Teachers' Italy Exploration Supported by Shore Grant

Shore third grade teacher Anne Babcock and first grade teacher Mary Kinahan are exploring historic sites around Italy this summer with support from the school's Loring Award, a professional development travel grant established in honor of the late Caleb Loring, Jr., in honor of his service and leadership as President of the Board of Trustees from 1961 to 1964.

Follow their travels in Babcock's blog, Romeing.

In planning for the two-week overseas trip, Babcock said, "I could not be more grateful to Shore Country Day School and the existence of the Loring Award for making this once-in-a-lifetime adventure a possibility."

She continued, "As many families know, third grade at Shore devotes a significant portion of its social studies curriculum to the study of ancient cultures. Through a focused, concept-based approach to the study of Egyptian, Greek, and Roman artifacts, Mr. Hamlin and I love to share our knowledge of how these great civilizations have contributed to the ways in which we understand our current world. It has been one thing to study these places, but I cannot possibly express my excitement about seeing them with my own eyes. I'm planning a jam-packed tour of Italy where I can learn more about what I aim to teach, so that third grade can be an even more fantastic experience for Shore students."

Babcock and Kinahan are touring Rome and Florence, and then Babcock will continue with her husband to explore the ruins of Pompeii and the Amalfi coast. 

In Rome, Babcock observed, "It is hard to explain how magical this place is. Everywhere you turn there is something breathtaking to see. Just outside of our hotel we can see the ruins of ancient times. Mixed in with all of the modern day comings and goings are major archaeological treasures each step of the way." And at the Colosseum, she wrote, "Being inside the Colosseum, it's hard not to imagine the people who walked its corridors thousands of years ago, and the gladiators who fought each other to the death in front of roaring crowds."

Walking ten miles every day, Babcock and Kinahan made their way to St. Peter's Basilica and the Sistine Chapel, where they viewed the famous paintings of Michelangelo. "Though Michelangelo considered himself primarily a sculptor and had the most intense passion for this type of artwork, he was recognized for his overall brilliance and aptitude as a artist and was asked to paint the ceiling of the chapel. ... For four years he lay on his back on scaffolding he engineered himself, working on a giant fresco that would ultimately show religious scenes beginning at the time of the birth of Jesus, the most famous and moving of which is a piece where God and man reach towards each other, almost touching. In third grade we talk about all sorts of creation stories: the Egyptian myth of how man was born out of chaos and water; in Greece, how the gods created the first man, Prometheus, from clay; and in the story of Christianity, the way that God gives life to man and woman."

They explored the Pantheon, "which is not at all a ruin. It is Rome's best preserved ancient building. 'Pan' means 'all' and 'theos' means 'gods,' so this was a place where people of all faiths could come to worship. Religion is certainly a hard subject to avoid in this city."

Once in Florence, they saw Michelangelo's "David," and visited the Duomo, a major cathedral in the center of Florence. The building's dome is an amazing accomplishment, Babcock wrote. "The Florentine people were very proud of their lovely city—rightly so—and wanted to have a major cathedral that would rival all others all over the world. They decided the way they could set themselves apart was by replacing an imperfect roof with the most enormous dome possible."

In the ruined city of Pompeii, Babcock admitted, "For so many years, I feel as though I have been waiting for my chance to see Pompeii. ... Pompeii is an amazing time capsule. It was unearthed by careful excavation long after it was frozen in time by the ash and pumice which covered it when Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD."

Find the latest updates at Babcock's blog, Romeing.
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Shore Country Day School

545 Cabot Street, Beverly, MA 01915
(978) 927-1700
Shore Country Day School’s mission is to provide an education that inspires a love of learning and encourages children to embrace academic challenge. We seek to build character, cultivate creativity, and value diversity as we help our children become healthy, compassionate citizens of the world.
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