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Scratch Programming Playground

Learn to Program by Making Cool Games

Author Al Sweigart

Paperback

$24.95 US

No Starch | No Starch Press

7.06"W x 9.25"H x 0.82"D | 23 oz | 22 per carton

On sale Sep 16, 2016 | 288 Pages | 9781593277628

Age 10 and up

Reading Level: Lexile 1020L

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Scratch, the colorful drag-and-drop programming language, is used by millions of first-time learners, and in Scratch Programming Playground, you’ll learn to program by making cool games. Get ready to destroy asteroids, shoot hoops, and slice and dice fruit!

Each game includes easy-to-follow instructions, review questions, and creative coding challenges to make the game your own. Want to add more levels or a cheat code? No problem, just write some code.

You’ll learn to make games like:
–Maze Runner: escape the maze!
–Snaaaaaake: gobble apples and avoid your own tail
–Asteroid Breaker: smash space rocks
–Fruit Slicer: a Fruit Ninja clone
–Brick Breaker: a remake of Breakout, the brick-breaking classic
–Platformer: a game inspired by Super Mario Bros.

Learning how to program shouldn’t be dry and dreary. With Scratch Programming Playground, you’ll make a game of it!

Uses Scratch 2

Al Sweigart is a software developer and teaches programming to kids and adults. He has written several Python books for beginners, including Automate the Boring Stuff with Python, Invent Your Own Computer Games with Python, and Making Games with Python & Pygame.

Al Sweigart View titles by Al Sweigart

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Introduction
Chapter 1: Getting Started with Scratch
Chapter 2: Rainbow Lines in Space!
Chapter 3: Maze Runner
Chapter 4: Shooting Hoops with Gravity
Chapter 5: A Polished Brick Breaker Game
Chapter 6: Snaaaaaake!
Chapter 7: Fruit Slicer
Chapter 8: Asteroid Breaker . . . in Space!
Chapter 9: Making an Advanced Platformer

Featured as Gadget Book of the Week in Electronics Weekly

"Kids who can master Minecraft might want to try making their own games using this as a guideline."
—Joy Schwabach, Arkansas Online

"An excellent resource to learn how to make epic games . . . My son has been coding for several years now. He enjoyed working through this book and completing the games. He likes that the author's presentation is clear, concise, and engaging. There is no second-guessing with the illustrations if you are doing the steps correctly."
—Renee Knoblauch, The Old Schoolhouse®

Praise for Scratch Programming Playground

“An impressive manual for achieving Scratch programming mastery and creating genuinely entertaining games.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“My son was able to successfully complete each game he attempted. And along the way, he gained some excellent programming skills. I also really appreciated the character lessons he learned (patience and perseverance, not to mention goal-setting). These were a great by-product of Scratch programming!”
—The Old Schoolhouse Magazine

“The book is well written, full of humor and puns, and the explanations of how things work are good.”
—I Programmer

“I’m quite impressed with exactly how much of the Scratch programming tool the reader will have used and learned by the end of the book, and I think teachers and parents will find this a 5-star reference.”
—Jim Kelly, GeekDad

“If you are looking for the next thing for your Minecraft-loving kids and haven’t tried Scratch, the Scratch Programming Playground book is a great guide to teach kids how to program by making cool games.”
—Tech Savvy Mama

"The book is well written, full of humor and puns, and the explanations of how things work are good. It also generally implements things in a sensible way and you aren't going to learn any bad habits or methods from the book. . . . highly recommended."
—Kay Ewbank, I Programmer, Programming Book Choices For Fun

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