Learn How Gabe Combines Code and Toads!

Meet amphibian lover and ambitious programmer Gabe! He lives in Oklahoma and just turned ten – although he told us he feels like he’s always been ten!

When Gabe isn’t working on his 4th-grade homeschool curriculum, he’s squeezing video games into his schedule, raiding the fridge, or playing with his pet toads and frogs! We chatted with Gabe and learned more about him and why he loves to code.

Do you have an idea of what you want to be when you grow up? I want to work with animals. Animals are my favorite thing! Frogs and toads are my favorite.

What’s your favorite subject in school? Anything with animals!

How did you feel when you found out your project had been featured? I didn’t know what it was at first but then was like “oh jeeze!” My game Undertail had a lot of likes, and I realized “featured” meant everyone on the internet’s going to see it. I was like “Ohhhh yes!”

How did you get introduced to Tynker? Well, when I got my iPad I got Tynker! When I got my iPad and Tynker I was just playing the other games. Then I found out you could make your own games and I was like, “Oh, sweet!” I pulled it up and was like, “What’s coding?” I had no idea what coding was so I threw random code blocks and ended up with a person that just spins around, and now I’m basically a coding master!

How long have you been coding? A little over a year I guess.

“space defender!” Check out more of Gabe’s projects here!

How did you learn how to use Tynker when you were first starting out? When I first started I had no idea how to code games so I just put pictures on there. It was just pictures with birds riding on them. Then I realized what coding is, and learned to code!

How do you get inspiration for your projects? I basically just think of something. Like I look up and I’m like, “Oh, a clock! I can make a game where you can travel in time!”

How do you use your creativity when you code? I just get a picture, like a picture of a robot, and then I put pieces of code block that look like robot on it, and then I make it shoot lasers at you and stuff and make all sorts of different body parts on it that you can hit and make it lose health and stuff. That’s one of the battles in my Boss Battles game.

“boss battles!”  

Why do you like to code? Well, my favorite part is playing games that I made and showing them all around the world.

Is there anything you’re planning to make next or currently working on? Most of my unpublished projects are really derpy, except one of them. The only reason it’s unpublished is because I’m still making it. It’ll be my best game of all time. It’s called Boss Battles. It’s where you battle all types of different bosses.

What do you do with a project when you’re done with it? I perfect it, publish it, and wait for the likes!

What’s your favorite feature in Tynker? I was really excited when Tynker released the Minecraft update. I saw Mythicraft is here and I thought “Oh boy, I can’t wait to try that out!” Now I have the Mythicraft update and the Minecraft update. I also make a lot of Minecraft stuff, mostly mobs.

Do you ever Tynker with your friends? Nope, but my #1 friend gave me the idea for Toad Crusher! He didn’t know how to code so he told me, “I would code the toad to crush different types of games.”

Do you look at the Tynker community projects? Yes, that’s actually one part of how I get inspiration, but I’m not saying I copy other people’s games!

How do you think learning coding now may help you in the future? In the future I want to make my own games – games as famous as Minecraft – that people can play on Xbox and stuff.  

Do you think other kids should try coding? Heck yeah!

What advice would you give for kids starting out with Tynker? I’d tell them what all the code blocks do.

When asked how she feels about Gabe learning to code, his mom Jessica said, “I think it’s great! I’m excited that he’s super self-motivated, and I think that if he pursues it it could work out for him.”

She continued with “He’s either going to make a career out of coding or toads at this point.” Gabe interjected, “I’m going to be someone who codes about toads! Coding for toads! I can make my own website where people can only code games with toads in them!”

Jessica told us that coding with Tynker captures and retains Gabe’s interest! In her words, “His mind works in a way in that it’s hard to satisfy. He likes a lot of stimulation and a lot of mental involvement, and for some reason, coding pacifies that better than anything else. He can dive into it and be content for a very long time. Before coding, it was hard to find activities like that for him.”

For Jessica, it’s important that kids learn to code. “It’s just what’s happening, and I think if you don’t know anything about it, you’re going to be left behind.”

Thanks for chatting with us, Gabe and Jessica! It was great to meet you and your toads, Gabe, and we can’t wait to see where coding takes you. Happy Tynkering!