Exploring the Ancient Worlds of Greece and Sicily Through the POG Fund Award

By: Anne Babcock, Third Grade Teacher

One of the greatest professional development opportunities Shore offers its faculty is two travel grants, the Loring Award and Parents of Graduates (POG) Fund Award. Through the POG Fund Award, in the summer of 2026, I was able to travel to Greece and Sicily to explore ancient sites such as the Parthenon, Delphi, and the Valley of the Temples. It was an incredible experience that deepened my understanding of Greek and Roman culture and history while helping me think up new and interesting ways to present material on this subject to Shore students.

A hallmark of Shore’s third-grade experience is its social studies curriculum. Through the lens of our central idea, “Objects reflect the values of a time and place,” students study artifacts, architecture, and stories that offer them a window into what life was like thousands of years ago. Over the course of the school year, they learn to think like archaeologists while becoming experts on the ancient cultures of Egypt, Greece, and Rome.

Studying artifacts and architecture, reading mythological stories, learning about different forms of governments, and the conditions under which civilizations either thrive or collapse help the students connect with the ways in which the average person lived in ancient times. Over the course of my time at Shore, I’ve always taught these topics based on what I’ve gathered from reading books, watching documentaries, listening to speakers, and visiting museums. Getting to actually visit the Parthenon, the Athenian Agora, Delphi, and other UNESCO sites in Greece and Sicily brought what I thought I knew and understood to a new level.

At most places on my itinerary, I was able to hire a guide to talk me through the stories behind the art and architecture — oftentimes sharing things you won’t read about in books. In Delphi, my tour was set for an hour in the afternoon. After the first few minutes, the guide (George) and I both realized there was a need for more time. I had lots of questions, and our conversation was twisting and turning down many paths. George suggested I go have lunch and return in the late afternoon to finish the tour. I was thrilled that he had the time, and also excited to come back closer to dusk when the crowds would have emptied out.

In order to share what I was learning as well as process the wealth of information I was taking in each day, I wrote a daily blog and invited students and families to follow along when they could. Here is the blog post I wrote for the students after leaving Delphi. I had no idea what I didn’t know until George gave me the real scoop on this fascinating ancient city-state:

Dear Kids,

I’ve had a lot of great days in Greece so far, but today might have been the best!

Let me tell you why…

First of all, driving up to Delphi is quite an experience. It is high in the mountains, and you have to travel on steep, windy roads on the side of a cliff in order to get there. It’s a little scary, but the views are incredible.

When we got to Delphi, we could imagine why the Greeks would want to build a sacred city here. It is so high up, you feel as though you are in the heavens, surrounded by giant mountain peaks and deep valleys filled with olive groves.

Here is what it looked like:
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Just like the agora in Athens, the original city of Delphi was abandoned when the Greeks stopped worshipping their gods and shifted to Christianity. Over time, the city was deserted, and a new group of Greeks came to build their town right on top of the old one. Sound familiar?

Archaeologists searching for the Temple of Apollo and evidence of the Oracle figured out that these important sites had been buried under the settlement. They convinced the people living there to restart in a new neighborhood (modern Delphi) so they could begin excavating. It took twenty-five years to fully uncover all the elements of the city.

As they worked, an entire city emerged! Not only did they find the Temple of Apollo, but many houses and shops outside of the sanctuary, as well as a gymnasium, stadium, and temple for Athena. Today, I saw them all!

Here are the remains of a home:

Here is the stadium:

Here is the theater:

And down below the sanctuary, you can see the gymnasium and temple dedicated to Athena:
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In this post, I’ll focus on the Temple of Apollo, how it worked, and why it was so important. First of all, you might remember that Apollo was (among other things) the Greek god of reason. It makes sense that you would seek out a god who had good reasoning skills if you needed advice or help with a particular problem. For Greeks who had questions about what they should do, Apollo was their guide!

Apollo’s large temple was built right into the hillside, and a lovely pathway originally decorated with many statues and altars led the way.

These statues and altars were the offerings of city-states within Greece, as well as countries all along the Mediterranean, who wanted to show their respect and appreciation to the oracle. Also, many people believed it was the way that cities and countries showed off and tried to outdo one another by building and putting together the most fantastic gifts for Apollo. Therefore, the hillside was filled to the brim with artwork, sculptures, and statues.

Here is an example: This sphinx came from the people of Naxos. They had to haul it up the side of the mountain and then place it on top of a 50-foot column to show their devotion to Apollo and his oracle!

