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Learning to code with my disability: One learner shares her story

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Learning to code with my disability: One learner shares her story

We recently rounded up some of the big wins from our community in 2020. One of these wins came from Rosita — a learner from the Netherlands that went all-in on learning to code when the lockdown began in March and is now working as a front-end developer.

Rosita decided to use the lockdown as an opportunity to invest in herself and, 227 days later, it paid off. In October, Rosita shared that she landed her very first work experience position, doing front-end development at a marketing agency.

We spoke with Rosita to find out more about her learning journey, her new job, and her inspiring 2020 accomplishment.

Discovering code

Rosita shared the story of how she became interested in learning to code in a post on the Codecademy Forum called My story, learning to code with my disability:

“About 4 years ago I started a blog about living with cerebral palsy, because I had just quit my bachelor study social work and I didn’t know what to do next. I was getting treatment in a rehabilitation center because of cerebral palsy and found out I couldn’t become a social worker anymore. But I liked blogging and I learned to type blind with just my left hand.”

“Through blogging, I discovered I liked the technical stuff behind my self-hosted WordPress website and in November 2017 I became a free member at Codecademy and started to learn the basics.”

Rosita started with HTML and CSS and was hooked. “In 2017, I got a free account at Codecademy and started to learn just a little bit and just the basics,” Rosita told us. But in March of 2020, she says, “I got the idea that I wanted to become a developer so I would have to really learn. Because of COVID-19 everything was closed and everyone was at home, so I decided to pay for Codecademy Pro. I decided, if I don’t invest in myself, I’ll never learn to code.”

Overcoming the challenges of learning to code

When asked what the biggest challenge was in learning to code, Rosita shared, “I have slow information processing in my brain, so I just can’t learn fast. If you’re on a forum or in a Facebook group, you hear from people that are learning all day, everyday. But I don’t have the energy to learn all day. So I don’t compare myself to others and their learning journeys. I just take my own time to learn.”

Even with taking her own time to learn, Rosita stays accountable by learning a little bit every single day. When we spoke with her, she was currently on a learning streak that had lasted 258 days. “How much time I spend every day depends on how much time or energy I have. Some days I don’t have much energy, so maybe I practice for 5 minutes in the app. Other days, I may spend up to 2 or 3 hours learning.”

Finding work experience

“I have cerebral palsy and, because of that, I receive disability benefits from the government so I don’t have to work. But I want to work,” Rosita told us. She started by sending letters to different companies, but had trouble finding a job because of a lack of work experience. That’s when she turned to LinkedIn and Twitter.

“I made a post telling people what I was looking for, what I was working on, and what I can do — I shared that I know HTML, CSS, and a little bit of JavaScript and am learning React. I think that helped people to decide to give me a chance. A lot of people shared my post on LinkedIn.” Ultimately, that LinkedIn post led to Rosita’s work opportunity.

When asked what she’d like to see change about the job seeking process to make it more accessible, Rosita told us, “I think people have to know that people with disabilities have talents too. We’re also able to work and participate in society, and I think people don’t really know that. There’s a lot of misconceptions about having a disability and what it feels like. My disability is not a problem for me behind the computer.”

Join Rosita and the other members of our community on the Codecademy Forums. Find inspiration from other learners and share your own experiences. We hope to see you there!

Custom Design Feature | La Cooquette

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onlinefreecourse
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Custom Design Feature | La Cooquette

After a busy end of the year, I finally have a chance to show you the design we made some time ago for an awesome La Cooquette! It is truly unique and colorful, like the content Maria makes. I had the pleasure of designing the new branding for her, including logo design and her blog look. This short post will give you a quick look at the creative process we went through.

Branding is everything!

As with all more extensive projects, I always start with the logo. This way, I make sure all other elements will go smoothly together. Colors and fonts used in the logo create the branding for the whole blog design, so it is essential to have them approved before making the design itself.

