Learn how to think in components and build any React project you can dream of by taking action instead of just following along with tutorials.
React is so confusing it feels like magic. I never know why things are happening.
Hey! I'm Kyle Cook. You may know me as Web Dev Simplified, but not too long ago I was the person that thought React was confusing. It didn't matter how many times I read the docs, watched tutorials, or tried to build a project, I just couldn't get it. I was stuck and didn't know what to do.
Even the simpler concepts of React, such as event handlers and state management, were confusing me, and don't even get me started on how I felt about more complex things like useEffect and testing. I just felt like no matter what I did things didn't work like I expected them to.
Even with all these issues, though, I was able to eventually get to the point where I could struggle through and very slowly build projects using React, which sounds great, but what I didn't realize at the time was my code was terrible. The problem was I never truly learned to think and program the React way. I was still trying to apply my JavaScript programming knowledge to React which was holding me back.
It took me a couple years to realize my mistakes and then another year to truly learn the React way of thinking, but in that process I stumbled upon the perfect learning technique that allowed me to program in React with such ease that I felt confident building any project. I want to share this knowledge with you so you can save yourself years of frustration and confusion and get straight to the fun part of React, building awesome projects.
Kyle's videos made a remarkable impact on me. Throughout all of the frustrating moments teaching myself React (and there were a lot), I knew I could consistently count on Kyle's videos & teaching style. Kyle's instructions are concise, but thorough. Not to mention Kyle knows what he is talking about, and uses real world examples in his instructions.
In order to rewire your brain to think like a React developer you need to first take a journey into the world of baking. I know this sounds crazy, but I promise this analogy will change how you look at React code.
Imagine you want to make a sandwich. What would you do? You probably would make a list of all the ingredients you need and then create step by step instructions (like a recipe) on how to make the sandwich. It would look something like this.
This is your default way of thinking about solving problems and that expands to how you program as well. You think of your code as a list of instructions that when performed from start to finish result in the desired outcome. This is how many programming languages work and is one of the hardest skills to learn when programming, but you need to forget all of that because that is not how React works.
Once I realized this, I was able to write React code faster and with less bugs than I ever had before
If you go back to the sandwich example, there is actually a second way you can create this sandwich. Instead of listing out each instruction one by one, you can instead go to a sandwich shop and order a sandwich. The massive list of instructions can essentially be reduced to a single statement.
Make me a ham sandwich with lettuce, tomato, and honey mustard.
This way of doing things is completely different since you focus on what you want instead of how to get it, and this is how React expects you to write your code. Instead of focusing on how to get to a desired outcome, React expects you to state what your desired outcome is and it will figure out how to get there.
This may sound like a small difference, but it changes everything about how you write your code. Once I realized this, I was able to write React code faster and with less bugs than I ever had before. Not only that but programming in React became fun again.
Kyle's React Simplified course delivers something that's true to its name, a great React course built to ease you in and learn React from the basics to even more advanced concepts. Having not used React for a while, I found it to be clear, straight to the point, and great at explaining topics new and old.
It may seem like a small switch in thinking to go from a how to a what based mindset, but it is actually a massive shift in how you think about your code. This is why most courses fail. They teach you how to program in React, but they don't teach you how to think in React. The reason for this is because most courses follow one of three patterns:
These courses dump a bunch of information onto you about React and essentially just read you the documentation word for word. This obviously doesn't work because these courses don't include enough information about why and how the code works.
The purpose of a course is to go beyond the documentation by explaining why everything works and how to connect the pieces together in an easy to follow way. The biggest problem with these courses is they give no thought to the actual process of learning and what order to present topics in. This is honestly one of the most important parts of a course because it doesn't matter how good the content is, if it is presented in the wrong order it is useless.
By far the most popular (and arguably least effective) type of course is the glorified code-along. These courses seem really appealing at first since by the end of the course you will usually have some massive project like a Netflix or Facebook clone that you can show off, but the problem is these courses don't actually teach you anything.
This style of teaching is equivalent to you wanting soup and someone just giving you a bowl of soup. You have no idea how that soup was made, what goes into it, or how to make it yourself. You can maybe try poking around the soup to figure out what is all in it, but many of the ingredients are so deeply mixed together it is impossible to tell what is what.
