In this month’s Student Spotlight, we’re excited to feature Fin, a passionate and talented ninth-grader with a love for coding and an adventurous spirit. Fin’s journey with CodeWizardsHQ began in seventh grade, and over the past couple of years, he has excelled in his coding classes while balancing many other interests and activities. Fin’s curiosity and drive to take his coding projects to new heights have earned him recognition for a Student Spotlight.
The First Spark of Coding
Fin’s interest in coding came from a natural curiosity about how things work. He recalls, “I think since sixth grade, that’s when I really started getting into STEM. I wanted to know why does this game do this? Why does this website do this? Why do computers work? Eventually, I figured out that code was what was running them, and I just wanted to make them work.”
His mother recalls the steps she took to find the right coding program for him. “Fin just told me that he wanted to learn coding. So I did an Internet search, looked through websites, called different places, and landed on CodeWizardsHQ.” She liked how the courses were structured and easy to follow. “He really wanted to learn Python and just get going,” she explained.
Fin and his mother both speak highly of their experience with CodeWizardsHQ, from the structured courses to the teachers. His mother mentions, “He had an instructor when he first started who was awesome. He bonded with him, and it was a fun class.” She also highlights how every new class has continued to build on Fin’s enthusiasm for coding. Fin recently moved from the middle to high school track. “We are so happy with his new class on the high school track. He really likes it, and we just signed up for the next one because it’s going so well.”
Coding Projects That Stand Out
When asked about his favorite projects at CodeWizardsHQ, Fin highlighted the ones he completed during his Interactive JavaScript class, especially enjoying the game-making aspect. He also loved creating a travel journal for his User Interface Development class and a Python-based calculator. Fin has also taken his coding skills to the next level with collaborative projects and by creating tools that support his hobbies.
Fin spoke proudly about a project created with fellow students. It was a Python Casino. “It started on the Forum as a group project. We made games in Python, and then I made a website that linked everything when I first learned HTML,” Fin shared. This casino project was a collaborative effort with fellow students, showcasing Fin’s creativity and initiative.
This collaboration is an excellent example of what CodeWizardsHQ students can achieve on the Student Forum, a moderated online community at CodeWizardsHQ where students can connect with each other, work on and share projects, get homework help, or just socialize. It also serves to foster teamwork and leadership skills.
Another project Fin takes pride in is a dive log he created, inspired by his scuba diving hobby. “He actually worked on a dive log,” his mother shares. “We went away on spring break, he did some diving, and decided to make a dive log.” Combining his love for the ocean with his coding skills was a natural and exciting challenge for Fin.
Fin’s favorite skills so far include making interactive websites. “I like the backend a bit more… making it work rather than showing all of the front page and all that stuff,” he shares, preferring the behind-the-scenes work that powers websites and applications.
Interests Outside of Coding
Outside of coding, Fin has a variety of hobbies that keep him busy. He’s passionate about rock climbing and has been climbing since he started with CodeWizardsHQ. “I really enjoy rock climbing. I go to a gym, and I’m on a team there,” he says.
Fin’s love for the water also plays a big role in his life. “I like all water sports. I just really love ocean and lake activities, like wakeboarding, surfing, and scuba diving,” he shares. He and his dad were scuba certified in Honduras, and they’ve continued their diving adventures, even participating in a coral restoration project. Whether it’s in the water, on a climbing wall, or at the keyboard, Fin seems always eager to learn new skills and push his limits.
Looking Toward the Future
As Fin continues his coding journey, he has big plans for the future. “In my future, I want to work with mechanical engineering and robots, and coding is obviously good for that,” he says. He’s also looking forward to learning more about databases. “I’m looking forward to learning about databases and SQL… I remember playing a game, and it saved, and when I came back, I could play it again. That’s when I went searching on the Internet about how that worked and I saw that it was using a database.”
Fin’s journey with coding will no doubt continue to play a central role in his life. Whether it’s mechanical engineering, robotics, or developing more complex projects, he’s excited to keep learning and applying his coding skills. “Now I think just being able to make the projects I want to make is probably what I want to do,” he says.
Fin is a perfect example of how curiosity and a desire to learn can open up endless opportunities. He continues to push his boundaries, not only in coding but in all areas of life, and it’s clear that he has a bright future ahead. It seems his instructor Devin agrees.
Fin is funny and engaging, and a great storyteller. He is able to give you enough details as a listener to really see his story. He seems to have a deep understanding of the tools we use in class and has great intuition about which tool to use in each situation. He is determined to learn and experiment with coding no matter what, and it is clear that he spends significant time outside of class learning, researching, and experimenting.
Devin Turner, CodeWizardsHQ Instructor
