Creative Computing with Scratch

About

In this session you will learn about another approach for teaching Coding: through the creation of Projects. Scratch is a free Coding tool and community that is commonly used for creating Coding projects, particularly in K-6 education. The creators of Scratch argue that students learning to Code should be encouraged to develop projects that are personally meaningful to them and that Coding can help students express themselves. Consequently, Scratch has been designed to: be easy to create projects in (low floor), allow for customisation and multiple solutions (wide walls), and be capable of handling large and complex projects (high ceiling).

The Creative Computing Curriculum Guide is an example of a resource that encourages an approach to the teaching and learning coding that emphasises the creative and personally meaningful aspects of computing. This guide contains 7 different themed units (such as Stories, Games and Animations) which each contain activities, starter projects and Debug It! activities. The guide has been developed for Scratch but some of the guide’s activities could be adapted for other coding languages.

The design of the Creative Computing Curriculum is centred on four main principles:

Dr Karen Brennan conducted research into how students and teachers used Scratch and her findings from this research also influenced the design of the Creative Computing Curriculum Guide. The main focus of Dr Brennan’s research was understanding how educators (in schools and in informal learning environments, such as libraries) balanced learners’ structure and agency when teaching coding with Scratch.

In this session, we will work through some of the activities in Unit 1 (Exploring) and Unit 2 (Animations) of the Creative Computing Curriculum Guide together. You will also learn about another Computational Concept (Parallelism) and build on your understanding of Sequences, Loops and Events. You will also have the opportunity to engage in a Computational Practice, when you learn about what remixing in Scratch is.

Key Terms

algorithm, computational thinking, computational concept, computational perspective, coding, visual programming, sequences, loops, events, parallelism, debugging, reset, remixing

Materials

Presentations

• Creative Computing with Scratch

Activities

• Getting Started with Scratch
• Creative Computing Guide: 10 Blocks
• Remix Activity Class Studio
• Creative Computing Unit 1 Debug It! Studio
• Performing Scripts Handout
• Performing Scripts: Playground Scene Video

Links

Scratch

• Scratch
• ScratchEd: A community for Scratch educators
• Scratch 3.0 Preview

The Creative Computing Guide

• The Creative Computing Curriculum Guide Website
• Creative Computing Guide Unit 1: Exploring
• Creative Computing Guide Unit 2: Animations

Other Scratch Resources

• Code Club Resources
• Google CS First
• ScratchMaths

Session Outcomes

Computational Thinking Framework

Computational Concepts

Computational Concept	How the Concept is Addressed in the Session
Sequences	When creating projects in Scratch in this session, you will create Sequences of instructions for a Sprite to follow. For example, in the Getting Started activity, you will create stacks of blocks that cause the Cat Sprite to perform different actions, such as moving around the Stage and playing a melody.
Loops	When creating projects in Scratch in this session, you may use Loops to make the Sprites repeat actions over an over and over. For example, in the 10 Blocks activity you may use the repeat block when moving the Cat Sprite move around the Stage.
Events	You will learn about a few different types of Events in Scratch during this session. For example, in the 10 Blocks activity you may use the when this sprite clicked block, from the Events section, to cause the Cat Sprite move around the Stage when it is clicked. You will also practice using the when green flag clicked block, which can be used when resetting a project in Scratch to its original state.
Parallelism	In this session, you will learn about Parallelism in Scratch, which is when a Sprite is (or multiple Sprites are) performing multiple actions at the same time. For example, in one of the Debug It activities you will have to fix a problem that involves two Sprites dancing at the same time. During the Remixing activity, you could also find, remix and modify a project, such as a game, that uses Parallelism.

Computational Practices

Computational Practice	How this Practice is Addressed in the Session
Being incremental and iterative	You will be incremental and iterative when creaing projects in Scratch. For example, in the Getting Started activity you will build up a stack of blocks iteratively (one part at a time). You may also be iterative when putting together blocks together during the 10 Blocks activity.
Testing and debugging	You will test and debug (fix problems in your Code) during the session’s activities. For example, in the Debug It! activity you will identify and fix bugs in different Scratch projects.
Reusing and remixing	You will learn about reusing and remixing when completing the Remixing activity in this session. In that activity you will take a copy of an existing Scratch project and make some changes to it. You will also learn about the Backpack feature in Scratch, which allows you to copy Sprites, Sounds and Backdrops between different projects.

Computational Perspectives

Computational Practice	How this Practice is Addressed in the Session
Expressing	In this session, you will have the opportunity to use Coding as a tool for creative expression. The activities from the Creative Computing Guide that you will learn about in this session have been designed to encourage the personally relevant and meaningful aspects of Coding.
Connecting	In this session, you will have the opportunity to connect to other learners, through the sharing of projects in the Class Studios and by exploring the projects that Scratch community members have made and shared.

New Science and Technology (K-6) Syllabus Outcomes

Stage 1

Stage 1 Outcome	How the Outcome is Addressed
ST1-2DP-T: uses materials, tools and equipment to develop solutions for a need or opportunity	In this session’s activities, you will have the opportunity to use a tool (Scratch) to develop a variety of digital solutions (projects) that address different needs and opportunities.
ST1-3DP-T: describes, follows and represents algorithms to solve problems	In this session’s activities, you will describe, follow and represent algorithms (sequences of step-by-step instructions and decisions) when creating and remixing projects in Scratch.