Below, you can see the place where the city of Argos would have placed its offerings. They probably wanted to honor Apollo with objects that were more impressive than those of their rival city-states of Athens, Corinth, and Sparta!

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Though people visited the temple of Apollo anytime they wanted, they could only expect to meet with the oracle, who was his priestess (known as Pythia), one day per month – typically on the 7th day. A woman from Delphi was chosen for this important job by the priests of the city. They looked for a young female who was pure of heart and soul. They wanted someone who would make a good vessel for Apollo to speak through. There were hundreds of priestesses over time, passing on the job when they became too old to perform the rituals. Once chosen, the priestess would leave her family and move to the sanctuary where she could prepare herself for the many travelers who would come to seek her advice.

To be honest, I always sort of doubted whether the oracle was real. I asked myself, “Can anyone really see the future?” It turns out I was asking myself the wrong question. The oracle’s job wasn’t really to tell people’s fortunes. It was to guide them in their journey to be the best version of themselves possible.

Here is how it works.

Starting on the 7th of the month, people from ALL OVER would line up at the gate to the sanctuary of Apollo. Eventually, the priests would let them in, and they would walk (one by one) up and through the temple holding a question that had to be written in a “yes” or “no” format. Imagine kings, military leaders, and the greatest, most important, and influential people of the time gathering to ask their questions. Just being there allowed the most powerful individuals to share all about what was happening in their empires. This made Delphi an important crossroads and helped to unify the Mediterranean people by offering them a place to meet.

Here is the Temple of Apollo:

As they walked through the temple, they would be greeted by two major messages inscribed on the doorway. This part of the story is what REALLY inspired me when speaking to our guide.

One side of the door showed the message “KNOW THYSELF.”

*In other words, be aware of who you are and set goals for who you want to be.

On the side of the door, “NOTHING IN EXCESS” was written.

*In other words, show balance and thoughtfulness in your actions. Don’t take too much of anything and be a “measured” person.

After embracing these two ESSENTIAL life lessons, was the advice of an oracle even necessary? Who knows!?

The people would continue on and exit the temple from the opposite side, where they would make a live animal sacrifice to Apollo. From there, they could see Pythia sitting on her tripod (three-legged stool).

The picture below shows where archaeologists think she sat waiting to offer her prophecy.

There are lots of versions about what Pythia did, but most accounts say that she went into a deep trance and spoke in an unrecognizable language. Sometimes she got hysterical, and her body became out of control. As she shared her response to the question, the priests surrounding her listened carefully so they could interpret her answer.

“Could this be real?” I’ve asked myself. Did she really go into a trance? Did she really speak so that no one could understand her but the priests? Was Apollo really sending an answer through her?

What I found out from George is that Pythia’s stool was placed in a very specific spot. It was sitting on top of a geological fault line (there are lots of earthquakes in Greece). This fault line emitted many powerful gases and vapors from deep inside the earth that would have indeed made a person hallucinate if inhaled.

Here is a picture of what this might have looked like:
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So Pythia’s brain was actually influenced by strong gaseous fumes that temporarily changed her thinking. During this time, she could communicate with Apollo and send his message to the many people seeking guidance and answers to their complicated questions.

It also makes me see why she would only do the job once a month. I bet it was overwhelming and exhausting!

In any case, Pythia would hear the question, speak through the effects of the earth’s fumes, and let the priests interpret her reactions. Her advice would be written down and given to the citizen to take on their way.

Something important to know is that the answers always came back to the two things inscribed on the doors of the temple – “KNOW THYSELF” and “NOTHING IN EXCESS.” Shouldn’t we all follow this advice?

The Temple of Apollo and the Oracle of Delphi are real. I saw them today, and I believe in them. I think the answers to all my worries and concerns align with the guiding words on the temple doors.

I hope you learned something new by reading this post! Today certainly gave me A LOT to think about!

More tomorrow!

Love,

Mrs. B.

My trip to Greece and Sicily was an incredible experience, and I’m truly grateful to Shore for making it possible. It’s helped me grow as a person and an educator, and certainly contributed to the ever-evolving third-grade curriculum.

Mrs. Babcocks full blog, 'The Artifact Goes Abroad', written for third graders, can be found here.

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Exploring the Ancient Worlds of Greece and Sicily Through the POG Fund Award

Shore Country Day School