Big dreams, bare feet

Challenge Context

After some time away from hands-on eLearning design, I wanted a side project that would let me rediscover the joy of building in Articulate Storyline, without deadlines or deliverables.

 

Inspired by Hemi, one of the AI voices in Storyline 360, I created Learning with Tama: a light-hearted interactive story following an 11-year-old boy from rural Aotearoa who lives with his Nan, his little brother Hemi, and a goat named Tina Turner (no relation, unless the original also eats curtains).

Tools and Skills

Articulate Storyline 360 · Adobe Illustrator · AI Image Generation · ChatGPT · Storyboarding & Narrative Design

Design Approach

The project uses character-driven storytelling, simple animations, and choice-based interactions to guide learners through Tama’s world of mischief, learning, and heart. I treated the process like any design project, but with playful freedom:

 

• Concepting & Storyboarding: Sketched story ideas, mapped choices, and used ChatGPT to help shape narrative flow.

• Interactivity: Built triggers and states to turn “watching a story” into “playing with a story.”

• Voices & Sound: Used built-in AI voices and SFX for immersion — goat bleats included.

• Visual Design: Created and refined illustrations in Illustrator, giving each character personality and charm.

What I learned

This project reminded me why I fell in love with learning design in the first place, it’s part storytelling, part problem-solving, and always a little bit magic when creativity meets technology.