POLARIS’ WORLD
2025
STORYBOARDING & ILLUSTRATIVE DESIGN
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PROJECT OVERVIEW
UX is more than just interfaces. It’s about storyboarding user journeys, sweating the details, collaborating across disciplines, reducing cognitive load, and crafting the design artifacts that bring a product to life.
Polaris' World is an imaginative set of books set inside the body of a dog who is blind and deaf.
Through interactive questions and intentional storyboarding that guides attention and reduces cognitive load, Polaris Finds His Family is built to support emotional comprehension.
The project is a multi‑platform experience: a printed book, an ebook, scalable brand guidelines, read‑along events at schools, and a set of reusable design tokens that ensure consistency across all touchpoints.
PROBLEM
In the United States, it’s estimated that roughly 1 in 5 children has a disability or special health‑care needs. 60% of those children experience bullying.
At the same time, fewer than 1 in 20 children’s books even feature a main character with a disability, leaving millions of kids rarely seeing themselves as heroes in the stories they read.
Polaris is for all children: he invites neurotypical kids to practice empathy by asking questions that pull them into the shoes of others, while giving children with disabilities and special needs a sense of belonging. The story encourages every child to love what makes them different and to see their differences not as limitations, but as part of their unique, valuable identity.
Role
UX Designer (Illustration & Storyboarding)
Company
Birdhouse Publications
Team
Michelle Cain - Author
Stephanie Stillman - Co-Author
Summer Spisak - Marketing Coordinator
Nicolette Halladay - Publisher
Timeline
11 months
RESEARCH INSIGHTS
To ensure authentic representation and age‑appropriate understanding, we worked closely with a Senior Accessibility Specialist in Blindness Technologies, a Stanford pediatrician, and Polaris’ owners to shape the character, narrative, and interactions.
My first time meeting Polaris, the Deaf & Blind dog!
Our research led to a clear set of design principles for the story. We found that the best way to bring Polaris to life for children is to include:
"'PAWS' to Think"
introduce interactive, empathy‑driven questions every few pages to invite children to reflect, connect, and step into Polaris’ world.
Scent Clouds
to convey character emotion and essence instead of relying on physical appearance, reinforcing understanding through sensory cues.
Seasonal Changes
Let the book visually and emotionally grow with Polaris, mirroring his journey so children feel his emotional arc alongside him.
Light Humor
Include a small, humorous “find‑me” anchor on each page to sustain engagement while giving children a sense of control and discovery.
Apply organic textures, gentle contrast, and hand‑drawn linework to reduce cognitive load, especially for children, making facial expressions, body language, and narrative cues easier to interpret and emotionally resonate.
PRIMARY USER
Children ages 6 - 11
Jamie
Jamie is an 8‑year‑old in late elementary school who enjoys picture books and early chapter books but still benefits from visual cues and simple, expressive illustrations. Jamie is learning to read fluently, so they rely on pictures, bold text, and short sentences to follow the story. His family has a story night every Thursday that they always looks forward to.
They love animals, humor, and feeling like they’re part of the adventure. Jamie also looks to stories to understand emotions and how to treat others kindly, making empathy and belonging key drivers in what they connect with.
8 year old 3rd grader in Beecaves, TX. Has an older brother (12) and a younger sister (4).
Needs
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Simple story with story-following pictures
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Emotional safety and positive role models
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Opportunities to practice empathy
Wants
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Silly characters and fun reading times
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To feel like a problem-solver for the character
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To connect with the character
SECONDARY USER
Parents, Teachers/Educators, Pediatric Therapists
Maya
Maya is a 3rd‑grade teacher in a diverse public school in Pflugerville, TX, who cares deeply about making her classroom safe and welcoming for all learners. She looks for books that naturally invite empathy and belonging, especially for students who struggle with their differenves.
Maya wants stories that are easy to facilitate, emotionally rich, and accessible enough to use in whole‑class read‑alouds, small groups, and one‑on‑one sessions. She sees books as tools to start conversations about difference, empathy, and emotional safety without turning them into formal lessons.
28 year old Elementary School Teacher in Pflugerville, TX
Needs
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Books that are emotionally safe and inclusive
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Books that can be used in class read-alouds
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Reusable classroom tools
Wants
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To see students get excited as stories progress
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The experience to extend beyond the page
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To be able to stop and interact with students
AS A TEAM WE ASKED:
How might we create a children’s book and interactive experience that makes every child feel seen, reduces emotional friction, and builds empathy across abilities?