Working in React feels so overwhelming and I have no idea where to start
This is the exact same problem with these courses. The entire course is spent watching someone make a huge project, but there is not nearly enough explanation on what things do, how they work, and why you would do one thing over another. In the end you have an awesome project, but no idea how to build it, and you will still get stuck even trying to build small projects.
Code-alongs should be used sparingly and only as a way to connect and explain how different concepts work together.
Exercises are by far the best way to structure a course since doing is the best way to learn, but most courses do this wrong. The problem with courses that use exercises poorly is they give you a bunch of exercises to do, but they don't give you any guidance on how to do them.
This is essentially the same as going to culinary school to become a chef and on the very first day of school your teacher asks you to create a complex shrimp risotto. You barely know how to cook, let alone how to cook a complex meal, so obviously this task feels overwhelming and you have no idea where to start.
This is probably a feeling you are familiar with if you have ever tried to program in React before since working in React feels so overwhelming and you have no idea where to start. This is only compounded when courses give you complex exercises to solve on your own with no guidance.
React Simplified is an excellent choice for those who want to learn React quickly and thoroughly. Kyle does a great job of simplifying and explaining complex React topics, making them easier to understand and apply in real-world scenarios.
In order to truly learn React you need a combination of all 3 of these approaches tweaked in a way that make learning React easy and fun. That is the entire idea behind this course.
Every topic you learn in this course is organized in a logical way that makes each new topic build on the previous one. This way you are always learning something new, but it is never overwhelming.
On top of that, each grouping of topics is broken down into 3 distinct parts. The first part is all about explaining how something works, what it does, and why you would want to use it. The idea behind this part is to get a strong understanding of one single topic.
The second part is all about showing you how this topic works on its own and combined with other topics you have learned. This is to help you get familiar with when and how to use this topic in your own projects.
Finally, the third part is all about you practicing what you have learned. This part uses small exercises to help you solidify your understanding of the topic. These exercises are usually only a couple minutes long to really ensure you understand how the topic works before jumping into something more complex.
This is then followed up by a small/medium sized project that implements that topic in a real world scenario. This is to ensure you not only know how something works on its own, but also how to use it in a full project. Each of these exercises is also followed up with an example of me completing the exercise and explaining my thought process the entire way through, so if you ever get stuck you can see exactly what I would do.
The most important part of this third section, though, is that it includes instructions on how to do the exercise. This is the key to making this course so effective. By giving you instructions on how to do each exercise you are able to focus on learning how to think like a React developer without being overwhelmed with infinite possibilities. As the course progresses these instructions get less and less detailed until eventually you are able to build any project you want without additional help.
This example demonstrates how this works. These are the instructions for the very first project of the course and as you can see they are broken out in a very easy to follow step by step guide. By the end of the course, though, the instructions will look more like this example where there are little to no additional hints on what to do.
I used this course for my foundation in building with React and after a few months of practice I have managed to use all my knowledge to build a professional fully working e-commerce site built using the knowledge I gained from this course.
Most courses focus on trying to cram in as much React content as possible in hopes that you will buy the course because it looks big and impressive, but that is not how this course is built. Instead, this course focuses first and foremost on making you a React developer by including a massive number of exercises and projects that will have you building complex React applications that you actually understand.
A complete video course with just under 11 hours of content spread across 79 videos and 10 modules.
This may be called a Beginner Course, but it doesn't just stop after covering the basics. This course covers everything you need to know to be a good React developer, and will ensure that you know how to think like a React developer.
I know this sounds crazy, but this course will take you from knowing nothing about React to being able to build complex React applications on your own. Even if you already have some React knowledge, the content in this course will expand upon your current skills and push you to new levels of understanding.
While 11 hours may not seem like a lot if you are used to long Udemy courses, I can assure you this course is packed with information. Each minute is as condensed as possible with knowledge, projects, and exercises which means not a single second of your time with this course is wasted. I spent months crafting this course to shave every unnecessary second off of so none of your time with this course will be wasted.
Also, if you plan to get through this course in only 11 hours, good luck. With all the projects and exercises in this course it will easily take you over a month to get through everything, and that is if you work on the course every single day!
There are 16 projects and exercises in this course for you to complete with some taking days to finish. This doesn't even include the plethora of smaller exercises embedded into each video.
View Video ListOnce you become a good React developer, it is time to start diving into advanced React concepts.
