A fourth-grader from Frisco’s Jim Spradley Elementary is a finalist in a coding competition after creating a sharing app.
Eleven-year-old Saliha Abbas was bored during the pandemic, so her mother signed her up for coding classes at BYJU’s FutureSchool.
Abbas took the class to help solve the problem of toy waste. She created and designed the sharing app and entered it into a national competition.
“One of the biggest problems on the Earth is that people don’t recycle, reduce, or reuse things. Some kids have a lot of toys, and others have less toys, so we can share them and reduce the amount of toy waste,” said Abbas.
“Toy Share” allows kids to swap or share their toys with others.
App development programs are a unique way for children to learn new skills, explore their creative side, and practice problem-solving. Last year, Financialexpress.com even ranked the top five apps created by children, highlighting the increased interest in this form of hands-on education.
One of the apps was “Ambulance Whizz,” created by 8-year-old Brinda Darshan Jain, which helps ambulance drivers navigate to get to emergencies more quickly. The app works in tandem with ambulance drivers and police.
The driver selects the type of emergency, for example, pregnancy, heart problems, injury, etc. Once the driver enters their destination into the app, it is received by the Traffic Control Management Center.
The ambulance is then directed to the best route to get through quickly and effectively in traffic.
Another app, Parent.ely, is designed to act as a virtual parent, assisting children whose parents are not available due to work. The AI system allows the virtual parent to be customized, and in the absence of the parent, the virtual parent can answer questions when the children ask for advice.
If the virtual parent cannot answer the child’s question, they are then redirected to a free counseling website where the child can book a free online session with a professional.
“The idea behind my app comes mainly from my cousin, as his father is in the Indian Army and is often posted far away from him for several months. Since his mother is also busy with work and household chores, he feels extremely lonely at times and has nobody left to talk to,” Arush Nath, developer of the app, told Financial Express.
“Many children, even with both parents, don’t feel comfortable talking to their parents about issues such as bullying, depression, or peer pressure,” Nath explained. “I believe that my app has the potential to help children tackle such issues.”
Other apps created by children on the list included Jishnu Light Bag, which monitors the weight of a student’s book bag. Angel Investor Kids is another; it matches children with angel investors interested in funding their ideas.
As for Frisco’s Abbas, she hopes to continue to create and become a digital artist one day.