LF Create a safari scene in Scratch

Mar 032022
 

LF1 Add a sprite and make it walk

  1. Go to Scratch
  2. Choose backdrop “Savannah”
  3. Add a sprite: Zebra
  4. Click on the zebra sprite and drag out these blocks.
  5. What do you think will happen if you add these blocks inside the forever block
    2. Add them and see

LF2 Add more sprites and code

  1. Add more animal sprites:
    1. Lion
    2. Giraffe
    3. Grasshopper
    4. Snake
  2. Delete the cat sprite
  3. Change the size of your animals to add perspective
    1. Near the front = big
    2. In the distance = small
    3. Change the number to change the size
  4. Copy the code to the other animals by dragging it

LF3 Tinker

  1. Tinker with the code making animals move at different speeds
  2. Add more animals:
    1. Right-hand click on an animal sprite and click “duplicate” to make another one with the same code.
    2. Can you make a herd of zebra moving across the screen?
  3. Can you make the lion move slower?
  4. Safari truck
    1. Download this sprite file
    2. In scratch upload a new sprite from you downloads/Google Drive folder
  5. Extra tip
    1. Use this block to move sprites up and downa level so animals at the back are behind animals at the front:
      2. You don’t need to attach these blocks, just click on them to make them work

Challenges

C1 Add  African safari music that plays when you click on the green flag

  1. I have put some music in “shared with me” in j2e, your class – go to j2e – my files – shared files – your class
  2. Click play button to listen.  Click on the “i” and then “download”
  3. In Scratch – Click on “background” bottom right, next to the sprites
  4. Click the “sound” tab, top left
  5. Find the music you just downloaded.
  6. Add this code:

C2 When you click on an animal, it tells you some information about that animal or about safaris

  1. This could be using “say” blocks in Looks
  2. Or you could use the text to speech add on
  3. Can you mute the music when it speaks, then start the music when it has finished?
      • Background code
      • Animal code

Safari facts: https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/pages/topic/safari

Scratch self assessment

T5 Y5 Creating a game piece by piece

Mar 022022
 

LF1:  Decomposing the game

  • Have a go playing this game.
  • Then have a think from a coding point of view.   How many different elements can you list – characters, moving parts, actions, consequences, backgrounds…?
  • By answering the questions above, you have decomposed  the game = broken it up into simpler parts.  This is a great way of thinking about how to code something as you can code each simple part one at at a time.

LF2 Characters, actions and consequences

This whole unit will be thinking about those elements and how we can translate them into Scrach.

  • Characters and moving parts will be sprites
  • Actions will be blocks – may be movement blocks and control blocks
  • Consequences might be if…then blocks

https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/502331640

Please let me know by commenting on this post if you get stuck or need another video later on…

Jungle Rush Sketch videos:

  1. Video 1  – Home screen – gliding on title, sprite and play button
  2. Video 2 – Move to play mode – title, play disappear, sprite to correct position
  3. Video 3 – Moving background – trees
  4. Video 4 – Sprite jumping
  5. Video 5 – More background – clouds
  6. Stage 6 – Enemy sprites
    1. Make a new sprite
    2. When it receives play message, show, go to the right hand side of screen, glide to left hand side of screen – keep doing this (forever).
    3. When green flag clicked, hide
    5. Electrify enemies
      1. instead of hide – what do you want to happen?
  7. Stage 7 – Back to home screen when dead; Two states home/play
    1. Enemy sprite code – when it hits the cat (forever, if, touching cat sprite), broadcast – new message “home”
    2. Replace all green flag code starters with “When I receive home” blocks
    3. Make one block with: when green flag clicked, broadcast home
  8. Stage 8 – Timer/score
    1. Variables: Make a new variable “Score”
    2. Two blocks:
      1. When I receive home, stop counting
      2. When I receive play, set to 0, start counting
  9. Can you announce the score before going back to the home screen?
    1. Change background? Sprite says score? Wait for a few seconds then go to home screen
    2. You could have a message called “score” for this?

Continue reading »

Y4 Multiplication tables check

Mar 012022
 

Interland – if you have time, play this online safety game!

Y6 Create a Scratch game

Feb 272022
 

Young coders competition

This year’s theme is ‘My World, Our Planet’. We are looking for participants to create a reactive game which encourages children to take care of natural resources and improve the environment. The opportunities are endless and you are in charge of creativity!
Think about the content of your game, we are looking for something engaging, fun, interactive and reactive!

Project pack
  • You can enter individually or as a team of 2-6. 
  • You must design a reactive computer game using Scratch based on the theme My World our Planet
  • The game needs to comply to the PEGI 7 rating. More details on the PEGI rating system can be found via the PEGI website below: What do the labels mean?
  • After you have finished making your game, you must submit it to your teacher. Make sure instructions for the game, notes and credits are included. 
  • To submit your game you need your teacher to submit it here with your name, team name and a link to your Scratch game.

The judging criteria are as follows:

Functionality and innovation (50%)Marketing (25%)Community responsibility (25%)
Does the game work as intended?Is the game easy to use?Is the game imaginative?Is the game reactive?Does the game include original and well written code?Aesthetics of the game – Does the game display correctly and look nice?Creativity and design of your game’s namePresentation of your game Is your game accessible for its target audience? I.e., is it suitable for the age range you built it for?How does your game address the theme of Keeping yourself and others safe?

Idea generation

  1. Look at different types of games that can be made with Scratch – scroller, platform, maze, choice – can you find or think of any other types?
  2. Come up with some ideas of games to fit the theme – the more ideas, the better
  3. Share ideas with others, form teams or decide to work on your own.

