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MyHighschool
Chapter 1

Introduction to Scratch

Learn Scratch before your first game

Sign in to download the sprite starter .sb3 for this chapter.

Read the manual below, try Scratch if you like, then continue to the concept check in Step 2. (~18 min)

Tour the Scratch editor — account, stage, sprites, block palette, and green flag — so you are ready for Emoji Pop and the rest of Scratch Studio.

What you will learn in this chapter

Scratch platform

Overview

Scratch is free block coding from MIT; sprites move on the stage while scripts run.

Green flag

Events

The green flag runs scripts that start with when green flag clicked — your play button.

Sprites & stage

Looks

Sprites are characters you code; the stage is where the project plays.

Block palette

Categories

Motion, Looks, Events, Control, and more — drag blocks into the scripts area.

Course rhythm

MyHighschool

Intro chapter: read manual → concept check. Game chapters: read & build, check, submit, optional bonus.

Read the ideas below, then follow the build steps in Scratch to make Learn the Scratch editor before Emoji Pop. When you are ready, continue to the concept check.

How this chapter works

  • Step 1 — Read this manual and try Scratch.
  • Step 2 — Pass the concept check on the course page to finish this chapter.

Read this manual, then pass the concept check on the course page. That completes Chapter 1 — your first game chapter is Emoji Pop.

Learn the ideas

Tour the Scratch editor — account, stage, sprites, block palette, and green flag — so you are ready for Emoji Pop and the rest of Scratch Studio.

What you will learn in this chapter

  • Scratch platform (Overview) — Scratch is free block coding from MIT; sprites move on the stage while scripts run.
  • Green flag (Events) — The green flag runs scripts that start with when green flag clicked — your play button.
  • Sprites & stage (Looks) — Sprites are characters you code; the stage is where the project plays.
  • Block palette (Categories) — Motion, Looks, Events, Control, and more — drag blocks into the scripts area.
  • Course rhythm (MyHighschool) — Intro chapter: read manual → concept check. Game chapters: read & build, check, submit, optional bonus.

After this chapter you can

  • Sign in to Scratch and open the editor
  • Press green flag and explain what a sprite is
  • Describe how game chapters add submit and optional bonus steps
  • Pass the concept check and start Emoji Pop

Study the ideas below, then pass the concept check on the course page. That completes Chapter 1 — then start Emoji Pop.

Before Emoji Pop and the other mini-games, this chapter orients you to Scratch — the free block-coding site from MIT — and how Scratch Studio chapters work inside MyHighschool.

Studio Cat: Studio Cat says: Scratch is not about memorising code words. Snap blocks, press the green flag, watch what happens, and adjust. That loop is the whole course.

What is Scratch?

Scratch lets you build stories, animations, and games by snapping blocks together. A sprite is any character or object you can code. The stage is where your project plays. Scripts live in the center scripts area.

Key vocabulary

Sprite A character or object on the stage (Cat, emoji, ball, etc.).
Stage The white (or backdrop) area where the project runs.
Block palette Colour-coded categories on the left — Motion, Looks, Events…
Green flag Starts scripts that begin with when green flag clicked.

Create your account

Build steps

  1. Open scratch.mit.edu and click Join Scratch (free).
  2. Pick a username you are comfortable sharing with classmates.
  3. Sign in and click Create to open the editor.
  4. Keep Scratch in one browser tab and MyHighschool in another.

Editor layout

Top right: stage and green flag. Bottom right: sprite list. Left: block palette. Center: empty scripts area until you drag blocks.

How Scratch Studio chapters work

This chapter is two steps: read this manual, then pass the concept check on the course page. Game chapters (starting with Emoji Pop) add a build lab in Scratch and a project submission.

Optional — try Scratch yourself

Studio Cat: Studio Cat sprite starter. On the MyHighschool chapter page, click the green Download sprite starter (.sb3) button under the chapter title (at the top of the page). Open the file in Scratch for the optional hello practice — the sprite is ready; you add the blocks below. No scripts in the starter file.

When you are ready, open Scratch and press the green flag. You can add a Looks block so your sprite says hello — good practice before Emoji Pop. You do not submit anything for this chapter.

Build steps

  1. Download the sprite starter using the green button under the chapter title on the MyHighschool page, then open it in Scratch.
  2. From Events, drag when green flag clicked into the scripts area.
  3. From Looks, attach say Hello Studio Cat! for 2 seconds under the hat block.
  4. Press the green flag and read the bubble on the stage.

Check yourself before the quiz

  1. What does the green flag do?
  2. What is the difference between a sprite and the stage?
  3. Name two block categories you will use in Emoji Pop.
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