The main goal of this project was to create something funny, food-related, and colorful. The primary color for La Cooquette brand was teal, so we wanted to keep it in. Below are the three mood boards I send Maria after discussing some ideas with her.

All logos were well received, but there was still something missing. We decided to mix things up, and it is how we made the final mood board version. It has something from all three initial designs that makes it even cooler. Take a look at the image below for the conclusive logo look.

As you may notice, the final colors are quite muted, but they still look playful. The font we used is Sunshine Daisies, and I love its potential as it comes in various styles.

Creating the design

With the logo in place, I was able to build the design Maria wanted. We needed a layout that would showcase various post categories and show content diversity. Even though La Cooquette YouTube channel is all about cooking, you can read travel or lifestyle posts on her blog. Because of that, we needed a few post sections to showcase different types of content.

I think we did a great job with that, but let’s take a look at her previous design before I show you the results.

Before design change

Her old blog look was plain and included only a custom logo (that was really cute!) and boring. You can see it on the print screen below. With such awesome content she produces, I knew she needs something more extra.

New blog look

Here is a full view of her new design. It took us a few weeks to finish everything, but I think it was worth it.

I hope you like her blog transformation as much as I do! I love doing such creative projects and was really honored to work with Maria.

Let me know what you think in the comments below!

If you are looking for a custom made design, make sure to contact us via our custom design services page. I would love to chat with you and discuss possible options.

P.S This post includes affiliate links so by clicking them you are supporting us. Thanks!

Word + Quiz: multifarious

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onlinefreecourse
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Word + Quiz: multifarious

: having many aspects or varieties

_________

The word multifarious has appeared in 12 articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on Oct. 3 in “Use Your Newspaper to Make a Flibber (A What?)” by Catherine Hong:

You are forgiven if you draw a complete blank on seeing the word “flibber.” Constructed out of newspaper and resembling a crazy cross between a drum major’s baton, a pompom and a palm tree, it’s the title project of the 1964 children’s book “How to Make Flibbers, Etc.: A Book of Things to Make and Do” by the author and illustrator Robert Lopshire.

… Who knew that such an object of extravagant whimsy could be created so quickly, using kindergarten-level skills and not even scissors or tape? Children instinctively grasp the Flibber’s multifarious uses: Impromptu parades, dress-up tails and low-risk, one-on-one combat are just the start. Meanwhile, more than one adult Flibber maker swears it is excellent for getting her dog off the sofa.

_________

Word + Quiz: vaunt

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Word + Quiz: vaunt

verb: show off

noun: extravagant self-praise

_________

The word vaunt has appeared in nine articles on NYTimes.com in the past 10 years, including on Jan. 13, 2013, in “Avoiding Loan-Modification Hoaxes” by Lisa Prevost:

Homeowners wary of being taken in by bogus “loan modification specialists” should not assume that a law office is the safest conduit to their lender. Consumer advocates say a growing number of fraudulent modification services involve lawyers, or people who say they are lawyers.

Increasingly, lawyers are lending “their names, their offices, their credentials” to fraudulent operations that vaunt superior skills in obtaining loan modifications, said Linda Mullenbach, a senior counsel at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in Washington.

_________

How Do You Spend Your Downtime?

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How Do You Spend Your Downtime?

Students in U.S. high schools can get free digital access to The New York Times until Sept. 1, 2021.

What do you do when you find yourself with some downtime? Do you call friends? Read a book? Check in on social media? Play video games? Exercise? Or scratch your head wondering what to do to kill time?

Do you think these choices are having a beneficial effect on your mental, emotional and physical health and well-being? Are you spending your free time wisely and effectively?

In “How Teens Use Downtime to Connect, Distract or Reflect,” Lisa Damour writes:

When pandemic-weary adolescents get to take a break, what should they do with themselves? The main aim, of course, should be to feel better after the break than before it. But different downtime choices lead to different kinds of relief. Adolescents (and adults) might want to reflect on the options for how they spend their free time — whether they’ve got 20 spare minutes today or can anticipate more unscheduled time in the weeks ahead.

