I Tried Using Scratch With My Reluctant Writers and Here’s What Happened

This is a post on writing. We expect writing to be full bodied, so our wine should be too. Try a cabernet sauvignon.

Getting students to write can be challenging, especially when writing is difficult for students. They sit and wait. It becomes a game, wondering who is going crack first. It happens to the best of us.

I expressed this concern when I visited the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia. If you haven’t been, I highly recommened going. Ron and his staff are amazing, and you will leave with a new fire and passion in your soul for teaching.

But yes, even at RCA when asked what my students struggled with I replied, “Ideas. They want to be told what to write and how.”

That’s when one of the students chimed in, “We do too!”

So what can we do to help young writers become more comfortable, confident, and engaged in the writing process?

Trick them. Yup, I said it. It’s like disguising vegetables in any dinner you cook for a toddler. You make them think they aren’t really eating vegetables.

Repeat after mer, “The crust is made of bread, not cauliflower. You aren’t writing, you’re coding and it’s fun!”

What is Scratch?

Awesomeness. It’s free, it’s fun, it’s educational, and it will get your kids to write. See, awesomeness. 

Your students will need their own account, but check out this FREEBIE to help get your kiddos their own account. See, easy. You’re on your way to an early night of watching some fantastically coded writing, so your night is going to go smoothly, girl, just like that glass of wine in your hand!

And let me say that again, YOU ARE GOING TO BE WATCHING THEIR WRITING.

Amazeballs!

Getting Started

Once your students have created accounts, which will be so easy because you have downloaded these FREE direction sheets, they are ready to get started. Scratch operates using drag and drop blocks of computer coding to control what is called a sprite, or a graphic that can be controlled through a script that you code.

Scratch has many tutorials if you’re new, but really teaching students just a few basics will get them coding in no time, and better yet, WRITING!

The activity I use the most in my class is having my students explain a concept with a sprite.

I show students how to change the setting, or STAGE, as well as how to change their sprite. Then, I show them how they can easily drag and drop EVENT blocks and LOOKS blocks to create an explanation of ANY concept that we are studying in class. I have made these cards, and student guides to make this activity accessible to ALL students, and to help me manage student questions. We wouldn’t want to be driven to drink during work hours, that’s a no no, and I know you are thinking any sort of tech in the classroom is going to push you to the brink.

I got you girl!. Download them. They’re free. They make life easier.

I find my quick learners enjoy working ahead while I can assist students that need more support.

Get Coding!

Now it’s time to sneak in the vegetables. I use this activity to reinforce procedures in class, from explaining how to change fractions into equivalent fractions, to explaining a concept that we have been studying in science or social studies. Oops, how did that content review get in there?

Because students have to code their sprite to talk, they are writing but it doesn’t feel like writing. They see their sprite talk and move, all because they have coded it to do so!

Even my most reluctant writers were engaged, and yours will be too.

To help my students focus on the writing aspect, I provide them with a think sheet to plan their writing, just like I would during my normal writing time. My students know that good writing includes a topic sentence (or claim), details or supporting evidence, as well as explanations, examples, or elaborations. They also know to wrap it up with a nice conclusion. The graphic organizer includes ALL of these details to turn the focus of the activity on to the writing.

Once done, students share their creations by sharing the link in our Google classroom.

That’s it. Sit back, press play, and assess your students on their writing. It’s simple, engaging, and integrated.

No arguing, no holding hands trying to drag sentences out of them. Coding, writing, and a wonderful day in the classroom.

If you would like to know more about coding using Scratch, pop your questions in the comments below. Don’t forget to check out the Scratch tutorials and download your freebies!