Student Instructions

Student Instructions

Changing Sprites

You saw on the last level that keyDown returns true while you are holding a key down and false when the key is not pressed down. The input for the keyDown command is the name of key you want to check in quotes. Some examples are "x", "up" and "space".

We can use keyDown as an input to an if statement to change our animations based on key presses!

Do This

• Run the code and try pressing the up and down arrows.
• Look inside the if statement to see how the code works.
• Add a block inside the third if statement to change the animation to a different animal.

Hint: you can use the rabbit that's already in the Animations tab, or add a new animation.

Student Instructions

Moving Sprites

You can change your sprite's position based on key presses in the same way you changed its animations.

Do This

You have been provided with the start of a bug sprite. You need to pick the bug picture you want to use from the animation tab.

• Set the animation of the sprite to your favorite bug.
• Add an if statement inside your draw loop.
• Add a call to keyDown as the input to the if statement to check if the up arrow was pressed.
• Add code inside the conditional to move the sprite up if the up arrow is down.

Do you need to change sprite's x or y property to move it up?

Student Instructions

Fish With Arrows

The fish are back. Can you make the fish move left only when the left arrow key is pressed down?

Do This

• Add an if statement to check when the left arrow key is pressed down.
• Move the commands for moving the fish inside the if statement.

Student Instructions

Gears with Conditionals

Let's make the gears spin only when the space key is being held down.

Do This

• Add an if statement.
• Use keyDown as input to the if statement to check when the space key is pressed.
• Move the code that makes the gears rotate inside the if.

Student Instructions

Move in All Directions

Once you've got your sprite moving in one direction by responding to a keyDown, getting it to move in all four directions should be more of the same. The basic keyboard control that you're developing here will become the basis for many of the games you make down the road.

Do This

The bug sprite you made that responds to the up arrow has been brought to this level. Add the interaction for the other three arrow keys!

• Add three if statements - one for each arrow.
• Each if statement should move the sprite in the direction of the arrow.

HINT: Make sure you consider both the axis (x or y) of movement, and whether you need to increase or decrease that value.

Student Instructions

Changing Images as you Move

Right now your conditionals only do one thing (change your sprite's x or y), but you can actually put as much code as you want inside a conditional. A common thing to do in games is to change your character's image depending on which direction they're walking.

Do This

Using the provided program and images:

• Duplicate your chosen bug image four times.
• Edit each of your images to point in one of the four directions.
• Write code that uses sprite.setAnimation() to change the image on your bug sprite when different arrow keys are pressed.