An event is something that happens — a click, a key press, a sensor noticing movement — that makes a program react. Games and apps are full of events that wait for the player to do something.
What your child will learn
- Know what an event is in a program
- Recognise event blocks such as “when ▶ clicked” and “when key pressed”
- Predict what a program does when an event happens
- Spot events in everyday machines
Waiting for something to happen
Scratch programs start with an event block like “when ▶ clicked”. A game might also say “when space key pressed, jump”. Nothing happens until the event occurs — then the script runs.
Real life is full of events too: pressing a lift button, a motion sensor switching on a light, or an alarm going off at 7 o’clock.
Example questions
Here are a few questions like the ones in the first quest. Can you solve them?
1. What happens in a Scratch program before its event happens?
- The sprite disappears
- The script runs again and again
- The computer turns off
- The script waits
Show answer
Answer: The script waits. Scripts wait until their event happens.
2. True or false? Events tell a program WHEN to do something.
Show answer
Answer: True. An event is the “when” that starts a script.
3. A doorbell rings when you press the button. What is the event?
🔔- Pressing the button
- The door
- The house
- The ringing sound
Show answer
Answer: Pressing the button. Pressing the button is the event; the ring is the result.
Tips for grown-ups
- Spot events at home: the doorbell, the microwave button, the automatic light.
- Play a game where different actions are “events” that make you do a move.