A recently-made computer language christened ‘Scratch’ allows adults and children as young as eight years old to create virtual quizzes, games, animations, e-cards, and much more.
Developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab, Scratch is available at the Scratch website: http://www.scratch.mit.edu/. There, users can become members, view and comment on other Scratch fanatic’s projects, create ‘galleries’ of projects, and download Scratch.
After quickly and efficiently downloading this kid-friendly program, children construct programs by snapping virtual blocks together, much like building with LEGO blocks. Blocks are divided into the categories Motion, Looks, Sound, Pen, Control, Sensing, Numbers, and Variables. Some blocks are basic- i.e. the command ‘move 10 steps’ – while others are more complex, such as the block ‘if ____ then do ____ , else do ____.’ Other, more basic blocks are used for dragging into the blank spaces in the latter block, as a ‘choosing’ method for the program. In order to animate a sprite, Scratchers create costumes, different ways a sprite can look. Sounds are also a large feature of Scratch. Users can record sounds and import sounds already recorded by the MIT Media Lab. Blocks are designed to change costumes and place sounds in programs. Many blocks, costumes, and sounds are frequently used in games and animations.
Easy, useful, and kid-friendly, Scratch is a wonderful introduction to programming!