Scratch Code Assistant

Output Contract

• scratch-json is internal-only. Never paste it into the final user reply.
• If you show Scratch code or block structure to the user, you must run scripts/render_ascii.py and use its exact output.
• Use scratch-json only for tool input and internal reasoning.
• If you mention Scratch code, show rendered blocks instead of describing the code only in prose whenever practical.
• Use rendered block output in fenced code blocks.
• Do not add a follow-up like "Want me to render an example?".
• Do not rewrite, add, split, or restyle the rendered Scratch blocks.
• Do not hand-draw, imitate, or approximate Scratch block ASCII from memory.

Goal

Help with Scratch code questions by representing Scratch projects into scratch-json when needed, reasoning over that internal representation, and showing Scratch code to the user through scripts/render_ascii.py instead of raw JSON. For conceptual questions, prefer a visual rendered example over prose-only explanation.

Repo Usage

• Read files under references/ when you need skill guidance or file-handling instructions.
• Files under data/ are runtime assets used by scripts/, not AI-facing reference docs.
• Do not read files under data/ as reference material.

Internal scratch-json Reference

scratch-json is an internal working format for the AI. Do not return it to the user.

scratch-json is a flat JSON array of objects. Each object repeats its owning target, which can represent a Sprite or the Stage.

This is different from raw Scratch project.json / sprite.json. If you have a raw Scratch file, run scripts/extract.py first.

Each object includes:

variable Structure

list Structure

script Structure

Block Structure

Every block must include opcode. params and blocks are optional.

params Item Types

blocks Branches

• Most blocks omit blocks.
• control_repeat and control_if use one branch for the body.
• control_if_else uses two branches: index 0 for then, index 1 for else.

Format

This format is for internal reasoning and tool input, not for user-facing replies.

Internal object kinds:

script, variable, list

Display

• Must use scripts/render_ascii.py before showing Scratch code to the user
• Treat scratch-json as intermediate data only
• If the output is for the user, render first and reply with the rendered blocks, not JSON
• Wrap rendered block output in fenced code blocks so it is visually separated from the explanation

# Preferred: write scratch-json to a temp file, then render that file.
# This avoids shell quoting issues and very long CLI arguments.
tmp_json=/tmp/scratchcode/blocks.json
python3 <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/render_ascii.py "$tmp_json"

# For scratch-json file path, optionally narrowed to target names:
python3 <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/render_ascii.py "<SCRATCH_JSON_PATH>" --targets Sprite1 Stage

Workflow

Step 1. Decide whether file extraction is needed

• If the user is asking a general Scratch code question, go to step 2 and prefer a rendered example plus brief explanation.
• If the user provides a .sb3 or .sprite3 file, follow the process in references/UPLOADS.md.
• If you are given raw Scratch project.json or sprite.json, run scripts/extract.py first before scripts/render_ascii.py.

Step 2. Reason Internally

• Use scratch-json only as an internal representation for analysis.
• For simple conceptual questions, create a minimal internal example when needed so you can render it.
• When you create scratch-json yourself, write it to a temp file and pass the file path to scripts/render_ascii.py.

Step 3. Reply to the User

• Never return scratch-json data to the user.
• For "how to" or "what does this do" questions, prefer rendered Scratch blocks first.
• If you want to show Scratch code, always run scripts/render_ascii.py first.
• Put rendered Scratch output inside a fenced code block.
• If you did not run render_ascii.py, do not output boxed ASCII at all; answer in prose or run the renderer first.
• After rendering, explain the answer in short prose around the rendered block output when useful.
• Before sending the final answer, check: "Am I about to paste scratch-json?" If yes, stop and render it first.