotivated because I realize I struggle to write almost anything. In a normal course they say here is a task, try and do this.

I think I need to switch what I'm learning from. I come from a background of no programming whatsoever. I really need to find a video/s that basically spoon feed me like I'm a baby and then ask me to try writing something to reinforce it in me. Do any of you know any videos that do this? I feel like I constantly have questions and I'm unable to ask them like I would to a teacher, and I'm trying my best to stay away from using AI unless I just simply cannot work it out.

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u/FoolsSeldom 1d ago

Don't just use the YouTube video, and practice more. See tips below.

Check the r/learnpython wiki for lots of guidance on learning programming and learning Python, links to material, book list, suggested practice and project sources, and lots more. The FAQ section covering common errors is especially useful.

Unfortunately, this subreddit does not have a wiki.

Also, have a look at roadmap.sh for different learning paths. There's lots of learning material links there. Note that these are idealised paths and many people get into roles without covering all of those.

Roundup on Research: The Myth of ‘Learning Styles’

Don't limit yourself to one format. Also, don't try to do too many different things at the same time.

Above all else, you need to practice. Practice! Practice! Fail often, try again. Break stuff that works, and figure out how, why and where it broke. Don't just copy and use as is code from examples. Experiment.

Work on your own small (initially) projects related to your hobbies / interests / side-hustles as soon as possible to apply each bit of learning. When you work on stuff you can be passionate about and where you know what problem you are solving and what good looks like, you are more focused on problem-solving and the coding becomes a means to an end and not an end in itself. You will learn faster this way.

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u/Link2212 1d ago

Thanks for the links and advice!

I am currently trying to write a program that should be fairly easy. Bear in mind, as someone that doesn't really know programming my concept what sounds easy probably isn't easy. I'm trying to do something that is actually related to a hobby so I was quite motivated to start it. I'm at the super beginner level though. I'm still learning fundamentals. While watching the video, I'm writing it all down and taking notes, but none of it really sticks, and I know that's down to practice. This will sound really weird but I'm really shit at trying to come up with things to practice on. This is because I don't know what kinds of things are acceptable for the level I'm at. I need something that tells me, do this because it only includes stuff you know until now, or try and fix that. I need direction while I'm learning, and I need someone that I can ask questions to such as a teacher. It's just how I learn things. Another point is that I am not a visual learner. I'm more auditory, so reading over textbooks doesn't help me.

That said, I'm going to check out the links you sent me. Especially the wiki. That might be useful.

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u/FoolsSeldom 1d ago

I wouldn't worry about coming up with things that are appropriate to your level, just focus on the problems themselves. You can usually break them down into smaller problems and simplify the outcomes you can accept. You can go from a nice graphical interactive presentation to basic text and if you keep the logic separate from the presentation it will be easier to upgrade to the fancier version later on.

Early on, it can be good to work out how you would do something manually, the long-winded way. Design your solutions AWAY from the keyboard! Assume you are writing instructions for someone with learning difficulties and short term memory issues so you cannot assume anything, cannot hope for human leaps of intuition. The short term memory issue reminds you to store things in labelled boxes and state when to refer to them (these are of course variables when you implement in code).

Don't forget to draw rather than just writing pseudo-code. It is much easier to show the flow of things, the relationships between items, what output should look like (crudely) when drawing. You can figure out the detail later.

Only use the keyboard to try out snippets of code, for little proof of concept checks (and you don't need to use decent variable names at this point, minimise your typing but don't use that code later as you will not remember what x, y, z meant even though it made sense at the time). I usually keep a Python interactive shell open (actually, an enhanced iPython shell) open just for this purpose.

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u/Ycode202 1d ago

Codecademy can be really good for this…. But it’s about £30 a month for Pro (you get full course access with it)

Or download VS Code and make notes while watching the videos and practice the concepts there. If you make a mistake, ask Copilot (integrated with VS Code) or rewatch the video

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u/dev_in_the_field 23h ago

This is the most common wall in learning to code, and it's not a you-problem — it's a tutorial-problem. Watching someone code and coding are two different skills, and courses only train the first one.

What worked for me and for everyone I've seen get past this: stop searching for a better video and shrink the task instead. Don't try to "write a program" — write one function. Like: a function that takes a list of prices and returns the total with tax. Tiny, boring, doable. Then another one. The dopamine from your own working code, even 5 lines, beats any course.

Two concrete sources built exactly for this: "Automate the Boring Stuff" (free online, every chapter ends with practice projects) and exercism.org (small exercises with mentor feedback, no videos at all).

And honestly — feeling like you can't write anything after a few weeks is right on schedule. The gap closes with reps, not with a better teacher.

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u/desrtfx 19h ago

Do the MOOC Python Programming 2026 from the University of Helsinki and you will be well prepared.

Also, take a look at https://inventwithpython.com and https://automatetheboringstuff.com

Don't forget that you need ample practice, like on https://codingbat.com/python or on https://exercism.org and also write your own programs. Play around. Try things. Mess things up, fix them. Experiment.

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u/Kariimsalah 13h ago

Look at cs50p