Foundations
Start here. Foundations takes you from your first
echoto a fully functional REST API — no PHP experience required. 15 hands-on labs, each building on the last, covering the core language features you'll use every day.
Prerequisites: Basic programming literacy in any language (variables, loops, functions). No prior PHP experience needed. Docker must be installed — see the PHP space overview for setup instructions.
🗺️ Lab Overview
01
Hello World & CLI
Variables, echo, CLI args ($argv)
20 min
02
Data Types
int, float, string, bool, null, type juggling
25 min
03
Arrays
Indexed, associative, nested, array functions
30 min
04
Control Flow
if / match / switch, loops, break / continue
30 min
05
Functions & Closures
Typed params, arrow functions, higher-order functions
35 min
06
Strings & Regex
sprintf, PCRE, preg_replace, preg_match
35 min
07
OOP Classes
Constructor promotion, enums, readonly, traits
40 min
08
Inheritance
extends, interfaces, polymorphism, Iterator
35 min
09
Error Handling
try / catch, custom exceptions, finally
30 min
10
File I/O
file_get_contents, fopen, CSV, JSON files
30 min
11
Database (PDO/SQLite)
CRUD, prepared statements, transactions
35 min
12
JSON & APIs
json_encode / json_decode, HTTP client, REST
35 min
13
Namespaces & Autoloading
PSR-4, Composer, autoload
30 min
14
Type System
Union types, intersection types, readonly, attributes
30 min
15
Capstone REST API
Full CRUD REST API with SQLite & routing
60 min
Total estimated time: ~8 hours across 15 labs.
🚀 Start Here
Begin with Lab 01. Each lab is self-contained but designed to be completed in order. Labs 01–06 cover the core language; Labs 07–10 introduce OOP and I/O; Labs 11–14 cover real-world integrations; Lab 15 is the capstone.
Start by running your first PHP script from the command line, working with variables, and reading CLI arguments. You'll learn how the PHP interpreter works and set the foundation for everything that follows.
📋 Lab Descriptions
Labs 1–6: Language Core
Lab 01 — Hello World & CLI 20 min Your first PHP script. Learn how to print output with echo and print, declare variables, and read command-line arguments via $argv. Covers the PHP interpreter invocation and basic script structure.
Lab 02 — Data Types 25 min PHP's eight primitive types: int, float, string, bool, null, array, object, callable. Understand type juggling, strict_types, casting, and the difference between loose (==) and strict (===) comparison.
Lab 03 — Arrays 30 min PHP arrays are ordered maps. Master indexed arrays, associative arrays, nested arrays, and the standard library: array_map, array_filter, array_reduce, usort, array_slice, array_merge.
Lab 04 — Control Flow 30 min Conditional logic with if/elseif/else, the match expression (strict, no fallthrough), switch, and all loop forms: for, foreach, while, do-while. Use break and continue effectively.
Lab 05 — Functions & Closures 35 min Define typed functions, use default parameters, return types, and variadic args. Write closures with use, arrow functions (fn() =>), and pass functions as first-class values to higher-order functions.
Lab 06 — Strings & Regex 35 min String manipulation: strlen, str_replace, substr, trim, explode, implode. Format output with sprintf and printf. Write PCRE patterns for preg_match, preg_match_all, and preg_replace.
Labs 7–10: OOP & I/O
Lab 07 — OOP Classes 40 min PHP 8 OOP: constructor property promotion, readonly properties, backed enums (Status::Active), traits for code reuse. Write clean data classes with minimal boilerplate.
Lab 08 — Inheritance 35 min extends and method overriding, abstract classes, interface contracts, polymorphism in practice. Implement the Iterator interface to make custom objects work with foreach.
Lab 09 — Error Handling 30 min try / catch / finally flow, exception hierarchy, creating custom exception classes, chaining exceptions with $previous. Best practices: catch what you handle, let the rest bubble up.
Lab 10 — File I/O 30 min Read and write files with file_get_contents / file_put_contents, handle streams with fopen / fclose, parse CSV with fgetcsv, and encode/decode JSON files.
Labs 11–14: Real-World Integrations
Lab 11 — Database (PDO/SQLite) 35 min Connect to SQLite via PDO. Perform CRUD operations with prepared statements (preventing SQL injection). Use transactions for atomic updates. Map rows to PHP objects.
Lab 12 — JSON & APIs 35 min Encode PHP data to JSON and decode JSON responses. Make HTTP requests with file_get_contents + stream context or curl. Consume a public REST API and process the response.
Lab 13 — Namespaces & Autoloading 30 min Organize code with namespaces (namespace App\Models). Set up Composer with composer.json, configure PSR-4 autoloading, and use use statements to import classes cleanly.
Lab 14 — Type System 30 min PHP 8's advanced types: union types (int|string), intersection types (Countable&Iterator), never return type, mixed, readonly classes (PHP 8.2), and PHP 8.3 typed class constants. Use #[Attribute] for metadata.
Lab 15: Capstone
Lab 15 — Capstone REST API 60 min Build a complete CRUD REST API from scratch — no framework. Features: URL routing, JSON request/response, PDO/SQLite persistence, input validation, HTTP status codes, error responses. Ties together every concept from Labs 01–14.
🔗 What's Next?
After completing Foundations, move on to PHP Practitioner where you'll build the same kind of APIs using Laravel — with authentication, migrations, queues, and test coverage.
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