A recent workshop put on by Kids Code Jeunesse for our class introduced me to the world of coding through the Scratch online platform. My own kids have been using this site as a part of a Distributed Learning Program and I had read about it, but had yet to make time to check it out. I am so glad that the UNBC B. Ed. program incorporated this introduction to coding!

Photo by Robo Wunderkind https://unsplash.com/@robowunderkind

Basically, Scratch is an online platform that makes coding super simple. It’s set up in blocks that have been compared to Lego. At first, it was hard to see why. The code components are in shapes, some of them look a little like blocks and they are different sizes – OK, that is a little like Lego – but I failed to see any building or creative potential until the instructor started leading us through the tutorial. It turns out that the blocks do fit together, but not the way that Lego does. With Lego, each brick has little nubs on the top that fit into others and make it possible for the bricks to be put together interchangeably in a myriad of ways. In contrast, Scratch coding blocks have shapes that will fit with certain other coding blocks, in certain ways, but not others. Once a person sees this, it is easy to imagine that one could put any similarly shaped block into the right shaped space on the other block, and different combinations will do different things. Additionally, parts of Scratch are set up a little like photoshop or paint, where a person can manipulate the overall design in layers.

Although I struggled at first, once I figured out how the blocks go together and the layered aspect, I found myself working well ahead of the workshop tutorial. As a group, we were figuring out how to make two pictures, or sprites, as the program calls them, move around and interact. Basically, a cat was supposed to chase and catch a bouncing ball. I immediately thought that the cat’s eyes should follow the ball as it bounced to make the scenario better. I experimented with the costumes aspect and quickly figured out how to get the eyes to bounce at the same time as the ball, but they were bouncing in different directions. I had not taken into account the the timing difference between the sprites as the cat moved across the screen, so the cat’s eyes started bouncing seconds after the ball. Once I calculated for this, my idea worked and the cat’s eyes bounced with the ball. This simple experiment enlightened me to the endless learning opportunities that this program offers.

Through my own play, in adding an element to the story of the cat and ball, I had to address aspects of physics and math, calculating rates, time differences, taking distance and speed into consideration. In the moment where I realized that I had been successful in my creation I felt empowered to try more. This is the feeling I want my students to experience. I feel like the applications for this program are endless. It could be used in so many subjects and at almost any level. The similarities between this type of coding and creative writing are incredible. I feel like this could be a way that students could show their learning, much like a PowerPoint is often an option, but coding has more creative potential for interdisciplinary learning, as well.

Although I do not feel confident enough to teach this right now, I would love to continue to play with it and try to use it in a future practicum and definitely in my own classes in the future.