Lead the Way
Born Learning Trails for preschoolers and their parents, grandparents and care providers have hit Butler County like a wave.
A trail is already installed in the YMCA's Armco Park in Slippery Rock Township. Two others will be installed soon, one in Father Marinaro Park on Butler's South Side, and one in the Petrolia Community Park.
Mars is considering installing one at the borough park, said Kathleen Treme, labor liaison for the United Way of Butler County.
All of the trails have been bought by and installed by county labor groups, she said. The United Way is promoting the trails for communities across the nation.
“We have everything ready to go for both Father Marinaro and Petrolia parks, but we keep getting delayed by rain,” Treme said about the wait to actually build the trails.
The trails include stations along walkways that have signs and stencils for adults to read to children and to help them learn the alphabet, numbers, shapes, colors and to hold discussions about the environment around them, Treme explained.
“It's to help give them a boost, so when they go to school, they have a head start on these subjects,” she said, adding that the trail also encourages the adults in a child's life to participate in the learning process.
Cinda Six, a Petrolia councilwoman and borough business owner, said council and a group of volunteers are developing the community park on an old Little League field that is behind the lot held by the former Riverside grocery store.
“We developed a walking path through the park because people were trying to walk along the roads up here and that wasn't safe, so we got some grant money and put five exercise stations along the path for ages 13 and up,” Six said.
Treme contacted Six about the Born Learning trail and the park volunteers found money for it. Six said they have the stencils and the signs, but now need a dry weekend to install the stations with the help of the Harvest Community Church in Fairview.“We hope to install swings and other play equipment for kids at a later date, when we raise more money,” Six said. “The trail will give something for smaller children to do for now and get excited about learning with their parents interaction.”
