Full Steam Ahead
Timeline for the Hilliard History Express
December:
🎉 Start with an intro to the program. Share with students that the end product will be a recorded audio of a paragraph written by them, and also a custom work of art (Train Themed) that will share and identify the goals. Encouraging students to come up with questions they have regarding Old Hilliard and your specific business partner. Be sure to talk with your partner to set up a May field trip date.
📲 If you are having difficulty connecting with your business, please email or text Sam (614-946-1059, sbrill@destinationhilliard.org) ASAP!
January/February:
🤝 Meet with business owner. If you would like another speaker you have three potential options. Sharon Grenier from Coffee Connections (former teacher and history enthusiast), Samantha Brill (co-creator of this project, background in child development & counseling) or Tim Woodruff (Hilliard Ohio Historical Society, email: Pentim41@yahoo.com). Tim is the most knowledgeable. We are currently working out a hiccup in this collaboration and we hope to clear it up within a week (today is 1/15/26). This can be done in person (at school) or through Teams/Zoom. Students ask questions and take notes on the history of Hilliard and the specific business/building. You can tie in local history & economics.
🌟 Set your business up for success. Set clear expectations for the visit. They have been given Chuck's tips, but you can share them too! This gives them time to prepare if they don't have the right information. If they relay hesitance, direct them to Sam!
🤳 Record this interview so that students can refer back, watch it again.
🚂 Bonus Content: YouTube Video Series (You may want to skip your business until after they come to present. It will likely be review).
**Field Trips**
🚌 Last year, the biggest challenge for the student experience was getting the kids to Downtown for a field trip. PLEASE help us to fix the issue. Connect with your business about their availability for the field trip NOW. They were given this form. You are welcome to share as well.
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February/March:
📝 Students can work on their personal paragraphs and artwork ideas and submit them both to the IDS. They can use the writing template.
🌟 IDS/Classroom Teachers pick the top five to ten paragraphs and works of art and plan to meet with the business owner. Business owners can pull parts of the paragraphs to create the final work. Here is Coffee Connections final selection for the pilot. Also see the notes the business owner made on student submissions in the image to the right.
🚨 NOTES
🖼️ Art does NOT need to be extravagant. The possibilities are endless. Take a walk along the HHE; it is an ongoing initiative. Find the 2025 trains for ideas. There is a wide range of art: 3D Printed, painting, clay, framed printed digital art, etc.
📢 The recording can be fun and include details about the business today, but be sure to include an educational, history component in the recordings as well.
March/April:
🎤 Have students record the paragraph and send it over to Sam at Destination Hilliard by placing it in this folder by April 1st.
🎨 Have the students, the IDS, your art teacher, or a volunteer (Or any combination of them) create the train art using the student ideas identified by the business owner. This could be a model or a picture depending on the needs/space available of your business owner. Present the art to the business owner (if you plan to present the art in person on field trip, please let the business owner know so we can ensure there is a temporary train if this is a new stop). Otherwise, deadline for artwork to be presented to the business is April 15.
⌚️ Once you are connected with the point person for the school, please schedule a time to meet with the classes either in person or virtually.
☑️ Chuck D'Andrea, DH board member and Innovation & Discovery Specialist, has prepared tips regarding what to include in your presentation so it aligns with the students' curriculum. Feel out of your depth? Check out our HHE video series on YouTube! Sam is always a resource as well.
👯 There are three options if you would like to have someone to support you during your class visit. Sharon at Coffee Connections has offered to tag along if you would like. As a former teacher and a Hilliard history enthusiast, she is a great addition. Sam at Destination Hilliard has a background in child development and counseling and has been up to her elbows in Hilliard history for the last few years. Tim from the historical society is the most knowledgeable and may be available to join you. We are working out details with the Hilliard Ohio Historical Society on this piece, as we ran into a little bump in the road.
Level up and HAVE FUN on a Field Trip!
What to expect:
🎒 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). Let Sam know how many students you expect to participate by April 1. You can either arrange to pick up your kit at the Destination Hilliard office, or we will leave the kit with the business. The schools who picked it up before reported this being helpful.
🍎 Every school will have a different experience. The cornerstone of the field trip will be YOUR business. Ask your business if they have an activity or programming scheduled. If not, let Sam know. We have alternatives if that does not make sense for your business.
📍 We will email a map to you prior to your field trip indicating which stops will be open to stamp passports. Students receive stamps as they find the “Train art” in each building (Some buildings will have a sign asking a volunteer to come in to get the stamp due to limited space).
📱 Scan QR codes in the passport once you find each train art.
🏆 Prizes can be earned for finding the train in all of the locations. Encourage Students to return to finish the experience. Since this is an abbreviated experience, students will receive a sticker.
📸 Take photos and share them with Destination Hilliard!
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.
Don’t forget to come back and visit the businesses and complete the HHE! 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.
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