Starting from an empty file

Many students can follow a finished program but freeze in front of a blank editor. The fix is a routine. First, write in plain words what the program must do.

List its inputs and outputs, and sketch the steps as comments. Then build the smallest version that runs, such as one that only reads a line of input. Grow it one piece at a time and run it after every change, so any new bug sits in the few lines you just wrote and debugging stays easy.

Redoing old lab assignments without the solution is ideal practice, because you already know what a correct answer looks like. Every internship task, project and coding round assumes this skill. It grows only through repetition, not by reading more code.