Introduction to Programming with Scratch

Learn the elements of basic programming using the innovative SCRATCH programming platform developed by the Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab. SCRATCH lets student developers assemble pre-compiled code blocks, forcing them to focus on developing conceptual programming skills that can be applied to any advanced programming language. Hands-on chat sessions guide students in the use of Scratch in "real time", so that students create executable animation programs in the very first session. Course materials are based on "Starting from Scratch", a textbook designed to introduce programming concepts, including function calls, loops, if-then-else logic, and iteration to novice programmers at any level.