Instructions
Cross the road is a fun and simple tapper game. Tap the character when you see the green man to make them walk across the road. When you see the red man, stop. Be careful not to get caught in the middle of the road.
Notes and Credits
You can play and edit the game on Scratch at the following link:
https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/530362307
Teaching
This game was created to help students practice crossing the road to stop when they see the red man and walk when they see the green man during our online classes. Although the classes are now offline, I still use this game in class, mostly as a reward. We typically play an offline version of the game first or have it running in the background so that the students can react to the lights changing.
Online Version
After teaching what each light means, each student can take a turn. In an online class, the students cannot physically move the character, so they must instruct the teacher on what to do. The software we use for online classes has a few seconds of delay, so when the lights change colour, I will start moving the character while listening to the student telling me to walk. If they stopped speaking, I would stop the character from walking.
Offline Version
Since going offline, I have found this game to be fun for students. You can run the game in the background and play an offline version. Lay out something on the floor to be a road. Once you have your road laid out, take a couple of students and have them wait at the side of the road. Look up at the game on the screen and ask them what light they see. If it is the red light, ask them, “What should we do?” They should tell you to “wait” or “stop,” depending on what you have taught them. When the light changes, they can tell you to “walk.”
The good thing about doing it this way is that the students learn to look for the light and wait for it to change. You can also use this game as a bit of fun and a reward after they have completed all other activities. Each student can take turns tapping the board and helping the character cross the road. This game is very easy to win, so many students find it funny to try and get run over!