Unit 9: Inheritance

AP Computer Science A

What you'll master in this unit

Inheritance at a glance

java
public class Animal {
    private String name;
    
    public Animal(String name) {
        this.name = name;
    }
    
    public String speak() {
        return name + " makes a sound";
    }
    
    public String getName() { return name; }
}

public class Dog extends Animal {
    public Dog(String name) {
        super(name);  // call Animal's constructor
    }
    
    @Override
    public String speak() {
        return getName() + " barks";
    }
}
java
Animal a = new Dog("Rex");
System.out.println(a.speak());  // "Rex barks" — polymorphism!

Key terminology

Why Unit 9 matters