Unit 1 Creative Mini-Task

Build in CMU: 1.6.2 Creative Task 1 (CMU CS Academy)
Submit in CMU: Click Submit when finished
Submit PDF: Complete Planning Questions and Reflection Questions

Purpose

This is your first chance to create something completely your own using code. You will design and build an original visual scene or picture using only the Unit 1 concepts you have learned: drawing shapes, positioning, colors, and styling.

Creative Tasks help you practice thinking like a programmer: planning before coding, solving problems as they come up, and reflecting on your work.

What You Will Create

Choose one idea to build:

• A scene from real life (park, room, city, classroom, sports field, etc.)
• A nature picture (sunset, forest, ocean, mountains, garden, etc.)
• An object or character (robot, animal, vehicle, building, etc.)
• A simple design or logo
• Anything else you can imagine using shapes and colors!

Program Requirements

Your program must include:

• At least 6 total shapes
• At least 3 different shape types (e.g., Circle, Rect, Line)
• At least 2 different styling options used intentionally (e.g., fill, border, opacity)
• Layering (shapes overlapping to create depth)
• A clear purpose (someone looking at it should understand what it is)

Step-by-Step: What To Do

1. Plan your idea – Decide what you want to create. Sketch it on paper if helpful.
2. Think about shapes – What shapes will you need? Where will they go?
3. Open CMU CS Academy – Go to 1.6.2 Creative Task 1.
4. Build your program – Code your scene one shape at a time. Test frequently!
5. Submit in CMU – Click the Submit button when finished.
6. Complete your reflection – Answer the reflection questions below.

Planning Questions (Think Before You Code)

Answer these questions before or while you build:

1. Description: What are you creating? What is the purpose or theme?
2. Objects: List at least 4 objects or elements you will include.
3. Shapes: What shapes will you use for each object?
4. Colors: What colors will you use and why?
5. Layering: What should be in the background vs. foreground?

Reflection Questions (After You Finish)

Answer these questions after completing your program:

1. Difficulties & Opportunities: Describe one challenge you faced while coding OR one improvement you added that wasn't in your original plan. How did you handle it?
2. Unit 1 Concepts: Identify and explain at least two Unit 1 concepts you used in your program. What did each concept do in your project?
3. Future Goals: If you had more time, what would you add or improve?

Grading Rubric

Your Creative Mini-Task will be graded using this rubric:

EXEMPLAR: Unit 1 Creative Mini-Task

Below is an example of a project that would meet expectations for the Unit 1 Creative Mini-Task.

PART 1 – PLANNING

1. Description

I am creating a simple house scene. The purpose is to show a house with a yard on a sunny day. I want it to look cheerful and colorful.

2. Objects

• Sky background
• Sun
• Grass
• House (walls and roof)
• Door and windows
• Tree

3. Shapes

• Sky: large Rect
• Sun: Circle
• Grass: Rect
• House walls: Rect
• Roof: Polygon (triangle)
• Door: Rect
• Windows: Rect
• Tree trunk: Rect
• Tree leaves: Circle

4. Colors

• Sky: lightBlue
• Sun: yellow
• Grass: green
• House: tan walls, darkRed roof
• Door: brown
• Windows: lightBlue with black border
• Tree: brown trunk, green leaves

5. Layering

• Background: sky, then sun
• Middle: grass, house, tree trunk
• Foreground: door, windows, tree leaves

PART 2 – SCREENSHOT

Example Output:

PART 3 – SAMPLE CODE

Here is what the code might look like:

# Sky background
Rect(0, 0, 400, 250, fill='lightBlue')

# Sun
Circle(350, 60, 40, fill='yellow')

# Grass
Rect(0, 250, 400, 150, fill='green')

# House walls
Rect(100, 180, 150, 120, fill='tan')

# Roof (triangle)
Polygon(90, 180, 175, 100, 260, 180, fill='darkRed')

# Door
Rect(155, 240, 40, 60, fill='brown')

# Windows
Rect(115, 200, 30, 30, fill='lightBlue', border='black', borderWidth=2)
Rect(205, 200, 30, 30, fill='lightBlue', border='black', borderWidth=2)

# Tree trunk
Rect(310, 260, 20, 80, fill='brown')

# Tree leaves
Circle(320, 230, 45, fill='forestGreen')

PART 4 – REFLECTION

1. Difficulties & Opportunities

One difficulty I faced was getting the roof to line up with the house walls. At first my triangle was in the wrong place. I had to use the Inspector tool to find the exact coordinates for the corners of the house, then I adjusted my Polygon coordinates to match. This took some trial and error but I figured it out.

2. Unit 1 Concepts

Two Unit 1 concepts I used:

• Layering: I drew the sky first, then the grass, then the house and tree on top. This makes the background appear behind everything else.
• Border styling: I used border='black' and borderWidth=2 on the windows to make them look more like real windows with frames.

3. Future Goals

If I had more time, I would add clouds in the sky using Ovals, flowers in the grass using small Circles, and maybe a path leading to the door.