This course will take you from a junior to a mid-level React developer. Currently, I am still working on recording the videos for this course, but it will be a similar size to the Beginner Course. Right now this course is planned to be 10+ hours of content spread across 65+ videos and 9 modules.
If you purchase this course now you will receive every video from the Advanced Course as soon as I have them finished. This means you will be part of the first group to have access to this content and can even help me shape the content in this section of this course based on your feedback.
This course will cover not only advanced React features, but more importantly will cover concepts like security, TypeScript, testing, and how to write clean code.
The skills in this course will set you apart from all other job applicants as most React developers never learn any of these concepts until after landing their first job. I personally didn't even know what 90% of the concepts in this course were until years after I landed my first job and was forced to learn them on the job.
I can only imagine how much easier it would have been to land my first job if I knew these skills before applying.
Kyle's React course is a great experience. His introduction to the course is well-rounded, covering not just the technical aspects of React, but also addressing important topics like mental health, mindset, and pacing. I find Kyle's teaching style clear and concise - I felt confident throughout Kyle's course and would recommend it to others.
As React grows and matures, one thing is becoming very clear. React is pushing you to use a framework more and more and by far the most popular React framework is Next.js.
If you want to really set yourself apart in the job market, you will need to know Next.js which is why the Premium Package includes a full Next.js course (alongside all the other premium content such as bonus projects). This course will take you from knowing nothing about Next.js to being able to build your own complex Next.js projects.
This course will cover every Next.js concept you need to know, such as, routing, server-side rendering, and APIs using the same exercise driven approach as the rest of this React course.
This is again something I am actively working on as Next.js is constantly evolving and I want to ensure I bring you the most up to date content possible. If you purchase the course now you will receive every video from the Next.js Course as soon as I have them finished. This means you will be part of the first group to have access to this content and can even help me shape the content in this section of this course based on your feedback.
Learning how to think in React is the only way to become a React developer and one of the best ways to do that is through projects.
React Simplified includes tons of projects of various difficulty and scale which are perfectly crafted to help you slowly build up your React skills without overwhelming you.
There are never more than a few concepts introduced at a time in between projects. This ensures you are able to fully comprehend each concept and how to connect it to other concepts.
This course also includes multiple large bonus projects that combine together all the concepts in this course. These projects are perfect for practicing your React skills and are also great additions to your resume. Best of all, these projects are crafted with specific ways you can build upon them which will help further deepen your project building skills.
I am waiting until I fully finish the Advanced Course and Next.js Course before building these bonus projects as I want them to encompass everything you learn in theses courses. I will be releasing the projects as soon as I have them finished which means you will be part of the first group to have access to this content and can even help me shape the content in this section of this course based on your feedback.
If you want to learn React quickly in the most straight-forward way, this is the course for you! Not only does Kyle use the latest tech and concepts, but he delivers the material in a way that's easy to understand and quickly grasp.
This is where React Simplified really shines.
In order to learn React you must practice a lot! That is why in React Simplified there are tons of exercises throughout nearly every video in the course.
Not a single concept is introduced without specific exercises also being introduced with it. These exercises vary drastically in scale, from simple commands to full projects, but they all serve the same purpose. Teaching you how to think like a React developer.
These exercises are what separate React Simplified from other React courses and ensures that you learn not only React, but also how to think like a React developer .
When you get stuck, sometimes the best help is simply another person. This is why I have a private Discord community specifically for the members of React Simplified.
In this community you can ask other course members as well as me any of your React questions, and since the community is active you will almost always get a quick response.
Nothing beats one-on-one communication with another person.
Kyle's content goes beyond the average in both quality and depth. With his dedication to excellence, there's no better option when it comes to learning web development.
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This is the best React course I have ever done. I am a frontend Engineer at Tumblr, been working there for 8 years, and I needed to understand more about React and this course was super helpful! It was super straightforward and easy to follow.
I have been a full stack web developer since 2015 and I love React, but it wasn't always like that. I went through a four-year Computer Engineering program and learned nothing about web development. I didn't even know what React was when I landed my first job, but once I discovered React I immediately fell in love. Through many hours of studying and practice I was eventually able to learn enough React to comfortably build any project I could think of and now my passion is sharing that knowledge with you.
Since I learned programming both on my own and in college I am able to leverage my formal education as well as my experience as a self-taught developer to create the most comprehensive and easy to understand courses available. I also run the YouTube channel Web Dev Simplified with over 1 million subscribers.