New Storybook Trail Offers Unique Outdoor Experiences

Blending the beauty and adventure of the outdoors with the wonder of children’s literature, Old Trail celebrated the grand opening of Trail Tales, the school’s first on-campus storybook trail, on a snowy afternoon in November.

“The addition of our storybook trail creates another on-campus opportunity for children to grow as learners and further develop their passion for reading and their connection to the natural world,” said Primary School Director Amanda Irwin. “The cross-curricular connections and incorporation of student work truly allow Trail Tales to appeal to the wide range of developmental levels we serve at Old Trail while promoting literacy through a joyful and engaging experience.”

The exciting new campus feature represents the vision of Director of Experiential and Nature-Based Learning Erin McNamara, in partnership with Librarian Katherine Hartrich and Director of Facilities Joe Morris. The trail, which sits on the north end of campus, is a well-traveled connector to Cuyahoga Valley National Park (CVNP) that is easy for even the youngest OTS students to navigate. It is open year round to members in and outside of the Old Trail community.

The loop extends about one mile in length and features storyboards that allow hikers to enjoy literature in nature every 15 to 20 paces. Each station highlights the next page of a particular story, along with a corresponding curricular highlight from our nature-based program and information about CVNP.

Our first featured story was The Squirrels Who Squabbled, written by Rachel Bright and illustrated by Jim Field. The interchangeable storyboards will be rotated quarterly to provide nature-goers a variety of fresh tales and interesting facts across the seasons.

In February, the boards were traded out to display the original work of our students. The tale is called The Apple Pie Problem, which

Athletic Hallway Renovation

features OTiS the Buffalo and Ira the Blue Heron. It is illustrated by Vanick Huselton ’24 and Alex Zhang ’24 and written collaboratively by Teresa McCombs’s seventh grade Langauge Arts class.

McNamara said the inspiration for Trail Tales came after taking children on a field trip to the local metro parks, where storyboards and art were featured. Funding for the project was made possible through a grant provided by the Lloyd D. Memorial Hunter Fund. To coincide with the start of spring and Earth Day in April, the next rotation of Trail Tales will focus on our planet.

Last summer, as a part of a continued investment into the Old Trail student experience, the hallway extending from the base of the staircase in Firestone Hall to the swimming pool underwent a complete overhaul. The newly designed Athletic Hallway aims to both celebrate the athletic achievements of OTS students today—with two large flat screen monitors displaying a continuous loop of contemporary sports photos and team schedules— while at the same time pay homage to our school’s storied history—with full-height, vinyl decals on the walls highlighting students and sports teams from decades past.

The feature wall includes Old Trail’s newly designed athletic logo and serves as a point of school pride as students and school community members pass on the way to class, the pool and the Harrington McLaughlin Athletic Center.