> Source URL: /users/elizabeth-b/week-5.path
---
week: 5
date: 2026-04-08
---
# Elizabeth - Week 5: Add the Mood Feature
Your Decision Helper app is working. You have a home page, a form that takes options, a result page that picks one randomly with a fun reason, and error handling for when someone doesn't fill in enough options. That's a real, functioning web app.
This week you're going to add the feature you set as your goal: a **mood dropdown** that changes the reason on the result page based on how the user is feeling. This means the app gets smarter -- instead of just random silly reasons, the response actually connects to the person's mood.
Your app: run `app.py` with the play button to see it at `http://localhost:3300`
---
## Part 1: Python Practice
Try this on your own before working on your app. Create a new file called `practice.py`.
**Challenge:** Build a "mood report card" that takes a mood, a list of activities, and prints a formatted recommendation card.
Your program should:
- Store a person's name, their current mood, and a numeric stress level (1-10) as variables
- Store at least 3 activity suggestions as separate variables
- Calculate a "chill score" using a formula: `chill_score = (10 - stress_level) * 2`
- Print a formatted recommendation card with borders, the person's info, their chill score, and the list of activities
**Example output** (yours will have different data):
```
╔══════════════════════════════════════╗
Mood Report Card
──────────────────────────────────────
Name: Elizabeth
Current Mood: Stressed
Stress Level: 7 / 10
Chill Score: 6 / 20
──────────────────────────────────────
Try one of these:
1. Go for a walk
2. Listen to music
3. Watch a comfort show
╚══════════════════════════════════════╝
```
**Hints:**
- Start with your variables: `name = "Elizabeth"`, `mood = "Stressed"`, `stress_level = 7`
- The formula: `chill_score = (10 - stress_level) * 2`
- Use f-strings to plug your variables into print statements: `print(f" Name: {name}")`
- Use `print("═" * 38)` to make borders
Need a refresher?
- [Variables](../../resources/variables.resource.md) -- how to store text and numbers
- [Print Statements](../../resources/print-statements.resource.md) -- how to display output, use f-strings, and format cards
- [ ] I wrote `practice.py` and it runs without errors
- [ ] My output looks like a formatted report card
- [ ] I committed and synced my work
---
## Part 2: Add the Mood Dropdown
Right now your `/decide` form asks for a question and options. You're going to add a **mood dropdown** so the user can tell the app how they're feeling, and the result page will give a reason that matches their mood.
### Step 1: Add the dropdown to your form
Open `app.py` and find the `/decide` route. Look for the line with the "Choose For Me!" button:
```python
```
Right **above** that button line, add this dropdown:
```html
```
This creates a dropdown menu with 5 mood options. The `name="mood"` part is important -- that's how your Python code will read what the user picked.
- [ ] I added the mood dropdown above the submit button
### Step 2: Update the result route to use the mood
Now find the `/result` route in `app.py`. You need to change two things:
**First**, right after the line `question = request.form.get("question", "your decision")`, add:
```python
mood = request.form.get("mood", "happy")
```
This reads what mood the user picked from the dropdown.
**Second**, replace your current `reasons` list and the `reason = random.choice(reasons)` line with mood-specific reasons:
```python
mood_reasons = {
"happy": [
"You're already in a great mood -- this will keep the good vibes going!",
"Happy people make the best choices. This one sparks joy.",
"Your smile says it all. Go with this one!",
],
"stressed": [
"This is the low-effort, high-reward option. You deserve easy today.",
"When in doubt, pick the one that feels like a deep breath.",
"Stress says overthink it. We say just go with this.",
],
"bored": [
"This is the most interesting option. Trust us.",
"Boredom is just untapped adventure. This one fixes that.",
"Shake things up. This is the one you wouldn't normally pick.",
],
"adventurous": [
"Fortune favors the bold. This is the bold choice.",
"You asked for adventure and the universe answered.",
"This option has main character energy.",
],
"tired": [
"This is the comfiest option. Cozy wins today.",
"Your bed would approve of this choice.",
"Low energy? This is the path of least resistance.",
],
}
reasons = mood_reasons.get(mood, mood_reasons["happy"])
reason = random.choice(reasons)
```
Here's what this does:
- `mood_reasons` is a **dictionary** -- it's like a lookup table. Each mood (the key) maps to a list of reasons (the value).
