Luca, age 16
Trinity School, Croydon
@CodeLuca
1. What was the name of the event you have attended?
#AcornHack as mentor, #AcornAccelerator2016, #AcornHackWOW as mentor.
2. Why did you choose to come to an Acorn Aspirations hackathon?
Thought I could learn some new skills I didn’t have before, meet some new people and listen to the awesome speakers that were scheduled.
3. Have you done coding or any form of technology prior to coming to the hack?
Yes, lots. I’ve been a developer in some shape or form for nearly 5 years! I’ve been developing lots of small projects with friends, and been going to lots of hackathons such as the ones Acorn Aspirations run.
4. What were the top three skills (not necessarily coding) that you learnt as a result of the hackathon?
UI Design process during a sprint.
Presentation Skills
Pivoting an idea or concept.
5. How have you used the skills since your participation?
I have continued work on the project started during the event, and continued to apply what I have learned about the UI design process in different areas of the project. Without these skills I would have struggled getting to the place I am today.
6. What would you say were the highlights or funniest moments with Acorn Aspirations?
Being able to pick the brains of industry leading experts such as the creator of Amazon Echo, who created something that was never done before. I was able to get help from some of these people on my own project, being able applying concepts from developers and designers from the top of their field to my own project was amazing.
7. What kind of projects have you been developing and what was your inspiration behind them?
I have been creating the project: Surge, a meetup event application based on the idea of spontaneity with some other developers and designers. The inspiration came from all of us when we realised there were so many opportunities throughout people’s days where instead of scrolling through junk on Facebook, they could get out, meet up and do something productive. We decided to solve this problem and have been striving to create a product that solves this ever since the end of the event.
8. How do you hope to use the tech and entrepreneurship skills you have learnt at Acorn Aspirations in the future?
I have been developing for nearly 5 years and hope to apply everything I have learned from the events I’ve attended when I leave school at the end of this year and start a web development apprenticeship!