SCRATCH Integration
Last week I worked with the 7th grade science team to create a lesson that integrated SCRATCH into a heart project. We took an existing project, a heart booklet that depicted the journey of a drop of blood through the heart and integrated it into a SCRATCH lesson that animated and narrated the journey. I spend time creating a sample project, creating written instructions and experimenting with SCRATCH before I presented the project to the students. The science teachers then tried the project themselves and we discussed things we could do to make it clearer to the students.
This week I introduced the students to SCRATCH during their science classes. Prior to our initial conversation, neither teacher had heard of SCRATCH. The science teacher and I co-facilitated the lesson. It was fun to see her get more confident and participate more in the demo each period. During the final class (our 5th time) we truly were an equal team. The students were extremely excited to be able to be creative and create and name their own blood cell and find clever ways to depict their journey through the heart.
Today the students started their projects in the lab. Most came prepared with their storyboards and were ready to go. It is amazing how quickly the kids adapted to the program. Several even asked if they could add the lungs as another stage. They quickly discovered new and better ways to do things. They were proud to share their accomplishments with me. I enjoyed watching them think through the process, make changes and experience success.
At the end of the day we realized that there were a few glitches with the project. Students that didn’t set their original coordinates had trouble, students that made their cells hide, would lose them if they forgot to include show in their script and some forgot how to create a Sprite. When the project is done with the other half of the grade, we will incorporate a resource sheet for importing stages, backgrounds and other tips. I can’t wait to see the final projects!