Next steps…

  • Create game brief/plan
  • Decompose elements
  • Decompose code

LF Decompose your game idea

  1. Fill out this form: Y6 Scratch game
  2. If time, start to create characters and backgrounds in Scratch
    1. If you are working in a team, how can we transfer sprites from team members to the project?
    2. Do shared class accounts work?

Y3456 CaRnIvAl oF cUlTuRe!

Feb 132022
 

Reflect on what makes you you and how brilliantly different we all are.

The BIG picture

  • We are going to make a whole school display “We are ST MARK’S” showing how amazingly different we are and yet we are all together and make up the St Mark’s community.
  • Everyone will produce a small square with:
    • A photo of them
    • 1 or 2 pictures of things that are important to them
    • A value or belief that is important in them

Each letter will be made up of squares:

Each square will be a bit like this:

Instructions

  1. Outline – In j2e5, draw a square as big as you can to fit on your page
  2. Pictures – Find 2 or 3 pictures of things that are important to you
  3. Word – Type a value or belief that is impoartant for you
  4. Photo – in j2launch click on the camera
    1. Take a photo, click upload
    2. In j2e5 click pictures and drag your photo onto the page
  5. Save your page

Hand in your picture

Press: draw a box around your shape then press “capture”

I need your help please

  • How can we include absolutely everyone in our school community in our display?
    • Who are they?
    • How can we get them to complete their square?
    • Can you take responsibility for a member of the community, talk to them and help them complete their square?

Y3 How do I make a page border with my own drawing?

Jan 262022
 

1 Making a page border with your own drawing

  • Use this video to help you make a page border with your own drawing.

Success steps

  1. Log into j2e
  2. Start a new j2e5 page
  3. Use the drawing tools to draw a SIMPLE picture
  4. Untick outline
  5. Change colours
  6. Drag select (draw a box round objects with the select tool)
  7. Use group button
  8. Move items with the mouse
  9. Use duplicate tool to copy shapes
  10. Select more than one item
  11. Be resilient – take care when lining up shapes
  12. Save with a useful name

2 Now try a more complicated toy – a car, train, dolls house…something to do with your “Days gone by” topic

  • Make it big to start with, then shrink it

3 Add a BIG title to your page “Days Gone By”, pictures and topic words to make a full topic page

Y5 LF Create a leaflet/booklet using a template in j2e5

Jan 262022
 

Learning starter

  1. 5 minutes of touch typing
  2. South America map quiz
    • Countries
    • Capital cities
    • Landmarks
    • Physical features
  3. Canama Panal puzzle
  4. This term’s project

1 Introduction

2 LF Information, information, information

  • Go to Google Classroom
  • Open “South America Leaflet information”
  • Under the different headings, copy information and pictures for your leaflet
    • Drag pictures and text
    • Use ctrl c (copy) and ctrl v (paste)
    • Copy things you have read and understand
  • Searching tips
    • Find a good website 
    • Use 3 or 4 key words for specific information
    • Get images from websites rather than from Google Images
    • References – keep a list of websites you used
      • useful for others to read more
      • useful for you to return to
      • polite and right to say where you got your information from

3 Leaflet design

  • Text and pictures
  • Clear layout – lined up, titles
  • Keep it simple – 2 or 3 colours, easy to read fonts
  • Lots of information
  • Mini booklet – do all the right way up first – then turn upside down when finished
  • References box – list of where you got information from
  • Good leaflet design

Y5 LF: Create an information poster using different tools

Jan 182022
 

1 – What makes an effective information poster

  • A good information posted should show lots of information at a glance.
  • Look at these information posters
    • What makes them effective?
    • What would make them better?
  • Find some other effective information posters and make a list of features

  

 2 – Tools

  1. We are going to explore three tools for making posters:
    1. Google Docs (Go to Google Drive – Create – Googe Docs)
    2. j2e5
    3. j2Office – Writer
  2. Open each of these tools and have a brief explore – what tools are there?

3 – Make an information poster about South America

  1. Here is an information poster that I made on Google Docs
    1. Example Sourth Africa poster
  2. I have saved a file in each tool for you to edit – the text and pictures are all there, you just need to edit
    1. Google Docs – link on Google Classroom
    2. j2Office Writer South America Poster
    3. j2e5 South America Poster

3 Create a j2e5 poster

  • Use the Success Criteria that we have written together
  • Be resilient – don’t be happy with “ok”

4 Make a Google Doc information book page

  1. Go to Google Classrrom (Class 21) – Classwork – South America  Information Page Google Doc
  2. Insert a table in Google Doc to arrange facts and pictures
    1. Make the border lines invisible
    2. Colour the cells
    3. Change width/merge cells
  3. Insert pictures
    1. Put them in different places
    2. Crop – eg banner picture at top/bottom
  4. Style
    1. Choose font, colours (one or two only)
    2. Avoid rainbox, fancy fonts
  5. Information
    1. Keep it simple and short – but informative

5 j2e5 mini book

6 Evaluation

  • Which tool is easiest to use?
  • Which creates the best poster?

Success Criteria 1

  • Bold title
  • Fill the page
  • Stand out
  • Dividing into sections/blocks
  • Pictures/symbols
  • Lots of info

Success Criteria 2 – fine tuning

  • Big (easy to read) font
  • No highlighting
  • Space
  • Balance
  • Centre

iPad porject 1: Photos

Jan 172022
 
  1. Open photo app
  2. Take photos
    1. Zoom, focus by tapping, different sizes
    2. Check subjects are happy
  3. View photos
    1. Delete if no good, extras
  4. Edit photos
    1. Crop, adjust, markup,
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