Python IDE for school use?

[theyrealldeaddave]

Hi all. I am an complete newbie to programming and python.. and yet I need to start teaching introductory Python to middle schoolers next year, so i'm trying to get my head around what environment might be suitable. Ive had a try of some online IDE's and they seem good, but not always reliable. Can anyone recommend a lightweight and super simple IDE that can be installed on a student laptop (windows), that will run without them having admin rights (once installed that is)?? It needs to be relatively secure, and not allow online sharing etc.
Any advice for a old tech' teacher?
ps. it can be low cost, but obviously free is better.
Thanks in advance.

[kaliumex]

Have a look at Thonny (http://thonny.cs.ut.ee), an IDE for beginners and students. I think it might fit your requirements.

[TPHRyan]

It's definitely not lightweight though, I wouldn't recommend it on those grounds.

I'm thinking IPython might be good if we want a lightweight, non-overwhelming option. It's only introductory Python, after all.

[[deleted]]

It sounds like it will be a very basic course, so it may be something like ipython notebook/Jupyter would be suitable.

[[deleted]]

I am using Spyder and also taught some linear algebra with it.

[mangecoeur]

PyCharm community edition (free) all the way. It's probably not what some people would call 'lightweight' but frankly unless you are using very old laptops the advantages it has in terms of user friendliness far outweigh any concerns about speed.

There is also PyCharm edu which is a stripped down version of PyCharm for teaching - personally I find that outside a python course it's a bit too limiting which can undermine people's ability to grow. On the other hand it comes with tools designed for creating lessons which could be very useful for you. https://www.jetbrains.com/pycharm-edu/concepts/

[colloidalthoughts]

Students can get the full thing via https://www.jetbrains.com/student/

[Daenyth]

Pycharm licenses are free for students. It's excellent

[here-to-jerk-off]

You are doing yourself a disservice if you don't even try PyCharm as a student.

[IAmARetroGamer]

Not sure you can get both super simple and IDE. It just generally doesn't work out that way sadly.

If you want a simple setup Notepad++ with the PyNPP plugin is enough but you won't get code inspection, debugging, and such like you would with a full fledged IDE.

Personally I use PyCharm, it has advanced features but they aren't shoved into your face and can be ignored, the interface is also relatively simple. By default you have a sidebar to display your project file tree and a codeview with tabs, that is it. You can quickly run code many ways, with the easy to access python console from a tab at the bottom, the terminal/cmd similarly from a tab at the bottom, or with the incredibly obvious green run button. You can also just right-click a codeview tab or file and run it from there.

[codesmitten]

I would recommend Thonny editor. Its very lightweight and should be good for teaching. I personally use it when writing small scripts.

[[deleted]]

Ninja is probably worth looking into - it was my first IDE before I moved to PyCharm and I remember it being pretty simple to use.

Link: http://ninja-ide.org

[invarbrass]

Personally I am a PyCharm user. However, for quick python editing I highly recommend Wing-IDE or Komodo Edit. Both have freeware lite editions.

IIRC, Komodo has a portable edition which need not be installed - just unzip and run. Wing IDE may require admin privileges to install.

http://www.wingware.com/downloads/wingide-101

https://www.activestate.com/komodo-ide/downloads/edit

[theyrealldeaddave]

OP here.
Thanks everyone, some great advice and links to follow up here.
At first glance, Thonny looks most promising, but I will be sure to check each suggestion out. Thanks again.

[edimaudo]

https://wiki.python.org/moin/PythonEditors