- `mood_reasons.get(mood, mood_reasons["happy"])` looks up the user's mood in the dictionary. If their mood isn't found for some reason, it falls back to the "happy" reasons.
- `random.choice(reasons)` picks one random reason from that mood's list, same as before.
- [ ] I added `mood = request.form.get("mood", "happy")` to the result route
- [ ] I replaced the reasons with mood-specific reasons
### Step 3: Show the mood on the result page
Still in the `/result` route, find this line in your HTML:
```python
You asked: {question}
```
Right below it, add a line showing the mood:
```html
Mood: {mood}
```
- [ ] I added the mood display to the result page
### Step 4: Test it
1. Save `app.py` (**Cmd+S**)
2. If the app is still running, click inside the terminal and press **Ctrl+C** to stop it
3. Click the **play button** to restart the app
4. Go to your app in the browser, fill in a question and options, pick a mood, and click "Choose For Me!"
5. The result page should now show a reason that matches your mood
Try different moods and see how the reasons change.
- [ ] The mood dropdown appears on the form
- [ ] The result page shows mood-specific reasons
- [ ] Different moods give different types of reasons
---
## Part 3: Make It Yours
Some ideas to keep improving your app:
- **Add more moods** -- add entries to the `mood_reasons` dictionary and options to the dropdown (anxious, excited, nostalgic, etc.)
- **Change the page color based on mood** -- use the `mood` variable in your CSS class: happy = warm colors, stressed = calming blue, etc.
- **Add more reasons** -- the more you add, the more varied and fun the results feel
- **Customize the reasons** -- make them sound like you. Inside jokes, references you like, whatever makes it fun
- [ ] I customized at least one thing
---
## Part 4: Save to GitHub
Save your work using the **Source Control** tab:
1. Save all files: **Cmd+S**
2. Click the **Source Control** icon on the left sidebar
3. Type a message like: `add mood dropdown to decision helper`
4. Click **Commit**, then **Sync Changes**
- [ ] I committed and synced my changes
---
## Set Your Goal: Add a New Feature
Pick one new feature to add before next week:
- Add a `/history` page that shows the last few decisions (store them in a Python list)
- Change the page background color based on the mood the user picked
- Add a "share with a friend" button that copies the result to clipboard
### How to use the AI chat to help you build it
1. Open the **AI chat panel**:
- **Codespaces:** Click the chat icon in the left sidebar, or press **Ctrl+I**
- **Cursor:** Press **Cmd+L**
2. Describe what you want. Be specific:
> "I have a Flask app in app.py. I want to add a /history route that shows the last 10 decisions the user made. Store them in a Python list. Make the page look like my other pages (same Tailwind classes, same blue gradient). Explain what each part does."
3. **Read what it gives you before pasting it in.** If something doesn't make sense, ask:
> "Explain the part about storing decisions in a list. How does the list keep the data between requests?"
4. After adding the code, run your app (play button) and test it.
5. If something breaks, copy the error and ask:
> "I got this error: [paste error]. What's wrong?"
For more prompts, see the [Prompting Cheat Sheet](../../resources/prompting-cheat-sheet.guide.md).
### Update your TODO.md
Open `todo.md` and replace the current text with your chosen feature. Be specific:
- Good: "Add a /history page that shows my last 10 decisions"
- Not good: "work on my app"
- [ ] I picked a feature and wrote it in `todo.md`
- [ ] I tried using the AI chat to start building it
- [ ] I committed and synced my work
---
## Troubleshooting
### The mood dropdown doesn't show up
- Make sure you added the `