Everyone starts with pong... Just do that. Trust me, there's really no magic going on behind the scenes here. Rarely are there bits of arcane knowledge to be gained by looking at others' code for simple stuff. You'll learn a lot more by doing yourself than you will by watching someone else do.

Not to speak to the contrary of most assuredly a more experienced programmer, but for beginners really looking to tackle their first project (I do speak from experience here) it can sometimes be overwhelming "putting the pieces together." I've found that it can help to look at the way other people have structured their programs, or ways in which in they manage their data, etc. However, one would be well advised to look for example code that is [color=#800000]not more complicated than you are ready to digest. Also, you're looking to glean ideas here, not foundations; you will learn very little if you "core" a program and decorate it to suit.