Storyboard before you build
Use a section-by-section storyboard to plan a unit before opening the build platform.
Why this matters
Every hour spent in the storyboard saves three hours in the build. Builders, editors and project managers all agree on this — which in the world of online learning is a rare consensus.
Section · block · content
A storyboard has three nested levels:
Section
A named chunk of the unit, with a working title that guides the learner. The last section is always the review.
Block
The smallest unit of content — text, interactive, asset, or quiz. Each block has a number on the storyboard that maps to the build menu.
Content
The actual words, asset briefs and quiz answers. This is where 90% of the writing happens — not in the build platform.
The storyboard is a document. The build is a platform. The cost of changing the document is small. The cost of changing the build is large. So you do all the changing in the document.
Try it
The proofreader spots a sentence to rewrite. Where does the rewrite go?
One thing to take back to work today
Open your next project's first unit. Storyboard it before you touch the build platform — even if it feels slower today.