- $160 (5 Sessions)
Learning Hours
Projects Created
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The annual Congressional App Challenge, hosted by the members of the U.S. House of Representatives, encourages middle school and high school students to create and submit original apps that solve a district-specific problem. Winners are selected at the Congressional District level and have the opportunity to join a celebration event in Washington DC and have their apps displayed in the US Capitol Building! The 2026 competition deadline will likely be at the end of October. Stay turned for the official announcement. (check here to see if your district participates).
The Congressional App Challenge is a great way for middle and high school students to apply their coding knowledge to address real-world problems. Our students in joining the Challenge for multiple years. Check out two groups of the winners Dylan Pham and Henry Pham from Washington, as well as Devansh Garg from Pennsylvania.
Students may use any programming platform to build their apps. Choose a platform based on your interest, skill level, and what you would like to build. A winning app needs to exhibit great artistic design, usability, and technical depth. We recommend the following platforms. Start learning so you are ready to build your apps.
Middle School Students:
Thunkable: For developing mobile applications (learn mobile app development)
WIX: For creating visually appealing websites (learn WIX for kids)
High School & Advanced Middle School Students:
Python: A flexible language suitable for a wide range of applications (learn Python)
AI Creators: To integrate artificial intelligence features into your app (learn advanced AI)
Vibe Coding: Develop advanced projects by leveraging AI (learn Vibe coding for kids)
Javascript: For building web pages (learn web development for kids)
Congressional App Challenge Tutoring Classes
Eager to join but don’t know what project to build and how to complete it end to end? To help more students participate, we run mentoring classes for Thunkable, Python, and Javascript. If you would like to use other platforms, just email us at support@createandlearn.us, to set up mentoring classes for what you choose.
Each mentoring class will meet for 5 sessions. We guide students through the entire process of identifying real world problems, designing their overall app, planning out the steps, and building the app step by step. Our teacher will also help students resolve any coding challenges they might run into during the development process. We estimate students will need to spend 2-3 hours a week to build the app outside of the class to complete a medium level difficulty project in 5 weeks. Check out projects by 2025 winners for reference.
Note - Congressional App Challenge opens around summer each year and ends October / November. So we only run mentoring classes June through October.
This class is designed for students who would like to build their mobile app with Thunkable for the Congressional App Challenge. Similar to other mentoring sessions, we identify real world programs, design the app, and help students resolve any coding challenges they might run into during the development process. You need to have completed our Mobile Coding for Apps and Games class to join.
This class is designed for students who would like to build their app with HTML/CSS/Javascript for the Congressional App Challenge. We will start from identifying real world problems, designing the app, to building it step by step. Our teacher will also help students resolve any coding challenges they might run into during the development process. You need to have completed our Build Your Web or learned equivalent materials to join. We also recommend completing the Advanced Python class. Even though it focuses on Python, the learning there can be applied to building website just as effectively.
This class is designed for students who would like to build their app primarily with Python for the Congressional App Challenge. The structure of the class is similar to others. Our teacher will work with students from ideation to planning, to resolving problems that come up along the way. You need to have completed the Python for AI class or learned equivalent materials to join. We also highly recommend completing the Advanced Python class, which will allow you to build a lot more sophisticated projects with the time available.
We are excited to support students who who would like to build their app on Roblox for the Congressional App Challenge. With the Roblox popularity, an Roblox app will likely get a lot of interest from other kids who are excited about your cause. We will start from identifying a community topics you care about, designing the app, to building it step by step. Our teacher will also help students resolve any coding challenges they might run into during the development process. You need to have completed Beginner Roblox Coding or Roblox Coding with Lua to join.
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Any students in middle and high school can participate. Your congressional district must also be part of the initiative. You can check the list to see if your district is participating. If not, we might be able to help connect you with students in participating districts to form a team.
Any middle and high school students can join the Congressional App Challenges. You can also join every year and it is free to join. Start early to get used to the process. As students build their coding skills, they can build increasingly advanced apps.
The 2025 Congressional App Challenge is open for registration now and the deadline for submission is October 30th, 2025. Students may register as individuals or as teams of up to four. Students can register in either the district they reside in or the one they attend school in.
For students new to the Congressional App Challenge, working with an experienced instructor can be invaluable. A mentor can help you brainstorm topics, define key features, and follow a clear, stage-by-stage timeline to bring your app to life. Inevitably, you’ll run into challenges along the way, and a mentor can guide you through them to keep you moving forward. For students already familiar with the Congressional App Challenge process, private tutoring sessions can provide targeted technical assistance.
The best way to learn how to create a winning app for the Congressional App Challenge is to hear from past winners. Over the past several years, we’ve hosted many of them, and here are some key highlights and quick tips they’ve shared:
Check out these videos featuring past winners for more tips:
Great question! We highly recommend students start with learning foundational skills. But they can do Congressional App Challenge any time to experience it and test out their ideas. Over time, they can build more advanced apps and have a high chance of winning.
No, you can submit your app directly on the Congressional App Challenge website. However, our classes are designed to help students build high-quality projects and guide them through the iterative process of solving real-world problems and app development. Classes can also assist with answering technical questions that arise.
