Learning Goals 3 min
By the end of this lesson you will be able to:
- Open the Choose a Sprite menu and add a new sprite from the library.
- Switch between two sprites in the Sprite list and notice each has its own Script Area.
- Give a second sprite its own when ⚑ clicked script that runs at the same time as the cat's.
Warm-Up 7 min
Last lesson the scene ran and stopped cleanly. Today the scene gets company — a kuih joins the cat so the stage isn't just one character any more.
Quick-fire puzzle
Hafiz has two sprites in his project: a cat and a bird. He clicks the cat in the Sprite list and sees this script. Then he clicks the bird — and its Script Area is empty. Predict — when Hafiz clicks the green flag, what happens?
when flag clicked
move (40) steps
Reveal the answer
The cat moves 40 steps. The bird does nothing — it has no script of its own. Every sprite has its own private Script Area. A script written for the cat only controls the cat. The bird needs its own blocks to do anything.
New Concept — the Sprite library 15 min
Imagine a school play. Every actor has their own lines, their own costume, their own bit of stage to walk on. In Scratch, every sprite is an actor. They share the same Stage, but each one has its own script.
Where the sprite library lives
Look at the bottom-right of the editor, just below the Sprite list. You'll see a small blue circle with a cat face — the "Choose a Sprite" button. Hover over it and four icons fan out:
| Icon | Name | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| 🔍 | Choose a Sprite | Opens the official Scratch sprite library — over 150 ready-made sprites grouped by theme. |
| 🎨 | Paint | Opens a blank costume editor so you can draw your own sprite from scratch. |
| 🎲 | Surprise | Picks a random sprite from the library. Fast and fun. |
| 📤 | Upload | Adds a sprite from a picture file on your computer (PNG, JPG, SVG). |
Inside the library
Click "Choose a Sprite" and a grid appears. You can browse by category — Animals, People, Food, Fantasy, Music — or type a search word at the top. Click any thumbnail and that sprite drops into your project.
Each sprite has its own Script Area
This is the most important idea of the lesson. When you click a sprite in the Sprite list, the Script Area updates to show that sprite's blocks. Click the cat — you see the cat's script. Click the new sprite — the Script Area changes. The cat's blocks didn't disappear; they're just on the cat's "page".
- The cat's script controls the cat.
- The bird's script controls the bird.
- Both run at the same time when you click the green flag.
Why it matters
One-sprite projects get boring fast. Two sprites means a conversation, a chase, a race, a story. Most real Scratch projects use 3 to 10 sprites. Today is your first step away from the lonely cat.
Worked Example — add a kuih to the cat's world 15 min
Open Scratch in a new tab. The cat is on the Stage. Today we'll add a second sprite — a piece of kuih — and give it its own little move.
Step 1 — Make sure the cat is selected
Click the cat's card in the Sprite list. Its border turns blue. Drag a quick script: when ⚑ clicked + move (40) steps. This is the cat's script.
when flag clicked
move (40) steps
Step 2 — Open the sprite library
Hover over the blue cat-face button at the bottom-right. Four icons appear. Click the top one — the magnifying glass labelled "Choose a Sprite". The library opens in a popup.
Step 3 — Find a sprite
Search the library for "donut" (Scratch doesn't have a "kuih" sprite, so we'll use a donut as our stand-in kuih). Click the Donut thumbnail. The library closes and a donut appears on the Stage. The Sprite list now has two cards: the cat and the donut.
Step 4 — Rename the new sprite
The new sprite is selected automatically (blue border). In the Sprite Properties bar, click the Name field and change Donut to Kuih. Press Enter. The Sprite list updates.
Step 5 — Move the kuih to the left of the Stage
Still on the kuih, set its x to -150 and y to -50 in the Sprite Properties bar. The kuih slides to the lower-left of the Stage.
Step 6 — Notice the Script Area is empty
Look at the middle of the editor. Empty! The cat's script is not gone — it's just on the cat's page. The kuih has no blocks yet because we haven't dragged any to its Script Area.
