Space Mechanic

Introduction to Programming Techniques Using a Simplified Interactive Game Development Experience

TEAM MEMBERS: Anh Tang , Julissa Valdez-Ramos , Jean Makita Mbama

ADVISORS: Dr. Cindy Robertson , Dr. Anca Doloc-Mihu

TECH: scratch , makey makey , conduction

DIFFICULTY: beginner

TARGET AUDIENCE: k-12 , non-Stem , undergraduate , middle-school , college

DURATION: 60 minutes

CURATOR(S): Trung Dao

PUBLISHED DATE: Apr 11 2024

CREATED IN SEMESTER: Spring 2024

Read more on

The two primary goals of this project is teaching the students the basics of Scratch and giving them a crash course on algorithms. Scratch is a block-based programming language developed by the MIT Media Lab as an educational tool for children. Through our classroom workshops and outreach activities, students get to learn how to program character movement and sprite animation in Scratch, using the fundamental programming concepts such as variables, if-else statements, and loops. These experiences will help them develop problem-solving and logical reasoning skills that can be applied to other programming languages as well as other fields outside of computing. Through this project, we hope to increase interest and participation in STEM; and show that learning how to program can be fun and creative. The Technology Ambassador Program at GGC is a project-based class that provides a collaborative environment for students to work with their fellow classmates on a semester-long project using technologies of their choice. TAP strives to increase participation in IT through numerous outreach activities and workshops that are designed to showcase the creative and fun side of technology.

Team members

From left to right: Anh Tang , Julissa Valdez-Ramos , Jean Makita Mbama

Outreach Activities:

Tap Expo, February 29th, Georgia Gwinnett College - To promote IT field and the TAP program to college students.
Atlanta Science Festival, March 23, Piedmont Park - To promote computing and technology to children.
Super Saturday Series (S3), April 13, Georgia Gwinnett College - Middle school girls to promote IT and STEM career.
Class Workshops on April 5, April 9, April 11, and April 12, to promote IT field to non-IT college students.

Steps:

Opening a blank Scratch page by:
Go to the Scratch website: https://scratch.mit.edu
Click on Create in the top left corner of the screen.
A blank Scratch workspace will pop up.
Getting to the game
Go to the Scratch website: https://scratch.mit.edu
Using the Search bar, type in “The Ninja Turtles”. Note that Scratch is very picky, so it’s important to use the exact same search key.
Click on Studios, then select this studio as shown in the picture below.
Select TAP Workshop.
Select the full screen option, then press the green flag to start playing the game.