Proposal: An "Absolute Beginner’s Guide" for Python Docs (Kid-Friendly & Ultra-Simple)

Ideas
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Hello everyone,

My name is Ahum Maitra, and I’m a 13-year-old student who is deeply passionate about Python. While learning, I realized that the official Python documentation is excellent, but for absolute beginners (kids, teens, or people with zero programming background), it can still feel a bit challenging because some tutorials assume prior programming experience.

Why this idea?

For someone who has:

Just installed Python,

Has an IDE and a browser,

And wants to start coding from scratch,

…the current docs can feel a bit overwhelming.

What I’m proposing

A new section in the official documentation, something like:

“Python Absolute Beginner’s Guide”
or
“Python for Kids & True Beginners”

Key ideas for this section:

Ultra-simple explanations (like teaching a 10-year-old).

Quick-reference style, like a mini dictionary for Python concepts.

Structured path for true beginners, similar to Rust’s book but even simpler.

Interactive examples (maybe via pyodide or an embedded REPL).

Visuals and analogies to make programming concepts intuitive.

No prior knowledge required – just a computer and curiosity.

Why is this important?

Python is leading the AI/ML revolution and becoming the go-to language for first-time programmers. If we make it even more beginner-friendly, we can:

Help kids and teens enter programming confidently,

Make Python the most accessible language for the next generation,

Strengthen Python’s position as the language for education.

How can this be done?

Could be part of the official docs,

Or an officially recommended guide linked from the main documentation,

Possibly community-driven contributions (with guidelines for simplicity).

Why me?

I’m not an expert (yet! :blush:), but I’m an active learner who truly cares about making Python approachable. I’d be happy to:

Share ideas,

Test beginner resources,

Or even contribute small sections under guidance.

What do you all think?
Is this something worth exploring? Has it been tried before?
How can we start a community effort for this?

Thank you for reading!

Sincerely,
Ahum Maitra

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Definitely there are many different kinds of people trying to learn Python. I love the idea of writing a tutorial aimed at your specific audience. You might start with creating a small list of existing tutorials with some commentary about what they are lacking.

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I think this is a wonderful idea! I don’t think that it should necessarily be part of the official documentation, but definitely something in the list of resources that the PSF makes available. I would even be in favor of the PSF sponsoring this.

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Shouldn’t this be moved to Documentation?

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Lot of overlap between ideas and other categories sometimes, I added the documentation tag but left it in ideas since I don’t know where the line on that actually is. Only useful to those filtering their views rather than reading all topic titles, this one’s very well titled.

This seems like a great idea. I would suggest looking for collaborators on such a guide to make externally first. It might be something worth hosting on python.org, but I don’t think anyone is going to be able to evaluate either that or linking to it in the resource section prior to it existing.

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Some resources that might be of interest (note, I haven’t looked at these in depth):

A

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cc @kattni

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On python.org the first section “Get Started” has the Start with our Beginner’s Guide link, which begins with “Welcome! Are you completely new to programming?”. That page is titled “Python for Non-Programmers” and shows lots of such resources, including some intended for children. Have you looked at that?

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Proposal: An Absolute Beginner’s Guide for Python Docs — For Everyone, Forever

First, let me say this: I have the deepest respect for the incredible work already done on Python documentation and tutorials. If I say anything that sounds wrong, please forgive me. Every tutorial out there is valuable, every resource is helping learners in its own way. I am not saying anything is bad. What I am saying is: Why don’t we make this happen together?

Why This is Needed

Python is not just a programming language anymore—it’s a movement. It’s the first language for millions of learners: kids, teenagers, adults switching careers, and lifelong learners aged 10 to 80. And here’s the reality:

Many of them start by buying a course or watching random tutorials.

They get stuck because video courses take too much time or skip fundamental explanations.

They say, “Python is hard.” But Python is not hard. It’s beautiful and simple.
So why do they feel this way? Because the official documentation—the most authentic resource we have—is not structured for absolute beginners.

The current tutorial is good, but it clearly states:

“You should have basic knowledge of programming.”
This means many people who choose Python as their first language don’t feel welcome in the official docs. They end up relying on third-party tutorials—many of which are scattered, inconsistent, and sometimes paid.

What This Guide Should Be

For everyone — from a curious 10-year-old to an 80-year-old enthusiast who loves learning.

