This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Alabi Temitope
From Planning to Building: Strengthening My React Skills
After months of planning ambitious full-stack projects, I faced a moment of clarity. While I had worked with React before, I realized my foundation needed strengthening before tackling the complex applications I had envisioned. This led me to Scrimba's React course — a decision that transformed my development approach.
Here's my journey through 10 days of focused React learning, from basics to building a functional AI-powered recipe app.
Day 111: Back to Basics
I started my journey by revisiting React fundamentals on Scrimba. Even with prior experience, I found myself discovering fresh concepts and filling knowledge gaps. The interactive learning environment made revision engaging rather than tedious.
The day focused on:
- Core React principles
- Setting up a development environment
- Creating static pages
What surprised me most was how much I'd forgotten or never properly learned in the first place. This reinforced my decision to rebuild from the ground up.
Day 112: Completing React Fundamentals
Day two saw me completing Section 1 of the course, covering:
✅ Why React exists and its advantages
✅ Development environment setup
✅ JSX syntax and patterns
✅ Component architecture
✅ Styling approaches
I built my first static page from scratch, solidifying these concepts through practice rather than just theory. The satisfaction of seeing something tangible, even if simple, provided motivation to continue.
Day 113: Component Communication
This day brought a significant breakthrough in understanding data flow between components:
✅ Passing data into child components
✅ Properly receiving and utilizing props
✅ Component composition patterns
While I had used props before, truly understanding the patterns and best practices made everything click in a new way. The foundation for truly dynamic applications was taking shape.
Day 114: The Power of Reusability
Completing Section 2 on data-driven React felt like unlocking a superpower:
• I finally understood why component reusability is React's greatest strength
• Transformed static elements into dynamic, data-powered components
• Built entire pages from data arrays efficiently
This approach to thinking about UI as a function of data rather than hardcoded elements completely changed my mental model for building applications.
Day 115: Entering the Interactive World
Starting Section 3 introduced state management through a practical project - Chef Claude (a cooking application):
• Implemented React event listeners
• Established foundations for state management
• Planned the interactive elements
For the first time, I could see how truly interactive UIs would come to life through state management. The theoretical understanding was transforming into practical application.
Day 116: State in Action
Day 116 was all about implementation:
• Mastered useState() hooks for practical scenarios
• Built proper state initialization patterns
• Created dynamic state updates based on user interaction
Chef Claude's first interactive features were working! Seeing the application respond to user actions reinforced how powerful React's state management can be when properly implemented.
Day 117: Forms Mastery
Forms had always been a pain point in my React development, but Day 117 changed that:
✅ Implemented React 19's form handling patterns
✅ Built controlled components that maintained synchronization
✅ Created proper validation patterns
Forms finally made intuitive sense rather than feeling like fighting against the framework.
Day 118: Conditional Rendering
Transforming Chef Claude's UI with efficient conditional rendering:
• Replaced bulky if-else blocks with ternary operators
• Created clean, readable conditional rendering patterns
• Built smarter, more responsive interfaces
This seemingly small optimization made the code significantly more readable and maintainable.
Day 119: Project Complete - Gemini Chef!
The excitement of completing a functional project - Chef Claude evolved into Gemini Chef:
🔹 Integrated Gemini API for AI-powered recipes
🔹 Applied all concepts learned throughout the course:
- Event handling
- State management
- Conditional rendering
- Form processing
Seeing all these concepts work together in a cohesive application was incredibly satisfying.
Day 120: Production Refinement
The final day focused on transforming Gemini Chef from a learning project to a production-ready application:
✅ Added loading states to improve user experience
✅ Implemented auto-scroll to recipes after loading
✅ Built robust input validation
✅ Created responsive design for all devices
✅ Refactored code for maintainability
These refinements transformed a functional prototype into something I'm proud to share publicly. The live application is now available at https://gemini-chef.vercel.app.
What I've Learned Beyond React
This journey taught me more than just React concepts. I learned:
The value of rebuilding foundations - Even with prior experience, revisiting basics revealed critical gaps in my knowledge.
Learning in public - Documenting my journey helped solidify concepts and created accountability.
Building practical projects - Theory only becomes useful when applied to solving real problems.
Perseverance matters - Despite challenging months personally, consistent learning (even in small chunks) produced meaningful progress.
Next Steps: Full Stack Expansion
With a strengthened React foundation, I'm now better prepared to tackle the full-stack projects I originally planned. Next on my learning path:
- TypeScript integration with React
- Backend development with Node.js
- Database design and implementation
- Authentication systems
- Deployment pipelines
The journey to becoming a complete full-stack developer continues, but this React foundation will serve as the cornerstone for everything I build moving forward.
Final Thoughts
If you're considering a similar learning journey, I highly recommend Scrimba's interactive approach. The combination of video instruction and live coding environments accelerated my understanding far beyond what documentation alone could provide.
Despite life's inevitable challenges, finding even small pockets of time to learn consistently has compounded into significant skill development. The key was persistence rather than perfection.
I look forward to sharing more of my development journey as I expand into full-stack development. The Gemini Chef project represents just the beginning of what's possible with these strengthened React skills.
Follow my continued learning journey:
Twitter: https://x.com/Toptech5419
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/toptech5419/
medium: https://medium.com/@alabitemitope51
GitHub: https://github.com/toptech5419
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Alabi Temitope
Alabi Temitope | Sciencx (2025-05-22T04:40:57+00:00) My 10-Day React Journey: Rebuilding Foundations on Scrimba. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/05/22/my-10-day-react-journey-rebuilding-foundations-on-scrimba/
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