Everything You Need to Ace Computer Science and Coding in One Big Fat Notebook: The Complete Middle School Study Guide

Everything You Need...in One Big Fat Notebook

by Grant Smith

Released just three years ago, The Big Fat Notebooks revolutionized the study guide for middle schoolers, and students, parents, and teachers responded—the series has nearly 4 million copies in print with sales escalating every year. Now introducing Everything You Need to Ace Computer Science and Coding , an essential new title with the potential to run hand-in-hand with—or even outrun—Math (over 1.3 million copies in print) and Science (925,000 copies in print) as the next critical STEM companion.
          
Instruction is presented in the simple but powerful format of the previous Big Fat Notebooks . The key concepts of coding and computer science easily digested and summarized, with critical ideas clearly explained, doodles that illuminate tricky concepts, and quizzes to recap it all. Kids will explore the concepts of computer science, learn how websites are designed and created, and understand the fundamentals of coding with Scratch, Python, HTML, and CSS. 

Written by Grant Smith, a computer science education expert—and vetted by an award-winning computer-science teacher—this  Big Fat Notebook  is for every student who is either taking computer science in school or is a passionate code warrior.

Genres: Computer Science, Nonfiction, Programming, Science, Computers, Coding, School

576 pages, Paperback

Published April 28, 2020

Reviews

[Joshua · Rating 5 out of 5]

These big fat notebooks are amazing! Each book in the series is a very basic introduction to the specified subject, these books are very easy to read, have very solid binding and printing, and contain a surprising amount of information given the target audience. So if you are a complete beginner, these books are an incredible place to start. This book in particular "Everything You Need to Ace Computer Science and Coding in One Big Fat Notebook" Gives a gentle introduction to the basics of computer science and then proceeds with a section on programming in Scratch. This section is great and teaches you how to make games in Scratch based on programming principles. This section is then proceeded by a section on programming in Python which is much the same experience while emphasising the strengths of Python. I intend to read and review more of these soon!

[Aniket Patil · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is really simple and easy to understand book especially for school study. Concepts are explained in a very simple format along with the sketches. I really like it. although its intended audiences are teenagers but I was curious to read this one out of curiosity.

[Tushar Deb · Rating 3 out of 5]

They layout design of the book is pretty neat and efficient. It explains concepts in a pretty simple language which I would really recommend for kids; or even adults only scratching the surface.

When you get to the programming language section, the book starts to repeat all that you read in the early sections (like definitions and meanings) and how to execute them in those specific languages. Which is good if you're using the book as a guide and skipping to the topics you need to revise quickly, but a little repetitive when you're reading it start to end.

I was really disappointed on the ending sections in the book on Web Development. It's mostly nicely explained but some of the definitions are a little loose and a few times not quite accurate; like the HTML heading tags (h1, h2..) are defined as elements that make your text "big and bold", when actually the heading tags in HTML define the hierarchy of the document's layout and the big & bold part can be controlled by CSS.

Also, though each chapter ends with a question & answer section, the chapters felt like they were lacking more exercises and examples. Mostly in the Web Development section. So it can get a little hard to follow when there are no exercises for the readers to practice or much examples to study. You're mostly reading simplified definitions.

Overall, the book is pretty good. I really recommend reading all the computer science concepts sections and the programming language sections too. They are very simply and neatly explained. The Web Development section is good too but I believe you can find better books that explain more accurately. Also, I get why the book is high priced, but maybe it would be fair to list it for a little cheaper given the above reasons :D

[Martha Bongiorno · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so excited to receive our new installment in the Big Fat Notebook STEM series! It did not disappoint and is an essential companion to the already released Math and Science books. With key concepts explained through simple but powerful ways such as mnemonic devices, definitions, diagrams, and doodles, Computer Science and Coding helps us understand computer science in a non-threatening way, which is especially crucial in middle school. Coding can seem daunting at first, but this book made it easy and fun to learn. As a school library media specialist and a leader in the MakerSpace movement in our learning community, I truly believe every library should have this book on our shelves for students.

My daughter, a tween herself, and I both read this before the official release date and we both were able to learn something new! For me, it taught me valuable ways to explain coding to my middle schoolers and for my daughter, it made learning coding elements even more fun. Combining this book with our homeschool curriculum with code.org has made for some amazing learning experiences!

[Daniel Ocampo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the book even though it was meant for middle schoolers, it had a lot of great information. The first half of the book was particularly informative, as it gave me more insight into the field of computer science and the many branches of computer science. The second half was less engaging for me, as it covered basic programming, which I am already familiar with. However, I still went through it as a refresher. I appreciated that the book contained many practice questions at the end of each chapter to review what I had just learned. I also liked how the book provided great analogies for explaining computer functions and logic which I can use in the future. As Einstein said, "If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough." Overall, I enjoyed the book.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

This could be a good book for middle school or high school aged kids to bone up on some concepts before taking an actual Computer Science course. This is closer to a book on getting ready to take computer science, more than it's an intro to computer science. I would title this book "Foundations of Computer Programming and Information Technology: The Complete Middle School Study Guide.