Ms. Damour looks at three ways teenagers tend to spend their downtime, and the particular benefits and challenges that come with each. Here are excerpts from each option:

Connecting With the World Digitally

Young people often use their downtime to text with friends or check their social media accounts — and with good reason. Particularly under the restrictions of the coronavirus pandemic, teenagers rely on these platforms to connect with peers and to keep up with headlines. Spending time online might deliver the boost of an amusing exchange with a friend, a clever meme or good news about a favorite sports team. If it does, that makes for a restorative break.

But, of course, it can go another way.

Checking in on social media or the 24-hour news cycle is the psychological equivalent of sidling up to a slot machine. Hitting the jackpot — receiving digital love from a friend or finding an encouraging update about a vaccine — feels good. Pulling the lever and losing — whether that’s your messages being “left on read,” meaning the recipient doesn’t respond, or catching a depressing headline — is pretty much bound to happen from time to time.

Getting Lost in Distractions

There’s a lot to be said for taking occasional, all-consuming mental vacations, especially during a pandemic. Research on chronic stress shows that engrossing, happy distractions, such as competing in a sport or losing oneself in a movie or a book, can help young people weather persistently difficult circumstances.

Happy distractions may be a particularly apt choice when teenagers find themselves dogged by worries about school, peers, rising Covid-19 rates or anything else. Peggy Zoccola, an associate professor of psychology at Ohio University who studies the impact of stress and coping on the body, has found that ruminating over unpleasant events raises blood pressure and heart rate and triggers the ongoing release of stress hormones. Distraction, however, stops or attenuates the biological stress response. “It’s important,” she says, “to be able to recover and not always be pumping out these stress hormones.”

Creating Space for the Mind to Wander

As a third option, young people sometimes use openings in their schedule for pursuits that are engaging, but only to a degree. Researchers use the term “soft fascination” in connection with activities that require attention but don’t entirely occupy the mind, such as spending time in nature or taking a long shower. More absorbing endeavors, such as playing a video game or solving a puzzle, recruit what’s known as “hard fascination.”

Compared to hard fascination, soft fascination uses less mental bandwidth and leaves more room for the mind to wander and reflect. Avik Basu, an environmental psychologist at the University of Michigan who researches soft fascination, explains that activities that “don’t swamp the mind” are more likely to be restorative because “a softly fascinating environment allows for reflection — and that’s when the problem-solving part of our brains can really get to work.”

Students, read the entire article, then tell us:

  • How do you spend your downtime? In general, do you use it to connect, distract or reflect? What kinds of effects do these choices have on your life? Do you find your use of free time “restorative” or beneficial to your mental and physical health?

  • How do the different choices for downtime described by Ms. Damour resonate with your own experiences? Do you gravitate more toward “happy distractions” or “soft fascinations”?

  • Which of the benefits and challenges most accurately fit your own use of downtime? Do you agree with the author that checking in on social media is “the psychological equivalent of sidling up to a slot machine” — sometimes “hitting the jackpot” and at other times, “pulling the lever and losing”?

  • Do you feel that you wisely use your downtime? What do think of Ms. Damour’s advice, such as “before defaulting to downtime scrolling, teens might weigh the possibility of seeing a mood-lifting post against the chance that they’ll run into something distressing,” or “teenagers can run an easy check for themselves by asking, ‘Are my distractions getting in the way of what I need to do?’” What other recommendations would you give to peers who want to use their unscheduled time more wisely and effectively?

  • Does reading the article make you rethink how to use your downtime? What might you do differently the next time you have a few spare moments?

About Student Opinion

• Find all our Student Opinion questions in this column.
• Have an idea for a Student Opinion question? Tell us about it.
• Learn more about how to use our free daily writing prompts for remote learning.

Students 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

Lesson of the Day: ‘Trump, in Taped Call, Pressured Georgia Official to “Find” Votes to Overturn Election’

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Lesson of the Day: ‘Trump, in Taped Call, Pressured Georgia Official to “Find” Votes to Overturn Election’

Students in U.S. high schools can get free digital access to The New York Times until Sept. 1, 2021.

