Hello! My name is Jordan, and I’m part of the Lakota, Hopi, and Mojave communities. I work at Pinterest, leading a team called Global Outsourcing. Today, I’m excited to introduce you to something really fun and creative: Play Lab!
Play Lab is a cool tool that lets you create your own stories and games by using code. Imagine being able to make characters, called actors, move around, talk, and interact with each other. You can even add sounds, backgrounds, and points to make your game more exciting!
In Play Lab, you’ll use code blocks to build your programs. These blocks are like puzzle pieces that you drag into your workspace. The magic happens when you connect them to the “when run” block. This block makes everything start when you press the run button.
To make your program interactive, you’ll use something called events. Event blocks tell the computer to wait for something to happen, like pressing a key or clicking on an actor, and then respond right away. These blocks can be placed anywhere in your workspace and don’t need to connect to the “when run” block.
Take your time to think about how you want your program to work. You can be as creative as you like! Once you’re done, you’ll have a unique creation that you can share with others. So, what amazing story or game will you create today?
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Imagine a story you want to tell. Draw a storyboard with at least three scenes. Think about the characters, or actors, you want to include and what actions they will perform. This will help you plan your game or story before you start coding in Play Lab.
Use Play Lab to create a simple game where an actor moves across the screen. Use code blocks to make the actor move when you press a key. Experiment with different movements and see how you can make your game more fun!
Try adding an event to your game. Make something happen when you click on an actor or press a specific key. For example, you could make an actor say something or change colors. See how many different events you can add to make your game interactive!
Think about the setting of your story or game. Use Play Lab to design a background that matches your theme. You can choose from existing backgrounds or create your own. This will make your game more visually appealing!
Once you’ve created your game or story, share it with a classmate. Explain how you used code blocks and events to make your creation come to life. Reflect on what you learned and what you might do differently next time.
Here’s a sanitized version of the provided YouTube transcript:
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My name is Jordan, and I’m Lakota. In this presentation, I’m also Hopi and Mojave. I lead a team called Global Outsourcing at Pinterest.
You’re about to get started with Play Lab, which is a tool that lets you create your own stories and games by writing code. Play Lab has a variety of characters you can choose from, called actors. Actors can move, say things, and interact with each other. Your code allows you to control the actors, add sounds and backgrounds, score points, and more.
You’ll drag code blocks into your workspace to build your programs. The code connected to the “when run” block will make things happen as soon as you press the run button. To make your program react when someone interacts with it, you’ll use events. These blocks are called event blocks.
When we code with events, we’re telling the computer to wait for something to happen and then respond immediately. The code connected to an event block runs when the player presses a key, taps, clicks an actor, or when one actor touches another actor. Event blocks can go anywhere in your workspace; they never connect to the “when run” block, so it’s okay to leave them off to the side.
Take your time and think carefully about how you want your program to work. When you’re finished, you’ll have something special that you can share with others.
Now, what do you want to create?
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This version maintains the original content while ensuring clarity and professionalism.
Play Lab – A fun online platform where you can learn to code by creating games and stories. – In Play Lab, I made a game where a dog chases a cat around the park.
Code – A set of instructions that a computer can understand and follow to perform tasks. – I wrote code to make the robot move forward and turn left.
Characters – The people, animals, or objects in a game or story that can move and interact. – My game has characters like a superhero and a dragon.
Actors – Objects in a coding project that can perform actions, like moving or speaking. – In my animation, the actors include a talking tree and a dancing robot.
Sounds – Audio effects or music that can be added to a game or program to make it more engaging. – I added sounds of birds chirping to my forest scene.
Backgrounds – The images or scenes that appear behind the characters in a game or program. – I chose a beach background for my summer adventure game.
Events – Actions or occurrences that trigger certain responses in a program. – When the player clicks the mouse, an event makes the character jump.
Program – A complete set of coded instructions that tells a computer how to perform a specific task. – I created a program that plays a song when you press the space bar.
Interactive – Allowing a user to engage and interact with a program or game. – My interactive story lets you choose what happens next by clicking buttons.
Create – To make something new using your ideas and coding skills. – I used Scratch to create a fun maze game for my friends to play.