AS AN INDIVIDUAL I ASKED:
How can we tell a the story without saying anything at all?
PICTURE BOOK AS A TOPIC FOR PARENT AND CHILDREN TO READ, DISCUSS, AND FEEL TOGETHER.
Early stage planning for layout and visuals. Physically cutting and pasting the manuscript with the author allowed us to treat the text as moveable data points, ensuring the story’s flow was sound before any drawing began.
A MAJOR CHANGE
After reviewing the first storyboard, I spotted a major friction point: the text density was way too high for the target age group. As the illustrator, I couldn’t change the words, so I re‑architected the book’s structure, expanding it from 17 to 21 spreads to reduce cognitive load and improve pacing. That extra “breathing room” would let emotional beats land without overwhelming the reader, while keeping the book within the ideal length to hold a child’s attention. It would also help when it came to telling the story through illustration!
This would be a big shift! It required delaying the release date by two months. The publisher had to choose: launch on time and risk alienating our audience, or push the release, marketing, and events to ship a more thoughtful, emotionally resonant experience.
In the end, I got the go‑ahead to expand the book - prioritizing emotional clarity and accessibility over an arbitrary deadline and aligning the experience with the real needs of the child audience.
FROM "WHAT?" TO "WOW!"
Original storyboard.
Enhanced, final storyboard.
WIREFRAMES AND SKETCHES TO FINAL
I ran into one more major problem shifting from sketches to the final design. I was over‑complicating the visuals, driving up the time per page, and heading straight into burnout. 21 spreads to illustrate is a lot!
I had to adjust the style slightly, making it more airy and easier to draw, which meant redoing a few pages. I chose to redo them anyway, because it ultimately sped up the process. Trust your gut: simplifying the art style didn’t just help me manage the workload; it also improved the final look, aligned better with the story’s themes, and ended up feeling just right.
The sketch, to a spread that took me 13 whole hours, to the final spread that took me only 5 hours.
Looking at them now, I can't even tell that I spent less time on the final one!
USABILITY TESTING
Before a full release, we sent author copies to parents, educators, and pediatric therapists in the area to ensure that the information and narratives we designed were empathetic and understandable for children, preventing potential misunderstandings or bored children!
I also sent the pdf to the Senior Accessibility Specialist in Blindness Technologies, to ensure that the alt text was legible so that visually impaired users could still experience the full story.
The book was ready for it's first live audience on launch day. This was the first time we had a read-aloud storytime, and Birdhouse Books in Austin TX was kind enough to welcome us with open arms!
FINAL DESIGN
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I developed a design kit for the book's personal branding by creating reusable character models, pattern tiles, and master asset sheets.
I also created a few scalable Design Tokens for web release!
This is all to ensure visual consistency and brand recognition across multiple touchpoints (mobile, web, and physical print).
FEEDBACK FROM THE READERS
"I think there is a place for this in the adoption world--meaning child adoption. It addresses special needs adoption, adoption of kids who have to wait a while to find a family, and embracing the diversity of adoptive families who could be a good fit for waiting children."
Karey Scheyd, MA, LPC
Owner & Psychotherapist - Karey Scheyd Counseling, PLLC
“I believe Polaris Finds His Family will be a wonderful resource for teachers, doctors, therapists, and anyone working to nurture emotional intelligence in children. [...] It’s also an excellent addition to SEL (social and emotional learning) curricula in schools.”
Toby Hays, MD
Adjunct Clinical Instructor - Stanford University School of Medicine
"It did a really good job at describing things as if I couldn't see or hear [...] I could see their little anticipation for a happy ending. A children's page turner! [My son] asked to read it again this morning and he liked that a bee cared for the dog. I’m looking forward to adding a hard copy to our little library."
Zachary Cain
Parent of two children, ages 5 and 7
"Wow, I read it on my Braille Sense: It was really good, made me cry! My braille machine and computer had no issue reading the text and alt text from the PDF."
Desiree Simeone
Sr Accessibility Specialist for Blindness Technologies
Polaris now travels the state of Texas, visiting school libraries and local small-business bookstores!
IMPACT
Achieved #1 New Release in three different children’s book categories on Amazon from October 15th to October 17th
Sold 85 copies on Amazon within the first three days of launch
Raised $300+ for local Animal Rescue (AJK Family Rescue, Austin TX)
Received a foreword from Stanford pediatrician, Toby Hays, and several endorsements from therapists, teachers, and pediatricians
Available in Round Rock Public Libraries, Hutto Public Libraries, local book stores and more to come!
