Unit Story

In this module, we will learn the basics of Scratch programming and how to create simple animations. Our first project will be a “Good Morning” animation, where we will use the Scratch interface and programming blocks to create an animated scene. In this unit, we will begin by introducing the Scratch interface and its various menus and tools. We will then explore the concept of programming blocks, and how they can be used to create animations and other interactive projects. Finally, we will put our new skills to the test by creating our own “Good Morning” animation project. Throughout this unit, we will focus on creativity, problem-solving, and computational thinking. By the end of the unit, you will have a strong foundation in Scratch programming and be able to create your own simple animations.

Good morning project

Lesson Presentation

Video script

Join scratch

To join Scratch, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Scratch website at scratch.mit.edu
2. Click on the “Join Scratch” button at the top-right corner of the page.
3. Enter a username that you would like to use on Scratch. It’s a good idea to pick a username that is easy for you to remember, and that doesn’t include any personal information.
4. Choose a password and enter it twice to confirm it. then go on with what the screen show.
5. Click the “Create your account” button. you will be taken to your new Scratch account, where you can start creating and sharing your projects!

Sequential computer programming

Sequential computer programming is a way of writing instructions for a computer to follow, one after the other in a specific order, to complete a task. It’s like following a recipe to make a cake where each step must be completed before moving on to the next one. In the same way, a computer program is a set of instructions that the computer follows to do a specific task. Each instruction must be executed in a specific order to get the desired result. Here’s an example of sequential computer programming in action: Say good morning then, ask for a user name then, user input their name then, say hello with user name

Coordinates

Coordinates on a computer screen are like a map. Just like how a map tells you where things are in the world, coordinates tell you where things are on the computer screen. The computer screen is like a big piece of paper with lines going up and down and left and right. Imagine you draw a dot on this paper, and you want to tell someone else where the dot is. You can do this by giving two numbers: the first number tells them how far to go left or right, and the second number tells them how far to go up or down. For example, if you drew a dot and you want to tell someone else where it is, you might say “go 3 steps to the right, and then 2 steps up”. They will follow your instructions and find the dot where you drew it. That’s how coordinates work on a computer screen! You can use them to tell the computer where things are on the screen, or to find things on the screen yourself. Today, we’re going to create a cool project called ‘Good Morning’! It’s going to be a cartoon of a student getting off the bus and walking into their school in the morning.

To get started with Scratch

1. To get started with Scratch, first, go to scratch.mit.edu.
2. Then, sign in with your username and password. Once you’re signed in,
3. click on the ‘Create’ button to start creating your own project.

Scratch’s screen components

Okay, let’s take a look at the Scratch programming screen. It has three parts. The first part is called the ‘tabs area,’ and it has three tabs called ‘code,’ ‘costume,’ and ‘sound.’ We will mostly use the ‘code’ tab. The second part is called the ‘coding area.’ This is where we will write our code. The last part is called the ‘stage and properties’ area. This is where we can see what we’re making and change some things about it. To create a new project, go to https://scratch.mit.edu/, sign in then click Create. To delete the cat sprite, click on the sprite you want to delete, then click on the ‘bin’ icon in the bottom right corner of the sprite thumbnail.

Setting game environment

Next, let’s add all the things we need on the screen!

1. First, we need to choose a backdrop. To do this, click on the ‘picture icon’ in the bottom right of the screen. Then find one called ‘school.’
2. After that, we need to get two sprites, which are the characters or images we put on the screen. Click on the ‘cat face icon’ on the bottom left to do this.
3. Select ‘Avery walking’ and use the direction on the properties bar to make it face the right way.
4. Then, go back to the sprites and get the ‘bus.’ Make it bigger by changing the size in the properties bar to 150.

Great! Now we can make our sprites move!

1. Let’s start by making Avery walk.Click on Avery sprite and you’ll see his shadow in the coding area. We want Avery to walk only when we click on him, so we need to use an event block. Go to ‘events’ in the code blocks and select ‘when this sprite clicked.’ Drag it to the code area.
2. Then go to ‘motion’ and select ‘move 10 steps’ to make Avery move forward. Snap it onto the previous block. Next, go to ‘looks’ and select ‘next costume’ which will show another image of Avery and make it look like he is walking.

The color of the code blocks in Scratch corresponds to the category of code they belong to, and these categories are displayed on the left-hand side of the screen. Now let’s make the bus move like someone is driving it!

1. Click on the bus sprite and you’ll see its shadow in the coding area. We want the bus to start moving when we play the project, so go to ‘events’ and select ‘when green flag clicked’.
2. To set the starting point for the bus, go to ‘motion’ and select ‘move to x y’. Set x to -288 and y to -89.
3. Now let’s make the bus sound like it’s starting up. Go to ‘sound’ and select ‘start sound vroom’.
4. Finally, let’s make the bus move across the screen. Go to ‘motion’ and select ‘glide to x y’. Glide will make the sprite slide to the coordinates that we set. Set x to 288 and y to -89.

Now we’re ready to see our animation! Click on the green flag to start the project, then click on Avery to make him start walking. You should see the bus start moving across the screen, and Avery walking towards the school. Great job! you could try changing the number of steps Avery takes when he walks, or adjust the time it takes for the bus to move across the screen. You can also change the x and y coordinates of the sprites to make them start in different positions on the stage. Just remember to test your changes by clicking on the green flag and playing your project. See you next lesson, bye!!