YOU ARE THE DETECTIVE
Oops! That was not the plan.
Your character goes the wrong way. Your square has only three sides. Even experienced coders make mistakes. Take your time and look for one small thing to check.
Here is how to work it out
Look closely
What did you want to make? What actually happens? Say it out loud. For example: ‘I want a square, but I can only see three lines.’
Change one thing
Look at the instructions for your drawing. Does the last line get drawn? Pick one thing to change. That way, you can see what it does.
Try again
Start your program again. Did the change help? If not, undo it and try a different idea. You can always ask someone to look with you.
TRY IT YOURSELF · ON PAPER
Where is the fourth line?
Get a pencil and some paper. Follow these instructions, starting each line where the last one ends. Keep the lines the same length.
- Draw a line to the right.
- Draw a line down.
- Draw a line to the left.
Which instruction is missing?
Draw one more line up, back to the start. Now you have four lines: a square! You found a missing step. You can look for missing steps in your program too.
Have a go at the drawing activity
Choose a different number of sides. First, guess what the shape will look like. Let the turtle draw it and see if you were right.