Introduction to Scratch & Coding

Introduction to the Jumping Game

In this lesson, we will create a fun jumping game using Scratch.
In this game, the player sprite will jump over obstacles.
If the player touches the obstacle, the game will get over.
This lesson helps students understand movement, loops, sensing, conditions, variables, and scoring in Scratch.

What Students Will Learn

How to position sprites at a specific location using x and y coordinates
How to make a sprite jump using keyboard events
How to move obstacles smoothly using glide blocks
How to repeat actions using forever loops
How to detect when two sprites touch each other
How to stop the game using conditions
How to create and use variables to add a score
How to reset the score when the game restarts

Adding Sprites

In this project, we will use two main sprites:

Dinosaur sprite as the player
Ball sprite as the obstacle

How to add sprites:

Click on the Choose a Sprite icon at the bottom right corner
Select a dinosaur sprite from the library
Click again on Choose a Sprite and select a ball sprite

Positioning Sprites on the Stage

Position the dinosaur at the bottom left corner (the ground)
Position the ball at the bottom right corner (the starting point for the obstacle)
Note the x and y numbers displayed below the stage for each sprite

Explanation: Every sprite in Scratch has an x (left-right) and y (up-down) position. Using these coordinates ensures the sprite starts at the same spot every time the game starts.

Coding the Dinosaur Sprite (Player)

Starting Position

Select the dinosaur sprite
Go to Events and pick when green flag clicked
Go to Motion and drag go to x: ___ y: ___

Explanation: This makes the dinosaur start from the ground at the same position every time the game runs.

Making the Dinosaur Jump

Events → when space key pressed
Motion → change y by 10 to move up
To come down, use change y by -10

Explanation: The y position controls vertical movement.

Creating a Smooth Jump

Control → repeat 10, inside it place change y by 10 (dinosaur goes up smoothly)
Add another repeat 10 block and place change y by -10 (dinosaur comes down smoothly)

Explanation: Using repeat blocks makes the jump look smooth rather than instant.

Coding the Obstacle (Ball)

Starting Position

Select the ball sprite
Add when green flag clicked
Motion → go to x: ___ y: ___

Explanation: The ball will always start from the bottom right corner.

Making the Ball Move

Motion → glide 1 second to x: ___ y: ___
Set the x and y numbers to the bottom left corner
Add a forever block around the glide block

Explanation: Glide moves the ball smoothly. The forever block repeats the movement continuously.

You can change the number in glide (like 2 for slower or 0.5 for faster movement).

Detecting Collision (Game Over)

On the ball sprite, add when green flag clicked
Control → if then
Sensing → touching dinosaur? → place inside the if block
Control → stop all → place inside the if block
Add a forever block around the if then block

Explanation: If the dinosaur touches the ball, the game stops immediately.

Adding a Score

Creating the Score Variable

Variables → Make a Variable
Name it score

Increasing the Score

Go to the ball sprite code
Under the glide block, add change score by 1

Explanation: Every time the ball completes one movement from right to left, the score increases.

Resetting the Score

Add when green flag clicked
Variables → set score to 0

Explanation: This ensures the score resets every time the game starts.

Summary of What Students Learned

How to position sprites using x and y coordinates
How to make a sprite jump using keyboard events
How to move obstacles smoothly using glide
How to use repeat loops for smooth movement
How to detect collisions between sprites
How to stop the game when a condition is met
How to create, increase, and reset a score variable

Task for Students

Create your own jumping game
Choose any sprite as your player
Add at least one obstacle
Try adding two obstacles, changing the speed, or adding sound effects
Make the game more challenging and fun