squeak!

In my continuing quest to find some way of introducing Caitlin to programming, I’ve tried a few different things…Logo and Python to name a couple..
I actually had the most success with Python- I got her to print out her name a few times and some other simple stuff like that…with Logo she was far more interested in telling me what she wanted to see happen, and having me do it, than trying anything herself.
But now hopefully I’ve found something that might be a little more appropriate.
It’s Squeak, which is a Smalltalk implementation that comes with something called eToys. eToys is basically an extra layer on top of the Squeak environment that allows visual manipulation of properties, and creation of “scripts” (which are basically just methods, or smalltalk messages).
The general idea with eToys is that you start with a “Sketch”, which you create using a painting tool, and then from there you can start creating scripts for it and manipulating it’s properties.
I created myself a rather badly drawn cat and mouse, and had them run around the screen, turning if they hit the edge. I also added a button to make the cat turn towards the mouse. It was rather addictive, I kept thinking of other things to try to make them do….
I’m definitely going to have to play with it a bit more and then try Caitlin with it, and see what she thinks.
Oh, and here‘s a screenshot of my work in action…heh
Another great thing about it, is that there’s a small browser plugin you can download that lets you run Squeak projects straight from the web – either in the browser window, or fullscreen. I definitely recommend installing it and having a look at the tutorials and having a play…’cause it’s fun!