AP CSA Unit 1.4: Assignment Statements and Value Copying Practice

January 5, 2026

Unit 1, Section 1.4

Day 4 Practice • January 10, 2026

🎯 Focus: Assignment Statements and Value Copying

Practice Question

Consider the following code segment:

int x = 5;
int y = x;
x = 10;
System.out.println(x + " " + y);

What is printed as a result of executing this code segment?

What This Tests: Section 1.4 covers assignment statements. This question tests understanding that primitive variables store values independently—assigning y = x copies the current value of x (5) into y. Changing x later doesn't affect y.

Key Concept: Value Copying with Primitives

When you assign one primitive variable to another, the value is copied. The variables remain independent—changing one doesn't affect the other.

int x = 5;    // x has its own copy: 5
int y = x;    // y gets a COPY of x's value: 5
x = 10;       // Only x changes to 10
              // y still has its own copy: 5

Step-by-Step Trace

Line	Code	x	y
1	int x = 5;	5	-
2	int y = x;	5	5 (copied from x)
3	x = 10;	10	5 (unchanged)
4	println(x + " " + y);	10	5

Output: 10 5

Common Mistakes

Mistake: Answer B (10 10)

This assumes y is "linked" to x and updates when x changes. But primitives copy values—y got a copy of 5 and keeps it regardless of what happens to x.

Mistake: Answer A (5 5)

This forgets that x was reassigned to 10 on line 3. Always trace each line in order!

Primitives vs Objects

Important Distinction

Primitives (int, double, boolean): Assignment copies the value. Variables are independent.

Objects: Assignment copies the reference (address). Both variables point to the same object. (Covered in Unit 3)

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