I used this extensively for code assignments in university, but for a different reason. We had to do most things in C, which can be very painful for prototyping and experimenting with new approaches. So I would solve the problem first in Python, try different approaches, and then after I was happy with the solution I'd write it again in C. Saved me a lot of time in the end.

First pass: you figure out which problems need to be solved. Second pass: you already "what" figured out, now you can focus on how to do it nicely.

A better approach in my experience is to grow the whole system from a “skeleton” implementation, refactoring the architecture and code as your understanding grows. With the key use cases being your guide.