Year 4 Programming with Scratch (Teacher notes)
Progression of skills in this pack
1. Program inputs with loops, selection and sensing for interactions.
2. Work with variables and various forms of input and output.
3. Debug programs that accomplish goals. (correcting errors)
4. Use selection, data variables and operators.
5. Program a virtual robot using Scratch blocks.
📝 National Curriculum Content
Design, write and debug programs that accomplish specific goals.
Use sequence, selection, and repetition in programs; work with various forms of input and output.
Use logical reasoning to explain how some simple algorithms work and to detect and correct errors in algorithms and programs.
⏱ 6-8 hours
👨🏫 Teacher Input
The free online Scratch editor is one of the most popular platforms in education to teach programming. The pupil activity packs below develop on the introductory activity packs from our Year 3 Scratch Activity Pack, so if your pupils have not yet used Scratch before then you may want to start there.
🛠 What will pupils and teachers need?
Access to the free Scratch website.
The VRVex website for the challenge activity. It is free to use and works on all devices.
The Scratch Pupil Activity Packs (details below).
The Scratch Tips and Tricks posters plus display below provide excellent prompts for the pupils.
Optional PRIMM Questions
The car racing activity below could be used with PRIMM question sheets (Predict, Run, Investigate, Modify, Make), which pupils can try before and during their work on the activity pack. PRIMM can help pupils develop a deeper understanding of programming. There is more about PRIMM here. The questions explain at what point they should be attempted (e.g before a specific activity).
✅ Assessment
You can also request a Scratch Teacher account here; the teacher account allows you to create pupil logins and then see the projects that the pupils create, helping with assessment. You can create pupil logins for each of your pupils or it may be easier to create one that all pupils share – if so pupils will need to name their project in order to differentiate it from each others.
Pupils will need to share their projects from their login (see image below) to enable teachers to see them on your teacher account.
The video below describes how to create individual or shared pupil logins, change the password, name and share projects and see the projects pupils create.
Use the downloadable assessment grid below to record what each pupil has achieved. Next to each objective we have put the Scratch pupil activity pack that the objective/skill is covered in.
Unplugged Assessment Activities and other resources
Below is a downloadable and printable activity sheet/cards that can be used to assess pupil understanding of the vocabulary and application of the skills, either individually or as a group task/extension task. There is also a Top 10 Tips and Tricks video that is worth showing to pupils once they have begun using Scratch. There is also a Top 10 Tips and Tricks video that is worth showing to pupils once they have begun using Scratch.
Pupil Activity Packs (teacher view)
The pupil activity packs outlined below include projects for each of the objectives to support the learning. You may want to work through the activities yourself before each lesson or watch the videos for the relevant activities at the start of each lesson with pupils. Click on the blue links below to see the teacher view of the pupil activity packs yourself.
Pupil Activity 1. Program inputs with loops, selection and sensing for interactions.
Pupil Activity Code: SRC3 – What is it?
Scratch Racing Pupil Activity Pack
You could discuss with the pupils about their racing games and how there is no end to the game or winner. Discuss the word selection and how it works, so that the program selects a code block if it is triggered. E.g If the sprite touches the green colour on the outside of the track, the program will select the code block to move the sprite back to the start.
Demonstrate the selection examples from the Scratch Racing video tutorials (or watch them together). The activity pack also introduces sensing, which can be combined with selection, such as a sprite touching a colour will move to a new position. The example of this is when the car sprite touches the colour off the road then it will go back to the start. It is important pupils make their sprite smaller than their road otherwise the sprite will not move when adding sensing.
As an extension, pupils could also try the Scratch Running activity pack (Pupil code 88WA)
Pupil Activity 2. Write a program with inputs and audio outputs (sound).
Scratch Rock Band Pupil Activity Pack
Pupil Activity Code: SBQ7 – What is it?
You could start this activity by discussing with the pupils about outputs (speakers, monitor, headphones) and how we can use Scratch to program outputs, such as sounds and musical notes.
The Scratch Rock Band Pupil Activity Pack shows pupils how to program different instruments (drum kit and guitar chords) using the sound outputs, keyboard/touch inputs and wait blocks. If pupils have microphones on their computers or an iPad etc then they could record their voices/real instruments into Scratch and program those. The extension activity also asks pupils to program a band that plays by itself using repeat loops.
Scratch Piano Pupil Activity Pack
Pupil Activity Code: PWT4 – What is it?
The Scratch Piano activity pack (could be used as an extension for Scratch Band above) demonstrates how program using keyboard/touch inputs and audio outputs to make a virtual piano. It is a good idea for pupils to be aware of the chromatic piano keys for one octave, which is also covered in the pack.
Pupil Activity 3. Debug a variety of programs (correcting errors)
Pupil Activity Code: SB72 – What is it?
Scratch Debugging Pupil Activity Pack
The video at the start of this pack introduces the importance of debugging (correcting errors), where is originated and how pupils can use the activity page.
There are 3 specific debugging challenges (also see below). Each one is a program written in Scratch that does not quite work. The pupils can click on the link, read the instructions then go inside the program and make the relevant changes. Each program could then be saved by going to File and download or they could save it within their Scratch login if they have one by clicking Remix on the project page when they first click the link. This is covered in the introductory video.
1. Debug a Square
2. Debug the controls and inputs
3. Debug controls and conditions
As an extension, pupils could write a simple program, put a small mistake in it and then ask a partner to try and debug it.
Pupil Activity 4. Use selection, data variables and operators.
Scratch Quiz Pupil Activity Pack
Pupil Activity Code: 163A – What is it?
Programming a simple quiz in Scratch can have a lot of benefits as pupils can link their quiz to other curriculum areas. It also allows pupils to consolidate and revise their work in other subjects by creating a topic quiz for each other to try.
When talking about the video tutorials for the Scratch Quiz Activity Pack. Highlight to pupils the words selection (the program selects whether the answer is right or wrong by using an if/else statement) and operator (using a sum such as answer = orange for example).
Challenge Pupil Activity – Program a Virtual Robot using Scratch blocks.
VR Vex Pupil Activity Pack
Pupil Activity Code: VX77 – What is it?
This activity pack uses Scratch programming skills to help pupils program a virtual robot using the VRVex website. Pupils are shown how to use the editor and then two playgrounds (Cross off the numbers on a number grid and collect trash from the seabed – Coral Reef Cleanup) by programming the robot to move. For the Coral Reef Cleanup the video tutorial is in the editor itself so pupils follow the link for this activity.
Once pupils have finished, they can save by clicking File in the top left corner and then ‘Save to your Device.’
🏅Certificates
Pupils who have completed all of the activity packs above could be awarded our Scratch Level 2 Certificate below.