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For Teachers
- Arrive with groups ready and assigned
- Encourage students to interact with businesses
- Use the map to guide your route
- Keep groups moving to avoid congestion
- If you are coming for an extended trip, please let us know if you anticipate your school completing entire initiative (to ensure we have enough prizes)
For Participating Businesses
- Display your train prominently
- Be ready to stamp or greet students
- Expect groups during peak late morning hours
What to Expect: Schools 📲
Rather than QR codes, volunteers and teachers should use the Digital Passport to access history audio as you move through Downtown Hilliard. 🚂
Train icons mark where students can collect stamps, while special icons highlight partner businesses 🌟 and the main activity 📍 location. Use the map to plan your route and make the most of your time.
🍎 Every school’s experience will be different. Your assigned partner business is the cornerstone of your visit. For larger locations like Coffee Connections, consider splitting into one or two groups. For smaller businesses, you may need to stay in class-sized groups due to space.
After your initial stop, move through the remaining businesses in very small groups. Number your groups and assign each a starting location to help spread out traffic. 👟
Stops can be quick. Students simply find the train and collect a stamp. Businesses marked with a stop sign will need a volunteer to check in before entering. If they are busy, they may provide a stamp for you to use outside.
What to Expect: Businesses 🚂
Thank you for being a key part of the Hilliard History Express experience. Your business serves as a featured stop where students engage with local history and the community.
🚂 Display Your Train
Place your student-created train somewhere visible and accessible so students can easily find it.
🖊 Stamp Participation
Students will be looking to collect a stamp at your location. A volunteer or staff member can stamp passports, or you may provide the stamp to teachers if your business becomes busy.
👟 Expect Small Groups
To help manage flow, schools will break into smaller groups after their first stop. Groups may visit at different times, with peak activity typically in the late morning.
🚦 Managing Traffic
If your business is marked with a stop sign on the map, teachers have been instructed to check in before bringing students inside. If you are at capacity, you can hand off your stamp to be used outside.
😊 Keep It Simple
No purchase or formal presentation is expected. A quick welcome, stamp, and smile go a long way in creating a positive experience.
🏆 Your Impact Matters
For many students, this is their first time visiting your business. Your participation helps bring Hilliard’s story to life and creates a meaningful, memorable experience.
Take Photos!
Please share your photos with Destination Hilliard. If you post about your experience, please tag us in your social media. We want to celebrate this collaboration.
Ongoing Campaign
The best part...we will keep this going as a fun way to explore Hilliard.
Tell friends and family about this experience. You are a part of a special collaboration. This campaign won an Ohio Tourism Association Spirit of Community RUBY Award.
Housekeeping for Schools
Art:
🖼️ Art that is brought to the Hilliard History Express Launch gathering will be displayed in businesses for the field trip. Placeholders/last year's art will be displayed in the interim if your class is bringing their art to the field trip for presentation.
Recordings:
📢 I am adding the new recordings as they come in. Please let me know if your audio is incorrect (sbrill@destinationhilliard.org).
Kits:
We will have a field trip kit for you including: passports and stickers (the "prize" so you may want to wait to hand this out). We will have these at the launch gathering. If you cannot attend, we will give passports to partner businesses.
Maps:
📍 I have created a custom map for each field trip.
Each participating business is marked with a colored circle to help you quickly identify availability during your visit.
- Green indicates the business is open for the entire field trip.
- Yellow indicates the business opens at 11 a.m. (If Sexton's is marked yellow, they are not open until 11:30 a.m.
- Red indicates the business is closed during your field trip window.
📍 See the interactive map below to navigate Downtown Hilliard using GPS.
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