Scratch in the News

Scratch News Highlights

BBC (May 2007): Free Tool offers 'Easy' Coding
"Primarily aimed at children, Scratch does not require prior knowledge of complex computer languages. Instead, it uses a simple graphical interface that allows programs to be assembled like building blocks..."

Boston Globe (May 2007): Programming Becomes Child's Play
"After school lets out on Fridays at the Jonas Clarke Middle School, two dozen boisterous students descend on the computer lab to fiddle with the computer code that powers their projects, from a "Star Wars" lightsaber duel to a flying hippo animation..."

New York Times (May 2007 ) A Programming Language Like Playing With Blocks
"Scratch is a creativity tool from the MIT Media Lab that turns abstract programming concepts like recursion into snap-together puzzle pieces..."

New Scientist (July 2008): Creating Your Own Computer Game is Child's Play
"Two young girls focus on a monitor in front of them as one of them steers a blue dog through a bright pink and purple tunnel using a computer mouse. Against a background buzz of classroom noise, a boy nearby is guiding an animated Mini Cooper car around a simple on-screen maze..."

American Libraries (July 2008): Minds At Play
"Developed by Resnick's research group at the MIT Media Lab, Scratch is a programming tool that allows young people to create computer games, animations, and other forms of interactive media..."

Chronicle of Higher Education (July 2007): Fun, Not Fear, Is at the Heart of Scratch, a New Programming Language (video)
"Computer programming is not usually taught to 8-year-olds. But a new system developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology turns building video games into child's play..."

Wired (March 2009): Scratch Lowers Resistance to Programming
"A new language from MIT's Media Lab makes it easy for kids to develop programs that interact with things in the real world: Pencils, paper, water, and even vegetables..."

PC World (November 2009): Book Review - Scratch 1.4: A Beginner's Guide
"Scratch is excellent in many ways. Children take to it like a duck to water. Adults who want to encourage children to use Scratch need a guidebook to help them develop some skills using Scratch. This new guidebook by Michael Badger is just what the doctor ordered."

Scratch News Archive

Publications:

Boston Globe (May 2009): Young Game Designers Unite at MIT

School Library Journal (May 2009): Celebrating Scratch in Libraries

Voice of America (May 2009): Scratch Gives Students Tools to Create Interactive Media

Wired (March 2009): Scratch Lowers Resistance to Programming

American Libraries (July 2008): Minds At Play

Edutopia (July 2008): Play to Learn: The Scratch Programming Language Sneaks Serious Fun into the Classroom

L'Atelier (French) (July 2008): Scratch Ouvre le Developpement aux Tres

New Scientist (July 2008): Creating Your Own Computer Game is Child's Play

Scholastic Magazine (August 2007): Kids Become

Technology Review (August 2007): Playing Their Own Way