I have been working as a React Native developer since 2018 and I would like to share how I started my React Native journey. This is not a step-by-step guide to setting up the development environment; it covers the basic steps to follow to become a React Native developer. If you are a beginner and familiar with any programming language, you will be able to follow along.
Step 1: Sharpen your basic skills
Before you build any application, learn the topics below so you can write a clean code base that is easy to read and performs well: best practices for coding standards, algorithms and data structures, and the concepts of object-oriented programming.
Step 2: Design static web pages (HTML, CSS)
You may wonder why a mobile developer needs web development. React Native code includes something very similar to create user interfaces. If you know how to use HTML and CSS to make attractive UIs, learning React Native will be a piece of cake. Before starting React Native I was a web developer, and it took me just a few days to understand it.
Step 3: Learn JavaScript and ES6/ES7/ES8
JavaScript is used to develop mobile applications in React Native, so a strong understanding of it is essential. Learning the newer ECMAScript syntaxes will help you perform complex tasks easily.
Step 4: Basics of NodeJS and npm
React Native uses NodeJS to compile your JavaScript, and npm to install third-party libraries, so sound knowledge of both is compulsory.