Computer Lab Project

Astro-Chicken Rescue

Several space chickens have drifted away from their station. Control the rescue ship, collect them, and avoid dangerous zones.

Program: Scratch & Game Design
Project type: Computer Lab Project
Difficulty: Builder / Inventor
Estimated time: 45-90 minutes

Project brief

What students build

A controllable rescue ship
Several chickens at different or generated positions
Collection detection
One or more hazards
A rescued-chicken counter
A clear win condition

What students learn

Coordinates
Movement
Random Positions
Sensing
Collision
Variables
Debugging

What students need

Browser
Scratch editor
Keyboard

Computer Lab brief

Every chicken adds another position for the game to track. Students decide where the targets appear, what counts as a rescue, and how much navigational help the ship provides.

Required systems

What must exist.

A controllable rescue ship
Several chickens at different or generated positions
Collection detection
One or more hazards
A rescued-chicken counter
A clear win condition

Suggested build order

One useful route through the problem.

Give the ship a fixed starting position, then build and test its controls.
Place one chicken and make its collection rule reliable.
Add more chickens at different coordinates.
Make sure each chicken can increase the rescue count only once.
Add a danger zone and define what its collision does.
End the game when the rescue count matches the number of chickens.

Checkpoints

1The positions of the ship and every chicken can be inspected.
2Collecting one chicken adds exactly one to the count.
3Touching a hazard and a chicken cannot produce contradictory outcomes.
4The win condition matches the number of rescue targets.
5The student uses an object's coordinates to explain one test result.

Challenge cards

Choose one, combine compatible cards, or propose an equivalent challenge.

CHALLENGE 1

Randomize chicken locations.

CHALLENGE 2

Make chickens drift slowly.

CHALLENGE 3

Add limited oxygen.

CHALLENGE 4

Require a rescue order based on coordinates.

CHALLENGE 5

Define danger-zone boundaries using position.

CHALLENGE 6

Add an optional two-player rescue mode.

CHALLENGE 7

Create a radar display using relative position.

Test questions

Can the ship and every chicken's position be inspected?
Does collecting one chicken add exactly one to the count?
What happens when the ship touches a hazard and a chicken together?
Does the win condition match the number of rescue targets?
Do all targets and counters reset for a new attempt?

Common mistakes

Testing only the easiest successful path.
Changing several systems before retesting.
Resetting only part of the project state.

Challenge levels

LEVEL 1

Builder

Complete and explain the required systems.

LEVEL 2

Inventor

Choose one challenge card and test the result.

LEVEL 3

Boss Level

Create a beacon that compares the ship and chicken coordinates, then reports clues such as 'target is left and above.' Compare the two x values and the two y values separately.

What to demonstrate

Ship movement from a known start
Several objects with different coordinates
A successful rescue
A working hazard
A reliable win condition
One independently chosen challenge card