Featured Article: “Trump, in Taped Call, Pressured Georgia Official to ‘Find’ Votes to Overturn Election” by Michael D. Shear and Stephanie Saul

The results of the 2020 election are expected to be certified by Congress during a session on Wednesday, recognizing Joseph R. Biden Jr. as the next president of the United States. But in a taped call that was published online by The Washington Post on Sunday, President Trump was recorded pressuring Georgia’s Republican secretary of state to “find” him enough votes to overturn the presidential election results in the state.

“The effort to cajole and bully elected officials in his own party — which some legal experts said could be prosecuted under Georgia law — was a remarkable act by a defeated president to crash through legal and ethical boundaries as he seeks to remain in power,” Michael D. Shear and Stephanie Saul write in the featured article.

In this lesson, you will learn more about why this phone call is making headlines and what it means for the country. Then we invite you to weigh in with your thoughts about whether Mr. Trump crossed any legal or ethical boundaries — and what consequences he should face if he did.

Listen to excerpts from the phone call between President Trump and Georgia’s secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, the state’s top elections official, in the audio recording below. You can follow along in this transcript (PDF).

As you listen, highlight, underline or take notes on the transcript about what you notice and wonder about the conversation. Which lines stand out to you? What questions do you have?

If you’re in a classroom context, share at least one thing you noticed and one thing you wondered with the class or a partner.

Read the article, then answer the following questions:

1. Why is this call between President Trump and Georgia’s secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, making headlines? What is newsworthy about it?

2. Why do some believe that Mr. Trump’s effort to cajole and bully elected officials in his own party constitutes an abuse of presidential power?

3. In what ways might Mr. Trump’s efforts have violated Georgia state and federal laws, according to legal experts?

4. In the call, Mr. Raffensperger tells Mr. Trump that “the data you have is wrong.” Cite at least two pieces of misinformation that Mr. Trump uses to back up his assertion that voter fraud occurred in the Georgia election. How does Mr. Raffensperger respond to these claims?

5. Mr. Trump has made repeated efforts to challenge the results of the election. What attempts has he made? What has been the result of those efforts?

6. The article concludes with several statements Mr. Trump made during the call. What do these statements tell us about Mr. Trump and his thought process related to the election? What point do you think the authors were trying to make by ending the article this way?

Option 1: Weigh in: Did President Trump break the law?

Now that you know more about the context and content of the phone call between Mr. Trump and Mr. Raffensperger, decide for yourself whether what he did constitutes an ethical or legal breach.

First, read both the Georgia state law and the federal law on election fraud. Then, respond to the following questions:

  • Based on what you read in the law and what you heard in the call, do you think Mr. Trump did anything illegal? What evidence supports your opinion?

  • Regardless of whether you think Mr. Trump broke the law, do you think he acted unethically in this situation? Why or why not?

  • If you think Mr. Trump did cross legal or ethical lines, what consequences, if any, should he face? Impeachment? Prosecution? Something else?

Option 2: Explore the meaning of the peaceful transfer of power in a democracy.

With Congress’s expected certification of the election results on Wednesday and just 16 days left in Mr. Trump’s administration, why does this phone call matter — if at all? What does it mean for the United States?

About Lesson of the Day

• Find all our Lessons of the Day in this column.
• Teachers, watch our on-demand webinar to learn how to use this feature in your classroom.

Lesson of the Day: ‘This 14-Year-Old Ski Daredevil Is Already a Pro, and Trying Not to Scare His Parents’

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Lesson of the Day: ‘This 14-Year-Old Ski Daredevil Is Already a Pro, and Trying Not to Scare His Parents’

Students in U.S. high schools can get free digital access to The New York Times until Sept. 1, 2021.

