During this assignment, we created an online game and an interactive card using the coding program Scratch. Coding fosters creativity and is a great way to incorporate STEM into the classroom. Scratch helps you code anything you want and offers tutorials on how to get started using the different blocks. For the first part of the assignment, I coded a pong game with instructions. This assignment took me some time and I encountered many challenges. For example, I forgot to separate my different movement blocks and so everything was trying to run at once and it froze. These challenges taught me perserverance and the importance of double checking everything. After playing the game, you can also click inside and see the codes used. Scratch promotes collaboration as well because you can add or change the coding of someone else's project that is public on Scratch.com. Examples of the codes I used include playing a sound when the paddle and ball come in contact, moving to a certain position at the start of the game, and stopping the game when the ball hits a certain area. We also added extensions to our project. For mine, I included a game score and what level the player is on. These additions increase the enjoyment and competitiveness of the game.
Scratch
"Talk is cheap, show me the code."
Click on the image above to play my pong game!
Click on the image above to view my greeting card!
A second apart of the assignment was to design a greeting card using Scratch. We could choose what the card would be for and I chose Valentine's Day. We had to include at least four sprites and sound that all moved and fit together appropriately. I chose to use 5 sprites and added a color changing feature to make the card more pleasing to the eye. I chose to add a fun love song to make the card more realistic of one you would buy at the store. When selecting the music, I found the clip off of a cite that was free for anyone to use and abided fair use by not going over the required amount of time. Some of the codes I used in my project include when to start and stop the music, what location the penguins will move to, and how long the text will appear for. Timing was key during this part of the project. I played around with many of the coding blocks and used tutorials to determine the most effective way to time out all of the movements. I also used a repeat code to wrap around the movement of the two hearts during the duration of the card. Coding this card showed me applicable ways to use coding in the classroom that would engage my students in learning. It allowed me to be original and unique.