Boothbay Region Elementary School library educational technician Casey Martin and her fourth graders have created the campus’s first story walk, with the Rochelle Draper book “The Stone Wall Dragon.” Martin started as a special education tech at BRES in September 2019 and was moved to the school library this school year.

The story trail stemmed from discussion with Boothbay Region High School librarian Kerrin Erhard who told Martin she has always wanted the school to do a trail. Martin said the idea coupled with her inclination toward pushing the boundaries of traditional education will hopefully give all teachers and classes the tools to squeeze everything they can out of the “outdoor classroom.”

“I have an awesome group of fourth graders in this rotation and I pitched the idea to them and they were totally psyched.”

Martin picked the story for its opportunities for students to interact with outdoor life. She and her students created kits for classes to use and follow along with. It has reflection questions, class discussion prompts, kits to craft dragons out of the natural surroundings, search-and-finds based on the book and on related topics like edible plants indigenous animals may eat. The kit is also available digitally so students learning virtually can take part, said Martin.

“Kids can come out here and continue to experience the trail, have fun and kids who aren't in school … can still come and do it with their family. We just think it's important to continue fostering that connection even though we can't be all together, they still feel like they're a part of things. Now more than ever that's important.”

Martin’s grasp of the librarian’s role of connecting people to information came from her grandmother, who was Martin’s elementary school librarian and also inspired an aunt and two cousins to pursue the profession at the university level. “So, I've always had a much broader sense of what the library means and what it is.”

When Martin returned to Maine after earning her degree and learned she would not be granted her teaching certificate, she was determined not to let that limit other options. “I was able to do a lot of different things and I've had opportunities to teach in various places around the world … Losing that opportunity opened so many alternatives.”

Those included working as a homeschooling consultant, children's case manager, and as a teacher in West Africa and Costa Rica. Martin said all of her experience is helping bring BRES students unstructured excitement within their structured environment.

“… If they've gained confidence, or self-awareness, or excitement, or passion or even just inclusivity and feeling like they actually had a chance to participate in something bigger than themselves, all of those things to me are successes … I've definitely gained a passion for literature from my experience in the library. I believe in some instances, kids have that same experience and I want them to. I really want them to feel that connection.”