When we first got to know Dylan, he was still in Primary school. At 11, he had already  written programming solutions to problems that students typically encounter at the Pre-U level. Our team details his journey with us, through his days in River Valley Primary to his current school, NUS High.

Coding Lab: Hi Dylan! Tell us about yourself. How did you get started with Coding?

Dylan: My mum noticed my interest in solving maths problems and suggested that I learn coding as it is similar in nature as it uses logic to solve problems. She also bought some books for me to read for a start, to see if I have interest to learn coding.Dylan's parents: As parents, we always want the best for our children. Programming/coding seems to be an area of growth & career opportunity for the future; hence we want Dylan to be well-equipped with the right skill set to succeed in his life/career. Of course, he needs to have an interest in order to be able to do well. Fortunately, his interest in Math since young has helped him pick up coding quickly, and he liked it from the onset.

Meet Dylan, 11, Python whiz

Coding Lab: How is your experience learning Coding so far?

Dylan:

I enjoy Coding Lab lessons a lot. The small class size allows me to ask questions freely and interact with the teacher. This is especially useful because I am able to tackle the mental obstacles quickly when I am coding.

Coding Lab: What do you like most about coding?

Dylan:

I find coding very systematic in approach and very challenging to the mind. In a way, it is similar to solving math problems. I find that it does in some ways help me in solving math problems at school.

Dylan's Parents:

It could be too early to tell if coding helps in his daily life, but it definitely helps train his mind to be more systematic in thinking. This mental training does help him in solving difficult Maths problems.The process of building the code is fun because it makes me think & approach the problem systemically and to apply logic to the process.

Dylan and his mum featured on Channel 8 news

Coding Lab: Tell us about a favourite program you have written.Dylan: I wrote a “Coins-sum” program. When I input a figure into the program, it will generate the number of ways that the figure can be divided by, based on our Singapore dollar denomination. I like it because it is useful. Creating the program requires me to put an if-loop within a while-loop. The process of building the code is fun because it makes me think & approach the problem systemically & to apply logic to the process.

Dylan's Coin Sum ProgramCoding Lab: Do you think that learning to Code has helped you at school?Dylan: My favourite subject at school is Maths. I find that Coding helps train the mind to be logical & systematic, both traits are useful in the application of Maths.Coding Lab: What else do you do in your spare time (apart from coding!)?Dylan: My hobbies are playing computer games & reading books on history & war. I also like to play Badminton & Carom.

Dylan, 11, studied at River Valley Primary School. 

He started off with  

Python 1

 (S101) in 2018 and had completed 

Python 2

 S111 at the time this article was written. He has enrolled in NUS High since 2020.