Not just a tutorial — a foundation. A structured, simple, well-organized guide that covers:
:white_check_mark: What is a variable?
:white_check_mark: What is a function?
:white_check_mark: How loops work in real life?
:white_check_mark: And gradually moves toward advanced features like docstrings, decorators, type hints.

Like an English grammar book. Everything explained clearly, with examples, exercises, and references for deeper dives.

Free and official. It should live under docs.python.org, just like the existing tutorial, but for true beginners.

Structured for confidence. So a learner can say:
“I have the official documentation. I can learn everything from here. I don’t need to struggle to find a course or video.”

This guide might not have videos, but it will give confidence—the feeling of having the most authentic resource, written with love for learners. Even if a course instructor misses something, the learner can turn to this official guide for clarity.

Why This Matters for the Future

Absolute beginners have the right to use the official docs. Advanced programmers already do this—why not beginners?

Python is the first language for millions. If the official docs don’t welcome them, they struggle or quit.

This is not just about now. This is about making history—a resource that will outlive trends, videos, and scattered blogs. Something that will say forever:
“Python is for everyone. And we’ve made sure of that.”

Why Official Docs Will Always Be the Best

Other websites and tutorials are amazing. RealPython, blogs, YouTube—they all help. But official documentation will always be authentic, trusted, and permanent. That’s why this guide should be part of it.

My Request

Please start this project. I would be honored to contribute to it in any way I can. This is not just a guide—it’s a gift to the entire programming world. A dictionary-like reference for beginners and advanced learners alike.

Programming is not a race. It’s about understanding deeply. Let’s create something that helps everyone—today, tomorrow, and for generations.

Thank you for reading this. If anyone feels offended by my words, I truly apologize—that was never my intention. This is a respectful request to make Python even greater than it already is.

:white_check_mark: What do you think? Can we make this happen together?

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How much of that was written by AI?

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Thank you for enquiring, Stefan! I used an AI helper to help structure and polish my ideas, but the concept, inspiration, and vision are all mine. I wanted to make sure my message was clear and respectful to the community. My major goal here isn’t who wrote the words; it’s the concept: to create an official, structured beginner’s guide for Python that welcomes everyone, from absolute novices to advanced learners in need of a quick reference. I feel this has the potential to be a historic moment for Python, and I’d love to work with real people in this community to make it happen. If the writing appears overly polished, that’s because I wanted to portray it well—but the love behind it is completely human. :blush:

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This would lead to a never-ending ‘Why’ loop from a child. Children learn best through imitation, so just show them how you do it, and they will often do it even better.

How would you explain the concept of a function to a child without introducing math first?

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You just did it again for that response, didn’t you? That obnoxious “overly polished” style of both posts rather made me want to vomit a few times. And in my opinion, doing that without disclosing it is the opposite of respectful.

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If you’re not a native speaker, you can try www.deepl.com.[1]

  1. It’s better than Google Translate, but supports less languages) ↩︎

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Stefan, I understand your worry, and you’re correct: I should have indicated earlier that I employed an AI program to help polish my message. I apologise for not being transparent. The motivation, ideas, and proposal are entirely mine; I simply used AI to improve the text’s clarity and organisation. My objective was never to mislead people, but rather to deliver the idea in the best way possible. I appreciate your candour and will make certain to report it openly if I require assistance again. Thank you for pointing this out. That being said, I’d like to stay focused on the proposal: create an official, structured beginner’s handbook for Python. Do you believe anything like this suits the vision for the documentary?

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Please wait!

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So you found a way to make one AI detector show “0% AI”…

But if I copy your actual text into the same detector, it tells me 29% AI.

zerogpt says “96.03% AI GPT*”.

gptzero says “2% AI generated, 98% Mixed, 0% Human”.

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Imagine a juice machine. It accepts an orange and returns orange juice, or apple juice, depending on the function. If I think more clearly and conduct more research, I can find a solution to help a child who does not know maths. I enjoy to teach! And that was a functions; it accepts something, does its job, and returns something! THANKS A LOT! for this suggestion!

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This is what I meant when I said that:

Sometimes it’s better not to over-explain complex things to children. They’ll use what they know to create their own understanding.

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It gets thrown off by the double spaces between sentences when you copy the formatted text.
I don’t think there was a malicious intent behind that, it was probably the first search result for e.g. “detect AI”.

In the past, I’ve used ChatGPT to make my own texts longer and then analysed how much of my text I needed to rewrite. It’s a lot and then I’m already trying to make it not change my text completely and not invent stuff.

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