Tara Binns: Creative Coder

Chapter 1 Tara Binns pushed up the hatch door into the attic at the top of her house.

She peered into the dimly lit room, climbed the last few steps of the ladder and scrambled on to the dusty floorboards, avoiding the spiders. The attic was messy and cluttered. Her family stored all kinds of things up here and it could have done with a tidy-up. Everywhere she looked, there were boxes, bags and old suitcases.

2

73320_P001_056.indd 2

22/09/21 2:34 PM

She was looking for a special box which was a lot more interesting than all the others – the costume box.

She scanned the room excitedly. There it was!

From the outside, you would never guess the wonders the box held inside. But Tara had visited the box before and she knew what would happen when she lifted the lid.

She knew to expect the unexpected.

Her eyes sparkled as she went to open it.

3

73320_P001_056.indd 3

22/09/21 2:34 PM

The costume box held much more than dressingup clothes. Yes, there were uniforms, boots, hats and gloves, but the box did more than give her an outfit. It gave her an adventure. It sent her off to do a job she’d often never heard of before. Each visit to the box gave her new experiences, problems to solve and decisions to make.

It taught her new skills, opening her eyes to the amazing things she could do.

As she pushed the lid open, her hand started to tingle.

The tingling went up her arm and all around her body.

4

73320_P001_056.indd 4

22/09/21 2:34 PM

She felt it lift her up and whirl her around. The attic became a blur as Tara began tumbling and spinning … through space and time … somewhere far away …

She squeezed her eyes tight shut and wondered …

What will I be today?

5

73320_P001_056.indd 5

22/09/21 2:34 PM

6

73320_P001_056.indd 6

22/09/21 2:34 PM

Chapter 2 When Tara opened her eyes, she was in a busy office.

She was surrounded by people talking and tapping away on computers. Everyone was working hard.

She looked down at her clothes. She was wearing a T-shirt and jeans. They were different from the clothes she had been wearing in the attic, but they weren’t like the outfits the box usually gave her. The only real clue to the job she was about to do was a gaming headset perched on her head.

“Hi there!” said a girl, waving as she approached Tara.

“I’m Ayesha. I’m in charge of the coding team here at Infinite Games. This is Ortez. He leads the design team.”

Ortez smiled a welcome at Tara. “Nice to meet you.

We make computer games – some of the best and most famous in the world! Here comes Frankie, the boss.

Oh, she doesn’t look very happy –” 7

73320_P001_056.indd 7

22/09/21 2:34 PM