nth degree id is Natalie Taylor Hart
About Me
A lot of scientific principles are involved in watercolor painting. Many variables affect the way the paint will look on the page: the temperature of the water, the amount of water, the size of the pigment particles, and the texture and absorbency of the paper. It’s fascinating! Since the colors are transparent, you work from light areas of the painting to dark areas to build hue and value by layering the paint. Even if you know the science, there are always little surprises and delights as the colors mingle.
When I’m not designing, I like to paint with watercolors.
My journey toward instructional design is a little like watercolor.
The first layer of my career was teaching English in a high school. I loved teaching writing and literary analysis, but I wanted to write stories with visual ideas. I went to graduate school for scenic design for theatre. Designing scenery involves connecting audiences to stories through immersive visual experiences and meaningful contexts. I moved people’s minds and hearts through carefully coordinated and sequenced images. To get my artistic ideas built, I had to collaborate with partners extremely effectively and deliver excellent documentation. I did a lot of project management in theatre design, too. I tracked and coordinated calendars, budgets, documentation, decisions, and communication. After grad school, I moved to New York and worked in large theatres and Broadway studios designing, building, and managing projects that involved big names and big investments.
Instructional Design | Learning Experience Design
All of these skills served me well when I moved to a college classroom. I knew that I loved teaching, but I discovered an affinity for creating curricula and for leading departments and committees. I liked empowering my colleagues to do their best work whether that was through a well-designed spreadsheet, shared resources, or a conversation. I lead with calmness and lots of listening. My department achieved ambitious strategic initiatives in addition to managing our usual work. And I loved creating fun and surprise in learning spaces through games, playful visual design, and a play-based approach to learning.
Growing into the instructional design space has felt like refining and blending these previous layers. My teams have successfully managed up to nine simultaneous multi-module projects in a variety of modalities, recovered challenged client relationships, and created solutions that improved clarity and cohesion, while reducing unnecessary training time. I particularly enjoy consulting with clients to solve complex challenges and support their learning processes.
The thread that runs through all of my work is designing experiences.
Those perspectives shape my approach to learning design. I believe effective learning happens through experience, not through information alone. Rather than asking how content should be presented, I ask what learners should do to discover, decide, practice, apply, and retain new knowledge and skills.
I specialize in transforming content into narrative-driven learning, serious games, simulations, scenario-based learning, and emerging immersive learning approaches. I have designed and led the development of branching scenarios, case-based learning games, and simulation-based assessments that mirror real-world decision-making and troubleshooting processes. These projects reflect my passion for creating learning that is both meaningful and engaging while maintaining a clear focus on performance outcomes.
I create learning that is accessible, visual, immersive, situated, learner-centered, collaborative, and fun.
I am based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the City of Arts and Innovation.
