**Course Title:** Mastering Dart: From Fundamentals to Flutter Development **Section Title:** Introduction to Dart and Development Environment **Topic:** Set up your Dart environment and write simple Dart programs to demonstrate syntax and control structures.(Lab topic) **Objective:** In this lab topic, you will set up your Dart development environment, create simple Dart programs, and apply the syntax and control structures you learned earlier. This hands-on experience will help you solidify your understanding of Dart fundamentals. **Setup and Installation (5 minutes)** Before we dive into writing Dart programs, make sure you have the Dart SDK installed on your system. Follow the setup instructions provided by the official Dart documentation: [https://dart.dev/get-dart](https://dart.dev/get-dart). Also, ensure that you have installed a code editor or IDE that supports Dart. Some popular choices include: * Visual Studio Code (VS Code) with the Dart Code extension * IntelliJ IDEA * Android Studio **Lab Exercise 1: Simple Dart Program (10 minutes)** Create a new file named `hello.dart` and add the following code: ```dart // Simple Dart program to print "Hello, world!" void main() { print('Hello, world!'); } ``` Run this program using the `dart` command: ```bash dart hello.dart ``` This will print "Hello, world!" to the console. **Lab Exercise 2: Variables and Data Types (15 minutes)** Create a new file named `variables.dart` and add the following code: ```dart // Simple Dart program to demonstrate variables and data types void main() { // variable declaration int age = 25; String name = 'John Doe'; double height = 1.75; // print variables print('Name: $name'); print('Age: $age'); print('Height: $height'); } ``` Run this program using the `dart` command: ```bash dart variables.dart ``` This will print the values of the variables to the console. **Lab Exercise 3: Control Structures (20 minutes)** Create a new file named `control_structures.dart` and add the following code: ```dart // Simple Dart program to demonstrate control structures void main() { // if statement int score = 80; if (score >= 80) { print('You scored an A!'); } else if (score >= 60) { print('You scored a B!'); } else { print('You failed!'); } // for loop for (int i = 0; i < 5; i++) { print('Iteration $i'); } // while loop int count = 0; while (count < 3) { print('Count: $count'); count++; } // switch statement String grade = 'A'; switch (grade) { case 'A': print('Excellent!'); break; case 'B': print('Good job!'); break; default: print('Try harder!'); } } ``` Run this program using the `dart` command: ```bash dart control_structures.dart ``` This will print the output of each control structure to the console. **Conclusion and Next Steps:** Congratulations! You have successfully set up your Dart development environment, created simple Dart programs, and applied the syntax and control structures. In the next topic, we will explore functions in Dart, including parameters and return types. Make sure to visit [this link](https://dart.dev/guides/language_language-tour#functions) to learn more about functions in Dart. As always, we encourage you to leave a comment or ask for help if you encounter any issues or have any questions about the material. What did you find most challenging about this lab topic? Were there any areas where you would like more clarification or additional resources? Let us know in the comments below.