Scratch Layout

These dark blue code blocks are all about making your sprites move around the stage. Not only can you make a sprite move, but you can also control how it moves. Will the sprite pop up instantly in a new spot, or will it glide there? Will it flip to face a different direction, or will it spin in circles? You decide!

These dark purple code blocks allow you to change the appearance of your sprite with costume changes or by making it grow or shrink. You can also make your sprites use word bubbles to talk or think!

These light-purple code blocks add an audio track to your programs. You can use preloaded songs and sound effects from Scratch or record your own!

These yellow code blocks are how you create the events that we discussed in chapter 1 . They are the triggers that will let the computer know when it is time to follow a certain set of directions or code. For example, you can use an event to make the cat meow or bark or dance every time you click on him.

These light-orange code blocks allow you to adjust the timing between each of your commands. They also allow you to create loops to repeat sets of directions. Finally, there are “if-then” statements that let you create conditions, or rules, for how you want your program to run.

These light-blue code blocks are used to detect or “sense” things. They help the computer know where your mouse pointer is or whether two sprites are touching. This helps you set up conditions for what you want to happen if, for example, two sprites collide. Ouch!

These green code blocks allow you to make mathematical calculations and comparisons. This helps you tell the computer how to respond if, for example, the sprite’s health points have gone down to zero. I’m thinking the game would be over then—what do you think?

These orange code blocks are used to create variables and change their values. If you want to makegame that can keep score, you’ll need a variable to store that information.