Featured Article: “This 14-Year-Old Ski Daredevil Is Already a Pro, and Trying Not to Scare His Parents” by Bill Pennington

In today’s featured article, you will meet a teenage star of freeskiing — a sport that involves skiing on ungroomed, usually off-piste terrain without a set course. “Kai Jones skis way out of bounds,” Mr. Pennington writes. “But relentless practice on and off the slopes gives him confidence for tricks ready-made to go viral and emblematic of freeskiing’s growth.”

In this lesson, you will learn about Kai and the thrilling but dangerous sport of freeskiing. Then, we invite you to research teenage athletes in professional sports or your own community.

How much of a daredevil are you? How comfortable are you in taking physical risks when you do sports? Are you always trying to go faster or higher, or are you happier with an easier and safer experience?

Before reading the featured article, watch the five-minute video below of the then 11-year-old freeskier Kai Jones. Then, respond to these prompts:

  • What do you notice? What did you learn about Kai or the sport of freeskiing?

  • What do you wonder? What questions do you have about the now 14-year-old daredevil or the skill, the thrills and the dangers of the sport?

  • Does the video make you want to try freeskiing — or does it scare and intimidate you? (Don’t worry if it does, it terrifies this Learning Network writer!)

Read the article, then answer the following questions:

1. The article begins by recounting Kai Jones’s daredevil leaps off a menacing, craggy, 35-foot mountain cliff in Wyoming backcountry when he was only 11 years old. How does the jump illustrate the skills, thrills and challenges of freeskiing? What does it reveal about Kai — his personality, his mental and physical prowess?

2. What details about Kai’s life and personal history do you find most significant or fascinating? Why, in the words of his mother, Shelly, is he “never afraid to catch air”?

3. How have Kai’s parents supported him in his passion for freeskiing? How do they respond to the perennial question, “Isn’t such out-of-bounds skiing, with soaring jumps off mammoth cliffs, just a bit dangerous?”

4. How has the sport of freeskiing grown and changed over the years? How has technology like the internet affected the popularity and profitability of the sport?

5. What are Kai’s goals for his future? How similar or different are they from your own? Do you think he will reach his?

6. Choose one video or photo featured in the article: What drew you to it? What story does it tell about Kai or freeskiing?

7. What is your reaction to the article? Are you inspired by the stories of teenagers? What was most memorable, surprising or inspiring? What life lessons can we learn from Kai’s fearlessness and accomplishments? What questions still remain for you?

Option 1: Share your experiences and opinions.

Choose one or more of the following writing prompts:

  • Are you an extreme sports fan? If so, do you have a favorite? Freeskiing? Free-climbing? Snowboarding? A.T.V. racing? BASE jumping? BMX? Are you more attracted to extreme sports — those that have a high level of inherent danger — or traditional sports? Why?

  • How much of a daredevil are you? What kinds of physical risks are you willing to take? What’s the bravest or most dangerous thing you’ve done? How did your parents react to your risk — or did you keep your stunt to yourself?

  • To confront his fears, Kai said of his jump off a mountain: “You close your eyes and envision the approach you’ve planned. You open your eyes and hope for the best, but you know it’s going to work out because you’ve put in the time to study it.” Does that advice resonate with you? Have you ever overcome a great challenge (physical or otherwise) through studying, planning and envisioning?

  • If you were Kai’s parents, would you let him continue with his daredevil leaps and vaults? Would you encourage your own children to engage in an extreme sport like freeskiing? Where would you draw the line on what’s too risky and dangerous? Should parents or their children decide what risks they are willing to take?

Option 2: Learn more about other teenage athletes.

Want to find out about other teenage sports stars?

You might start by reading some recent Times profiles of young athletes like the tennis player Coco Gauff, 16, who gained prominence with an upset win over Venus Williams in the opening round at Wimbledon in 2019 and defeating the defending champ Naomi Osaka in the 2020 Australian Open; the skater Gui Khury, 12, who last year was the first person to complete a 1080-degree turn on a vertical ramp; or the track and field runner Athing Mu, 18, whose dreams of an Olympic medal last summer were interrupted by the pandemic.

