Scratch
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#1 2011-04-13 19:33:33
- cwwoolston
- New Scratcher
- Registered: 2011-04-13
- Posts: 1
Is Scratch For Me?
I teach 8th grade Technology and am interested in introducing some element of computer programming. Personally I have extensive undergrad academic experience with Java, although I don't have the mindset for and dislike programming. I am not very good at it. However, at the 8th grade level I think that I could get by. Is Scratch something that I could use to introduce students to the concepts of programming? I have also heard about Allice. What are the main differences between Scratch and Allice? If Scratch is for me, how do I go about getting some training / direction so that I could develop a few units in programming for my class?
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#2 2011-04-13 19:57:21
Re: Is Scratch For Me?
Yes, scratch is for you. A scratch team member once said: If scratch was a room, it would have a low floor (easy for beginners) and a high ceiling (it has unlimited potential. I haven't really programmed with alice, but from what I have heard, scratch is easier to learn. And, scratch has an online community. If you have a question, you can post it in the forums. Happy Scratching!
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#3 2011-04-13 20:03:34
Re: Is Scratch For Me?
Scratch is a good way to start programming, I started with Python, moved to FMSLogo, then my Dad showed me Scratch, since then I've now moved on to PHP and back to Python now that I understand how things work.
Alice is a 3D environment and the coding is more like making scenes ( Movie Scenes ), Scratch though, is 2D ( you can try making 3D projects, but in reality, they will never really be 3D, just look that way ) and you can do more with Scratch than you can with Alice. In my opinion, I like Scratch more than any other programming language, if Scratch were a little faster and you could type in the code instead of dragging blocks, it would be ( in my opinion ) one of the better/best programming languages for coding games in.
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#4 2011-04-13 20:14:54
- puppetadventurer
- Scratcher
- Registered: 2011-02-20
- Posts: 1000+
Re: Is Scratch For Me?
yeah
3
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#5 2011-04-13 20:15:29
Re: Is Scratch For Me?
Scratch is very easy to pick up and understand, but it is also versatile and useful for learning basic coding techniques. I think it would be perfect for your average 8th grade technology class. You're not going to find the power or extensive library of Java or Python, but Scratch is very good for what it is.
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