Converting index.html page into PHP

Hi WordPress-

First post, new to development, please be gentle.

I’m good with tutorials and used bits and pieces from several “how-to’s” to build a simple HTML page with CSS and JS to make a direction-aware hover effect that makes images light up when you scroll over them.

It’s a nice page and I’m happy with it, but I just started using WordPress and run up against brick wall after brick wall trying to get the HTML into PHP.

It’s my understanding that HTML can go “in” PHP files either echo’d or “HTML as HTML” surrounded by “<?php ?>” but my question is this:

What specific PHP markup is needed to get the page working?

I don’t think I’ve asked google the right questions thus far and wonder if I’m phrasing it correctly here now.

I don’t know the best way to get the community my code (are there best practices? screenshots? links? copy/paste all of it?)

I can get the images up and running on front-page.php but the hover-effects don’t take place so I think something might not be syncing correctly. I’ve posted all code from index.html, style.css, and two JS files below. Please let me know if you need more(?) or if I should be posting less. Again, I’m trying to get these to sync together and function on my front-page.php. Please advise.

Here’s the index.html code:

[Moderator note: Please post a large excerpt of code in a Pastebin or Gist and submit it as a link in your post. See: http://codex.ww.wp.xz.cn/Forum_Welcome#Posting_Large_Excerpt_of_Code%5D

I’ll apologize in advance if this is too much or not posted the right way. Again, any direction on future postings is appreciated.

Is there anything I can do with these files that work on an index.html, but I’m trying to get this to work as the front-page.php on my site.

Help me Obi Wan Kawordpress.. you’re my only hope..