Step 7 — Give the kuih its own script
With the kuih still selected, drag when ⚑ clicked + move (40) steps into the empty Script Area. The kuih now has its own script — exactly the same shape as the cat's, but on a different sprite.
when flag clicked
move (40) steps
Step 8 — Click the green flag
Both sprites move at the same time. The cat hops 40 steps right. The kuih hops 40 steps right. Two sprites, one flag click. Click again — both hop again.
What changed: compared to lessons 1–4 (one cat, one script), you now have two characters with two separate scripts. The green flag started both at the same time. That's how every multi-sprite Scratch project works.
Try It Yourself — three sprite tasks 12 min
Goal: Add a third sprite. Pick anything from the library — try "Apple", "Ball", or "Butterfly". Place it at x = 0, y = 100. Don't write a script yet. Just see all three sprite cards in the Sprite list.
when flag clicked
Think: The new sprite has no script. When you click the flag, the cat and kuih move — the new sprite does nothing. Each sprite needs its own hat block to wake up.
Goal: Give your third sprite its own move script — but make it move less than the others. The cat moves 40, the kuih moves 40, but the new sprite moves only 10. One flag click should send the three sprites different distances.
when flag clicked
move (10) steps
Think: When you click the flag, three scripts run at once. The cat zooms 40 steps, the kuih zooms 40 steps, the small one shuffles 10. Same flag — different sprites, different distances.
Goal: Use the Surprise sprite button. Add three random sprites at once. Give each one a different move number — 20, 40, 80. When you click the flag, they fan out across the Stage.
when flag clicked
move (80) steps
Think: Set each sprite's starting x to -200 before the click. After the click, check where they end up: -180, -160, -120. Different scripts on different sprites = different end positions.
Mini-Challenge — the family race 5 min
"Wei Jie's three-sprite sprint"
Build a project with three sprites that start on the left edge and race to the right when the flag is clicked. Use only blocks from lessons 1–4 and the sprite-adding skills you learned today.
It works if:
- All three sprites start at x =
-200(use the Sprite Properties panel for each). - One green flag click starts all three at the same time.
- The three sprites move different distances — so you have a clear winner, runner-up, and last place.
- You only used hat, Motion, and Control blocks from lessons 1–4.
Reveal one valid solution
Add three sprites — say, a cat, a kuih, and an apple. Set each one's x to -200. Then on each sprite, write a small script with a different move number.
when flag clicked
move (200) steps
when flag clicked
move (150) steps
when flag clicked
move (100) steps
Three scripts shown together — but each one is on a different sprite. The first sprite zooms to x = 0, the second to x = -50, the third to x = -100. Cat wins.
Recap 2 min
Today you opened the Sprite library, added new characters, and learned that every sprite has its very own Script Area. Switching sprites in the Sprite list switches what scripts you see. One green flag click runs every sprite's scripts at the same time.
- Sprite library
- Scratch's built-in collection of ready-made sprites — animals, people, food, music, fantasy. Opens from the blue cat-face button.
- Choose a Sprite
- The magnifying-glass icon that opens the library. The most common way to add a new sprite.
- Surprise
- The dice-shaped button that picks a random sprite from the library.
- Selected sprite
- The sprite whose Script Area is currently showing. Its card has a blue border in the Sprite list.
Homework 1 min
The Three-Friend Project. Build a Scratch project with three sprites who all wave hello when the flag is clicked.
- Open Scratch. Keep the cat. Add two more sprites from the library — anything you like.
- Rename them after three friends or family members (e.g. Aisyah, Wei Jie, Priya).
- Position them across the Stage — one at x =
-150, one at x =0, one at x =+150. - On each sprite, build the same 3-block script: when ⚑ clicked · move (20) steps · wait (1) seconds.
- Click the green flag. All three sprites take a small hop forward.
Bring back next class:
- A screenshot of your Stage with all three sprites visible.
- A screenshot of the Sprite list showing three named cards.
- Your answer to this question: "If you click only the cat's script (right-click → run) instead of the green flag, do the other two sprites move? Why or why not?"
Heads up for next class: SCR-L01-06 teaches you how to save your project — so the family race you built today doesn't vanish when you close the browser.