Or, you could explore the lives of past teen prodigies such as, Simone Biles, who at the age of 16 won her first of five world all-around title in gymnastics and at 19 won five Olympic medals; Chloe Kim, who became the youngest female snowboarder to win an Olympic gold medal at age 17; Martina Hingis who at 16 became the No. 1 ranked tennis player in the world; or, of course, the “Chosen One,” LeBron James, who went straight to the N.B.A. from high school, eventually becoming the face of the league and winning four world championships.

Here are a few resources from beyond the Times that may be helpful:

10 Young Athletes to Watch in 2020 (CNN)
The 20 Greatest Teenagers in Sports History (Complex)
The 25 Greatest Teen Phenoms In All Sports (Yardbarker.com)

What drew you to this athlete? What was most fascinating or surprising about their life and career? How do their story and achievements compare to those of Kai Jones’s? What do these stories tell us about what young people can accomplish — on and off the court? What do they reveal about the hard work, planning and preparation needed to succeed? How do they inspire you?

Option 3: Profile a young athlete in your school or community.

Using text, photos and/or video, tell the story of a young athlete in your community. While your chosen athlete doesn’t need to be as accomplished as Kai Jones or participate in similarly daring physical activities, you should consider what makes him or her stand out. Zoom in on the moments of skill and artistry, emotion and triumph — big or small. To round out your portrait, you may want to include the thoughts and perspectives of the person’s friends, parents, coaches and fans.

Brainstorm a list of questions you could ask to learn about the person’s experiences as an athlete. You might ask: Why did you choose this sport? What is most rewarding about it? What is most challenging? How have parents or coaches supported you? What is your biggest accomplishment? What life lessons have you learned about yourself or the world? What are your athletic goals?

Then, create something to showcase what you learned, whether a short video, an article for your school paper, a podcast or a photo essay.

If you are working on this assignment as part of a class project, you may want to display your work with your classmates’ and publish the profiles in the school newspaper or on the school website.

About Lesson of the Day

• Find all our Lessons of the Day in this column.
• Teachers, watch our on-demand webinar to learn how to use this feature in your classroom.

Overlooking

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onlinefreecourse
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Overlooking

Students in U.S. high schools can get free digital access to The New York Times until Sept. 1, 2021.

What message do you think this image is trying to convey? How does it relate to or comment on society or current events? Can you relate to it personally? What is your opinion of its message?

Tell us in the comments, then read the related Opinion Essay to learn more.

About Picture Prompts

• Find all our Picture Prompts in this column.
• Have an idea for a Picture Prompt? Tell us about it.
• Teachers, discover more ways to teach with our Picture Prompts and learn how to use our free daily writing prompts for remote learning.

Students 13 and older in the United States and the United Kingdom, and 16 and older elsewhere, are invited to comment. All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public.

How Much Do You Know About South Africa?

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How Much Do You Know About South Africa?

Can you find South Africa on a map? What else do you know about this African nation with about 59 million people?

What’s Going On in This Picture? | Jan. 4, 2021

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What’s Going On in This Picture? | Jan. 4, 2021

Students in U.S. high schools can get free digital access to The New York Times until Sept. 1, 2021.

1. After looking closely at the image above (or at the full-size image), think about these three questions:

2. Next, join the conversation by clicking on the comment button and posting in the box that opens on the right. (Students 13 and older are invited to comment, although teachers of younger students are welcome to post what their students have to say.)

3. After you have posted, try reading back to see what others have said, then respond to someone else by posting another comment. Use the “Reply” button or the @ symbol to address that student directly.

Each Monday, our collaborator, Visual Thinking Strategies, will facilitate a discussion from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Eastern time by paraphrasing comments and linking to responses to help students’ understanding go deeper. You might use their responses as models for your own.

4. On Thursday afternoons, we will reveal at the bottom of this post more information about the photo. How does reading the caption and learning its back story help you see the image differently?

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