Best Scratch Projects and Topics | upGrad blog (2024)

Scratch is a visual programming language used as an educational tool for coding. Developed by the MIT Media Lab, it boasts of more than 82 million projectsshared by 74 million users. Scratch’s block-based interface allows schools, colleges, and other knowledge institutions to impart technical training in mixed media, paving the way for creative student projects like video games, simulations, and animations.

In this blog, we will explore some interesting examples of Scratch projects. So read on to get inspired and find some innovative ideas to try for your next round of programming practice!

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How to Get Started on Scratch?

If you don’t have any prior experience with scratch programming, follow these simple steps to begin your learning journey.

• Open a web browser and open the official Scratch website.
• Create a user ID and sign in to your account.
• Click on “Create” on the top left.
• Start a new project and explore different parts of the interface.
• Experiment with varying blocks of Scratch to observe what happens.
• Drag and drop blocks into the scripting area.
• Implement a full-fledged project to master the language.

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13 Scratch Projects You Must Try

1. Dance Party

This project lets you curate your dance party. Pick from different options, add sprites (images created in Scratch), and have fun with the interface. You can also view others’ creations, learn from the samples, and remix your own version.

Greeting Card

This is another animation project where you get to remix a greeting card and send it to someone. You can edit your card for different occasions, change pictures as per the theme, and place animated graphics inside the card. It is an enjoyable activity that combines computational thinking with visual creativity. And even if you are not hard-pressed on learning drag-and-drop coding, you have a go at this project to refresh your mind!

3. Maze Starter

Scratch projects are a favourite among gamers and programming enthusiasts who want to enter the gaming world. Maze Starter is a sample game where you move a ball to reach the goal using the arrow keys on your keyboard. You can customize the course by adding more obstacles and constructing new levels. It also includes the functionality for score-keeping: you collect rewards for choosing the correct path, subtract points for hitting walls, and so on.

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4. Hide and Seek

This project is centered around a character named Gobo. You have to click on the graphic to score points. You can add a timer or change what happens upon catching Gobo. Another way to remix the project is to make more sprites similar to Gobo. Players will have to catch all the characters to win the game. To increase the difficulty level further, you can shorten the length of time for which your characters appear on the screen.

5. SoundFlower

Picture a flower on a screen that dances when you sing to it – that is SoundFlower. It is an interactive art project made on Scratch that requires microphone permission to showcase its magic. Go for this one if you want to explore the intersections of music with visuals. Check out otherremixesto draw insights and progress to complex projects as you gain confidence with the language and features.

6. Spiral Maker

As the name suggests, this open-source project is about drawing spirals with a pen. Users click their mouse to perform the tasks. The project instructions also mention some remix tips, such as changing the width of the pen, making spirals of different sizes, altering the pen color, and drawing new shapes.

7. Piano

Imagine pressing your mousepad to play the notes of a piano and then bring the idea alive with Scratch. With the Piano music project, you get to add higher and lower notes and create keyboard shortcuts, using which users can execute varied melodies and songs. In addition, you can change the appearance of your piano and even undertake a unique variation with another instrument.

8. DJ Scratch Cat

DJ Scratch Cat is another music-based project that lets you mix sounds and graphics. As per the instructions on the Scratch website, you press V, B, N, or Z, X, C to play with sounds. You can explore new tunes and keys or place another DJ inside the setup instead of Scratch Cat.

9. Teens at the Castle

If you want to make an interactive storyboard or comic script, you can test the Teens at the Castle project on Scratch. It features a conversation between two characters who discover a castle in the woods. All you have to do is click on the arrow to switch scenes. You can add to the plot, title screens, sound effects, and record voices to accentuate the story as a programmer.

10. Virtual Tour

This project is perfect for introductions and induction training. You can design a virtual tour of your university or office space, highlighting your favourite places in an attractive slideshow. For example, the Scratch Team at MIT has put together scenes from their actual workspace to facilitate an immersive experience. You can replace the slides with other images or showcase your artwork in your remixed version.

11. Bubbles with Video

The Bubbles project applies the video sensing technique and thus, requires a webcam to operate. Users can pop the bubbles and watch them float. Scratch coders get to animate where the bubbles come from, when the pop happens, and keep track of all activities. It is recommended to opt for theBubbles 2.0project and compose renditions once you brush up on the basics.

12. Pizza Chef

Pizza Chef demonstrates the video sensing capabilities of Scratch. When players push their hands or head, the web camera detects the movement to keep the pizza in the air. The project enables you to practice block-based coding through diverse remixes. You can change how the dough would look, customize the number of flips of the pizza, add other floating objects in the air, or build a different version without the webcam requirement.

13. Animate the Crab

In this project, you attempt basic animation by changing the expression of the crab. Furthermore, you can discover endless possibilities, adding more characters, placing the crab in a dance party, inserting it to a storyboard, and so on.

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Other Scratch Project Topics

If you want to gain familiarity with the features before implementing a project, go through theActivity Guideaccess tutorials, download coding cards, and browse the educator guides. Here are some tasks begin with:

• Animate the letters of a word or your name.
• Choose sounds and instruments, and play music by pressing keys.
• Depict a story with characters and conversation.
• Choose a character, make it fly, or perform other tasks with animation.
• Build a basic game with audio, effects, and points.
• Interact with any project using video and sensing extensions.

Beginners can also attempt the following Scratch projects to hone their coding and artistic skills.

• The Pico Show (Animation)
• Pong Starter (Game)
• Wizard Spell (Interactive Art)
• Paint with Gobo (Interactive Art)
• Starfish Choir (Music)
• Remix this Dance! (Dance)
• 5 Random Facts About Me (Stories)
• Teens at the Castle (Stories)
• Musical Buttons (Video Sensing)
• Save the Mini Flags (Video Sensing)

You can find more details about these project topics on theScratch website.

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Summing Up

Scratch can help you program interactive stories, games, and animations. You can then share your creations with others and improve your projects, seeking suggestions from an active online community. It is an excellent tool to build 21st-century skills, such as systematic thinking, creativity, and collaboration. The best way to gain these industry-relevant skills is to take up a professional course such as upGrad’sMaster of Science in Computer Sciencecourse, in collaboration with LJMU.

So, what are you waiting for? Enroll in a professional course and use the Scratch projects given above to venture into the world of coding now!

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