Coding for Kids
Our 2020 Summer Code Jam is well under way, and we’re so excited to talk to some of our winners to learn more about them, their awesome projects, and their experiences with Tynker!
Krishay is another Code-A-Thon Code Jam multi-week winner! Not only did he win prizes in Weeks 2 (Tell Codey’s Story) and 7 (Make an Arcade Game), but he was the top prize winner for Week 5 (Create a Crazy Contraption!).
When he’s not wowing us with his amazing coding projects, Krishay is a 13-year-old from California who loves to play games as varied as basketball, chess and cricket! Krishay has aspirations to become a computer engineer, which pairs well with his love for math because he loves to code and problem solve.
How did you get introduced to Tynker and how long have you been coding? I participated in the Code-a-Thon three years ago, I won a prize then, so I’ve kept coding with Tynker since then!
How did you learn how to use Tynker when you were first starting out? I learned with the Python course to learn Python and started making some games and learned how to use the blocks!
How have your coding skills improved since you started using Tynker? I learned how to use variables and lists, and I learned how to code using Python!
How did you feel when you found out your project had been featured? I worked hard on my project and I’m really excited that I won!
What is your favorite project you’ve made so far and what do you like about it? Besides the week 2 project, I liked my week 1 create your avatar project because I made a dragon that can breath fire and play a game and do some other things!
Where did you get the idea for your project and how long did it take you to make? I enjoy drawing dragons sometimes so I thought it’ll be fun to animate one! It took me a long time to finish it, I took about three or four hours on it.
How do you get inspiration for your projects? I get inspiration from games I play and movies that I watch!
Why do you like to code? I like making my ideas come to life with the code, and I like problem solving.
Do you have a favorite code block? I don’t really have a favorite code block because I need many code blocks in order to create something!
What do you do with a project when you’re done with it? I debug it and I add more features and then I publish it!
What are you planning to make next? I’m going to work on next week’s Code Jam project!
What’s the best thing about Tynker? It’s easy to animate and add pictures and to make my project more visual!
Is there anything we should change or add to Tynker? It’s pretty good right now, I can’t think of anything!
How do you think learning to code has prepared you for the future? Learning to code could help me in jobs and it could help me learn to solve problems!
Do you think other kids should try coding? I think others should try coding because it’s a great way to properly learn how to problem solve!
What advice would you give to kids starting out with Tynker? The beginner courses are good to start coding with!
How long did it take you to complete your project? It took me a few days!
Did you have any interesting challenges that you had to figure out? One thing I forgot to save and then I lost all my work!
How did you feel when it was over – how excited were you? It took a long time for me so I felt happy when I was finished with the project!
Are you going to do other Tynker Code Jam Challenges/weeks? Yes!
Do you like to code and will you keep learning more about coding? Yeah, I want to learn more coding languages and learn how to do more advanced things!
Priyanka, Krishay’s mom, had a lot to say about how she feels about him learning to code, how she supports him, and what he can learn from coding with Tynker! Priyanka expressed her enthusiasm for him learning how to code, “We were already excited and truly amazed by how these little kids are able to code, and all the platforms and tools that Tynker provides. It’s very helpful and facilitates their journey and it’s just really amazing to see them learn all these complex programming concepts in a fun way!”
Priyanka emphasizes the fact that Krishay always involves his brother when coding and helps him along the way as well. She adds that before Krishay publishes a project, he always asks his brother for input and how he can make it better. Priyanka is a computer engineer and can jump in anytime that Krishay needs help. “It’s fun to see him learn all the things and if he’s stuck anywhere then I can always step into help,” she said, “He learned block programming through Tynker three years ago and then he built some more projects, then later, I think last year, he got interested in Lego Mindstorm EV3 coding, he did that with the block coding and now again he came back to Tynker to learn Python because he wanted to code it using Python.”
Priyanka knows firsthand the benefits of coding, saying that it teaches problem solving and step-by-step logical thinking. It’s so fun for her to see him learning it and getting exposure to it as well and is confident that it will help him in the future!
We want to thank Krishay and Priyanka for taking the time to speak with us and sharing their experience with Tynker! We look forward to more projects from Krishay!
