To download scratch, you must go to the Scratch page and select the version of Scratch that is right for your operating system. The proper order to do this is (if you're into the proper order):

1. go to the Scratch home page
   
2. click the Download link
   
3. donate a small bit of money to the ongoing development of Scratch
   
4. choose and download the right version of Scratch for your computer
   
5. double-click on this file to install (or click from your browser's download area).
   
   

However, there are some small tips that might help. First, in the download page, they ask for a donation. Feel free to donate, but you can also go directly to the download page by clicking the link at the bottom.  

Second, as of the writing of this book, the following versions are all available here (http://info.scratch.mit.edu/Scratch_1.4_Download):

1. Microsoft Windows - Regular Installation    
   Requires Windows 2000 or later.
   Includes: Windows XP, Windows Vista,    Windows 7 
   Install like normal. Double-click the downloaded file. Follow the instructions. The program should be installed quickly. Look for the cat, as that's usually what you want to double-click to run Scratch.
   
   
2. Microsoft Windows – Special Installation- ZIP File     (http://download.scratch.mit.edu/WinScratch1.4.zip)
   If you don't have Administrator rights to install software on your   computer (or your students' computers), then you can still run Scratch!     -  Download this ZIP file
   -  Once downloaded, right-click on the file, choose "Extract ..."
   -  Extract this to whatever folder you'll remember. (I recommend the Desktop.)
   -  To run Scratch, double-clicking the "Scratch.exe" file. (It will run slower than normal, but it will run!)
   -  If you are a teacher asking your class to download this (or handing       it around on small USB drives) you may want to delete the "Samples"      folder, as this removes over 30% of the size. Just Extract the file, remove the folders you don't want, and zip the folders again.
   
3. Mac (OSX)   
   Requires Mac OSX 10.4 or later, including: 10.4 (Tiger), 10.5 (Leopard),    10.6 (Snow Leopard) and 10.7 (Lion)  
   -  Double-click to unzip the dmg file. Follow the instructions and drag       the Scratch file into your Applications. If you don't have Administrator      rights, you can try double-clicking in the unzip/dmg/StuffIt window.
   - If it works, it will probably run really slowly.
   
4. Ubuntu Linux   
   Requires Ubuntu 9.04 or later, including: 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope), 9.10   (Karmic Koala), 10.04 (Lucid Lynx), 11.04 (Natty Narwhal), 11.10 (Oneiric   Ocelot)  
   -  Installation instructions for Linux are here

You've downloaded and installed Scratch. Great! Now, let's get Scratch running and have a look around.

If Scratch isn't running yet, then you can start it by double-clicking the kitty cat.  When Scratch loads, it should look like this:  

The original tutorials (called "Scripts 1, 2 & 3" and "Scratch - Frogger") were a teaching activity for my classes. In 2006-2007, I somehow stumbled onto Scratch, had it installed and then tried it out with my grade 11/12 students. Everyone "got it" and some loved it enough to spend all their extra time making their Frogger game very advanced (and full of sound effects). I even told this group, "I'm sorry. We're going to try this programming thing that's built for 11-year-olds, but we'll try it out." Yes, all those students knew this, and still enjoyed it! That's when I knew I was on to something.

The next year, I tried this with my grade 8-9 students. The following year, I taught Scratch to grade 7 (11- to 13-year-olds). Every time it was a success.

When I moved to Fredericton, I had the joy of being a supply teacher, but I managed to land a 5-week coverage. I looked at the curriculum and saw one month of MS PowerPoint... with grade 9 students who had been using PPT for at least 3 years. I cringed.

But the staff was fantastic, and when I asked if I could change things, they went out of their way to encourage me. But, I realized that just teaching from what I remembered wouldn't be good enough. So, I created a web site (www.witty.ca) and posted 27 Youtube videos, and got my curriculum down.

My primary purpose in creating the web site was so that students could work at their own pace, especially with student attendance being up-and-down (due to sports, family trips, skipping, etc.). Later, I tried to help other staff teach the same content to their students.

This was both a brilliant success and a terrible failure. I realized that I was "making it look easy" and not understanding how a beginning teacher would deal with this subject matter. So, this guide contains notes for both the teacher, student and any young person interested in learning programming.

For teachers, I assume that you've never programmed before. This may mean that I seem to be "talking down" to you. Please forgive me! I am making this assumption because I've seen many teachers thrown into I.T. courses with the expectation that they will "just figure it out". ("You know how to use PowerPoint, don't you?")

For kids (students), I also assume that you've never programmed before. Sure, you know how to text, email, create a (bad) web site, tag photos on Facebook, and do a ton of other things. But programming is something very specific and involves code! If you can deal with a "for loop" and an "if-else" statement, then this might be too easy for you. Of course, it will still be fun, but also easy.

If you like these tutorials and/or if you are using them, in your classroom, your home or wherever, please let me know! You can reach me at:

• richgr@gmail.com via Email
  
• @kindofanonymous via Twitter

Scratch (scratch.mit.edu) is a software tool that helps kids (and students) learn software programming. This is an entry-level tool (for anyone who has never programmed before). It is free and open source software, and was developed by MIT.

I claim no ownership of Scratch and on association or affiliation with MIT or the Scratch team. I am simply a Scratch user, just like I hope you will all be.

All of these instructions, and the original companion videos, were made by me, Graham Rich. You are free to use these resources in your classroom, your lab, your home or wherever you find yourself. In other words, this book and accompanying materials are free to use; free to modify; free to mimic. 

My hope is that you will enjoy this book and accompanying materials so much that you will (1) pay for the book and (2) tell all your friends and colleagues! If you are interested in getting a site license for this book and accompanying materials, please contact me.

Enjoy!