With Scratch, you can program your own interactive stories, games, and animations — and share your creations with others in the online community. Scratch helps young people learn to think creatively, reason systematically, and work collaboratively — essential skills for life in the 21st century.
Scratch is a project of the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab. It is provided free of charge. Visit the Scratch website.
Dr. N as your tour guide.
Learn:
1. The 7 parts of the Scratch system
2. How to:
A. Move blocks
B. Execute blocks
C. Put them together
D. Take them apart
E. Completely remove blocks from Script area
3. Where Loops are found & why they are used
You only learn if you explore yourself!. Just “spectating” won’t work!
Learn:
1. Use events block to start script.
2. Always initialize (position, size, direction) of Sprite (in this case the Cat)
3. Add blocks for the Forever Loop
4. Make the Cat draw using the Pen Blocks.
5. Create evolving pattern.
6. Change colors automatically.
7. Initialization (only one time) and the Forever Loop (animation)
YOU DO IT! Just spectating not allowed!
Learn:
1. How to make and use variables:
2. Initialize variables (always. put in setup area)
3. Put Clear block in setup area to clear graphics from previous run.
4. Change variable values under program control.
5. Review blocks for Setup (one time) and animation (Forever Loop)
YOU DO IT! Just spectating not allowed!
Explore decisions, collisions, exploding, sound.
1. Each sprite has it’s own script, costumes, and available sounds.
2. Note that nothing really moves. It’s like TV and Movies, a bunch of successive still frames (about 30 per second) . The forever loop goes from one to the next.
3. How to use the “If” block with a “Sensing” block for the collision.
4. How to easily duplicate parts of a script.
YOU DO IT! Just spectating not allowed!
1. Build 3 custom blocks: Setup, Move, isTouchingBalloon.
2. Build Balloon Script.
3. Build Balloon “Explode” costume.
4. Broadcast “Hit” message from Fox script.
5. Program collision in only ONE sprite.
If you have done all of this –AND — understand you are ready to build your first game!
Next go to First Course: Build The Game, from scratch (if you’ll pardon the expression!).