Stage 2

Stage 2 Outcome	How the Outcome is Addressed
ST2-2DP-T: selects and uses materials, tools and equipment to develop solutions for a need or opportunity	In this session’s activities, you will have the opportunity to use a tool (Scratch) to develop a variety of digital solutions (projects) that address different needs and opportunities.
ST2-3DP-T: defines problems, describes and follows algorithms to develop solutions	In this session’s activities, you will define problems, describe and follow algorithms (sequences of step-by-step instructions and decisions) when creating and remixing projects in Scratch.

Stage 3

Stage 3 Outcome	How the Outcome is Addressed
ST3-2DP-T: plans and uses materials, tools and equipment to develop solutions for a need or opportunity	In this session’s activities, you will have the opportunity to use a tool (Scratch) to develop a variety of digital solutions (projects) that address different needs and opportunities.
ST3-3DP-T: defines problems, and designs, modifies and follows algorithms to develop solutions	In this session’s activities, you will define problems, as well as design, modify and follow algorithms (sequences of step-by-step instructions and decisions) when solving problems. For example, in the Remixing activity you will modify an existing Scratch project.

New Technology Mandatory (7-8) Syllabus Outcomes

Technology Mandatory (7-8) Outcome	How the Outcome is Addressed
TE4-1DP: designs, communicates and evaluates innovative ideas and creative solutions to authentic problems or opportunities	In this session’s activities, you will have the opportunity to develop creative solutions that address authentic problems and opportunities when creating projects in Scratch.
TE4-4DP: designs algorithms for digital solutions and implements them in a general-purpose programming language	Although the activities in this session involve using a Visual Programming language (Scratch), the activities from the Creative Computing Curriculum Guide could also be adapted for General-Purpose languages (such as Python). Additionally, the computational concepts involved (for example, Sequences and Loops) are also important for designing algorithms in General-Purpose programming langauges.

AITSL Professional Teacher Standards

Standard	How this Standard is Addressed
2.6.2: Use effective teaching strategies to integrate ICT into learning and teaching programs to make selected content relevant and meaningful	In this session you will learn about using Scratch when integrating ICT into learning and teaching. For example, in the session’s activities, you will learn about how to develop and remix projects in Scratch. Additionally, you wil learn about the Creative Computing Curriculum Guide, which has been designed to encourage an approach to teaching Coding that emphasises the personally relevant and meaningful aspects of Computing.
3.3.2: Select and use relevant teaching strategies to develop knowledge, skills, problem solving and critical and creative thinking.	In this session you will learn about ways to help develop students’ critical and creative thinking when Coding. For example, in the 10 Blocks activity, you will be encouraged to be creative when you make the Sprite move around the Stage in Scratch.
3.4.2: Select and/or create and use a range of resources, including ICT, to engage students in their learning.	In this session you will have the opportunity to use a range of resources that have been developed to assist the teaching of Coding to students at the various Stages of K-12.
4.5.2: Incorporate strategies to promote the safe, responsible and ethical use of ICT in learning and teaching.	In this session’s activities, you will learn about some of the potential ethical issues that you may encounter when teaching students Scratch (or similar languages) and how you can address them. For example, you will learn how the sharing of projects works in Scratch and how to report unconstructive comments that Scratch members leave on projects. Additionally, you will learn about Remixing in Scratch and how credit can be given to the authors of the projects that have been remixed.
6.2.2: Participate in learning to update knowledge and practice, targeted to professional needs and school and/or system priorities.	In this session you will be given some examples of how Coding and Computational Thinking can be incorporated into different areas of the curriculum and STEM.

ACARA General Capabilities

Numeracy

Numeracy Element	How this Element is Addressed
Estimating and calculating with whole numbers	You will calculate with whole numbers when you complete the session’s activities in Scratch. For example, when you change the blocks in the 10 Blocks activity, you will need to use whole numbers when moving the Sprite around the Stage.
Using spatial reasoning	You will have the opportunity to use spatial reasoning when completing the session’s activities. For example, you will use some of the Motion blocks in Scratch, which can be used to change the position of the characters on the Stage (a Cartesian plane).

Critical and Creative Thinking

Critical and Creative Thinking Element	How this Element is Addressed
Generating ideas, possibilities and actions	You will generate a variety of ideas, possibilities and actions when completing the session’s activities. For example, there are multiple ways to combine the blocks in the 10 Blocks activity , which can lead to a variety of different results. Additionally,in the Interesting Projects activity, you will have the chance to search the Scratch community for projects that other members have made, in order to generate ideas for your own projects.
Reflecting on thinking and processes	In the session’s activities you will have the opportunity to reflect on the approaches that you used to create the different projects. You will also have the opportunity to view the projects that other workshop participants and Scratch community members have made and reflect on how the processes used to create those projects differed from yours.

Information and Communication Technology Capability

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Element	How this Element is Addressed
Applying social and ethical protocols and practices when using ICT	In this session, you will learn about the potential ethical issues that can be encountered when remixing projects in Scratch.
Creating with ICT	In this session you will create a digital solution (which will be a project in Scratch).
Communicating with ICT	In this session you will learn how to share projects in Scratch and about how students can communicate with each other through Scratch.
Managing and Operating ICT	In this session you will about how programs created on the Scratch website will be available wherever you log in, as Scratch projects are stored on the website and not the computer they are created on.