[Giorgos · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty nice book overall, touching on various computer science aspects.
The animations were really cool + i liked the fact that it had some historical facts in the early chapters of the book that i did not know..
It is mostly targeted for children but i enjoyed it, and it's a great way to refresh and clarify some basic concepts in your head no matter the age..
I'd definitely find myself in the future skimming through some chapters i have noted..!

*I did not read through the Scratch & Python units as these are really targeted towards kids, especially Scratch, and i don't see how i can benefit from reading them at this point in time..

[Dima · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was cool. It referenced coolmathgames so that’s fun. Good overview

[Giuliana DM · Rating 5 out of 5]

With everything between highlighted vocabulary words, definitions, and charts, I'd say this book is perfect if you would like to start coding or learning about computer science. It covers all the basics and major points of Scratch, Python and web development. Each chapter also has a 'Check Your Knowledge' section with questions about the chapter to see whether or not you have understood what you have learnt, with the answers in the next page.
The book manages to explain coding and computer science in a simple way, and can make you understand the definitions of words and a lot more efficiently.

[Xavier Mix · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was good to get a refresher on some information on computer science. Most books in this series are designed for beginners, so if you do not know a lot or anything about computer science and want to learn the broad basics, this book is for you. It's written a little differently than most books. It looks like it was written in some kind of notebook, which is pretty cool. It's designed to look like little notes that someone took.

[Shay Vande · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic beginner's overview of the basics of computer science, Scratch, Python, and HTML & CSS for readers of any age. It helped me get a starting foundation to build off of going forward as I continue to learn these concepts in depth. I'm very grateful to have found this early on in my reference search. The format of this book makes it very easy to understand more complicated topics, in my opinion at least.

[Alvin Chan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very informative in terms of computer science. It talks about different forms of coding, like Scratch and Python, which are the basics of coding. It also talked about how coding works (variables and algorithms), and how the Internet works (viruses and webs) and the history of computers. I learnt a lot of information and knowledge by reading this book. There are also definitions to complicated words and additional information to the related topic. There are some fun drawings that also tells as information. It is very useful for those who are interested to be coders or web designers. I recommend this book to people of all ages.

[Tavian Lirette · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was never a big fan of computer programming, at least in comparison with computer hardware and the history of computer systems. One thing I particularly enjoy about Everything You Need to Ace Computer Science and Coding in One Big Fat Notebook is that it demonstrates how syntax simply involves clearly communicating to the computer running the program what exactly it should do - and that precise typing is crucial for getting it to do things in the order you need. I bet it’s helped a great many budding programmers.

[Tyler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is excellent for a surface level of understanding computer science. I found the sections on scratch a tad simplistic, and I did not go as far into that language of programming as I would have liked. The python section is sufficient for surface level programs and provides a solid foundation. Web development, on the other hand, has potential to be better. It needs to focus more on the aspects of it rather then the coding itself. Overall web development did not go enough depth for readers to prepare readers for the next level.

[em]

Random books I read ep. 1 : my mom got this at Costco for my sister to read and though I'm not in middle school, I really enjoyed it too.
I'm definitely using this as a resource because I've been wanting to learn Python for a while.

[Bookworm With a B · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars for a great beginners book. I really enjoyed how this book assumed that you knew nothing going in but wasn't insultingly explanatory. It is aimed at the middle school level but is good for any beginner.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book I read it in quarantine

[Sonia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great introduction to computer science and coding, great for any age in my opinion.

[Aaliyah Corley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the one that helped me the most. The programing I learned from reading this book will help me in the future and i may know more about programming than the average adult.

[Stacey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good intro. Quick to read and offers a lot of info in a very readable and accessible style.

[Tudor Roman · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a good and fast read for people who are not coming from an IT background because it will explain, in very simple terms, a lot of important concepts.

[Camille · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great for learning the basics

[Librarian Bee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great start guide into the world of coding! Will most definitely use it again for reference.

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A handy and basic reference.

[Ralph Nunez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book! Interesting and cool on the many options you can study regarding CS.

[Aaryan Nair · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It helped me learn more about computer science. It helped me a lot in school. I would definitely recommend this book and the series.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent explainer about coding and computer science. I will be hacking the mainframe in no time thanks to this book.

[Jesse Scobie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Comprehensive, organized, great examples and test questions.

[Aiden Johnson]

Embarrassing to carry this around because it is literally for middle schoolers, but I found it to be a genuinely very helpful introduction.

[Ajita Gupta · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a gem of a book. Although I've been programming for years I've learnt three definitions from it. It goes quite in depth with its definitions and its probably even good enough for senior high students trying to get to know what this obscure term computer science is all about, but it mainly targets 12-14 year olds. It's very concisely written and contains very nice visuals. I absolutely adored this one and am creating a YouTube course from it!