1 - Start: What We're Building ~4 mins
What happens if you give a computer clear steps, in order, and press run?
Today you start coding in Scratch. In a couple of minutes you will see the arc of this course: games, a website, micro:bit, Python, and one CBA at the end. Then you will build your first short program step by step at your device: predict what it might do, add the blocks, run it, and fix anything that does not work. You will also save your project the class way and open it again to check it is really there.
First lesson: no recap. Open with the curiosity question on screen, then give the two-minute course map (games, website, micro:bit, Python, single CBA). Optional predict: before anyone runs code later, ask what they think a sprite will do if it is told to move and turn. Keep this step short so time goes on the build. Devices on Scratch; model pair work as your classroom norm in your instructions, not on the student slide.
2 - What Is Scratch? ~3 mins
Scratch is a coding website that we can use to create our own games, animations and projects.
Watch this short minute video to get a quick introduction to it.
Play the short Scratch intro video for the class or let students watch on their devices. Check headphones or volume quickly. One question after: what kinds of things can you make in Scratch? Do not linger.
3 - Open the Scratch Website ~3 mins
Now let's take a look at the Scratch website!
Open the Scratch website by clicking on the link below. Once it opens up click on the Create link at the top of the page. This will open up the project editor. Once you've done that come back to this tab and move onto the next step.
Students open scratch.mit.edu and click Create. Circulate for blocked sites, pop-up issues, or students stuck on the home page. Confirm every screen shows the project editor before you move on. Remind them which tab is the lesson and which is Scratch.
4 - Remove the Default Sprite ~3 mins
Every new Scratch project starts with a default sprite, which is a cat. For our project, we want to start with a blank slate, so we will remove this cat sprite.
To do this, look below the stage area where you see a small thumbnail of the cat sprite. In the corner of this thumbnail, there's a small 'x'. Click on this 'x' to remove the cat sprite from your project.
Don't worry about losing the cat sprite. If you ever want it back, you can always find it in the sprite library!
Model clicking the small x on the cat thumbnail under the stage. Common bug: students click the sprite and try to delete from a menu instead. Reassure them the cat can be added again from the library. Everyone should see an empty sprite list before the next step.
5 - Add a Sprite to Your Project ~2 mins
Scratch comes with a sprite library that's packed full of different characters.
Open up the sprite library and add the Bat sprite to your project.
You'll see that it gets added into the stage area and we can now give it some code!
Model opening the sprite library and choosing Bat. Watch for students who add several sprites by accident; show how to delete extras with the x. Key check: Bat is visible on the stage and selected so code will attach to it.
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Scratch is developed by the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab. It is available for free at https://scratch.mit.edu