Future Doctor Grace Fuses Writing With Coding!

Nine-year-old Grace is in 3rd grade and considers coding her biggest hobby! She lives and codes in Edinburgh, Scotland, and has come up with some really creative projects. We chatted with her to get to know her better and learn why she loves to create with Tynker!

What’s your favorite subject in school? English. I like the fact that you get to write stories.

What do you want to be when you grow up? Either a doctor or a coder.

How did you get introduced to Tynker? Well, my mom said there were a few coding apps on the app store, and I decided that I’d download some. When I got Tynker, I started coding little stories on that.

How long have you been using Tynker? For now, I think it’s been 4 weeks.

How did you figure out how to do things in Tynker? I used the little help button where you can drag blocks in for help. I used that, and I started coding.

Do you look at the Tynker community projects? Yes, I do. It’s other people’s work and it’s inspiring.

What’s your favorite feature in Tynker? I like that you get to make your own art on your games.

What is your favorite thing you’ve made? It has to be Dessert Place.

Where do you get ideas for projects? For Dessert Place, I took a look at games like Cooking Fever. I thought I could take something like that and make a game out of it.

Is there anything you’re working on currently? I’m working on a game about a dog where you have to overcome all the animals.

What do you do with a project when you’re done with it? I either show my parents and then publish it, or just publish it straightaway. Sometimes if they’re allowed to come ‘round, I’ll show my friends some of my projects.

Why do you like to code? I like to code because it’s really fun to make your own game and decide what will happen in it. I like when other people like my projects. It inspires me if someone has a better game than me because it means I can look at it and see what they’ve done and if I can do anything different with my game.

Do you think other kids should try coding? I think they should!

What advice would you give for kids starting out with Tynker? I would say, if you’re creating stories, make sure that you always make the “say” block about 4 seconds, so that your reader can follow along.

What do you like about making stories in Tynker? I really like creating stories, writing – so I thought if I could code it and make pictures, it’d be even better.

Grace’s dad Sean thinks it’s “quite good that she’s interested in [coding].” He told us, “It’s a bit beyond me. She can do stuff on an iPad at the age of 9 that I can’t even do myself.” Sean went on to give us his perspective on the importance and benefits of coding, saying, “I think it’s really good they’re learning to do stuff like that. It gets the creativity flowing, gets them thinking about different stuff. It’s a different thought process than normal.”

We couldn’t agree more – learning to code provides a unique outlook! Thanks for speaking with us, Grace and Sean! You’ve already accomplished so much in the 4 weeks you’ve been using Tynker – we can’t wait to see what you come up with as you continue coding! Keep Tynkering!