Mari Gets Inspiration from Dogs!

Our newest Featured Maker is Mari from California! She is nine years old and absolutely loves to draw. Her favorite thing to draw is dogs. Mari also loves to play outside, particularly on playground structures!

While in school Mari loves recess, but her favorite subject has to be math because she loves being able to solve all those challenges! Although Mari doesn’t know what she wants to be when she grows up, she knows that coding will prepare her for the future.

How did you get introduced to Tynker and how long have you been coding? I got introduced through school and I’ve been coding for a year. I got really into Minecraft, but then I wanted to do more!

How did you learn how to use Tynker when you were first starting out? I learned from my dad.

How have your coding skills improved since you started using Tynker? They’ve improved a lot. I started to add reactions to the objects and kind of related it to Minecraft.

How did you feel when you found out your project had been featured? I was super excited! I told my family.

What is your favorite project you’ve made so far? My dog dress-up, because I really like dogs!

‘Dog was here dress up – copy’

Where did you get the idea for your featured project and how long did it take you to make? I got the idea from a human dress-up game and I just made it into a dog! It took me about a day to make.

How do you get inspiration for your projects? I go to the community board and I see other kids’ projects and try to learn from that.

Why do you like to code? I like to tell little stories to people!

Do you have a favorite code block? When actor touched.

What do you do with a project when you’re done with it? I show it to people and then I publish it.

What are you planning to make next? Nothing in particular, but I’m testing out different blocks to see what they do.

What’s the best thing about Tynker? I get to show my projects to other people!

How do you think learning to code has prepared you for the future? I think that it will help me find a career easier when I grow up.

Do you think other kids should try coding? Only if they want to!

Miki, Mari’s dad, joined the conversation as well and said this about his daughter learning to code: “I think it’s a great way to learn and it makes them more interested in coding and programming. It’s a very important skill to have in the future.”

Miki has been a programmer and encourages Mari to continue learning. He loves the way Tynker is both fun and challenging at the same time. “I was a programmer before, but it’s different from when I did it because I did C language. Tynker is more object-oriented. All the blocks are defined very well. With programming, there’s a math component to it and physics also, so I think it’s a great way to touch on both of those subjects and learn them as well.”

Miki is well aware of the benefits of learning to code at a young age. “The creative aspect is really impacted, like digital arts; she really likes drawing, and in Tynker she can create something and make it move. Then she can have it react to the characters’ actions. Nowadays it’s getting more digital, with AR and VR, so it’ll be interesting to see how all the art will evolve.”

We want to thank Mari and Miki for taking the time to tell us about their experiences with Tynker and coding! We look forward to seeing Mari’s future projects. Happy coding!