Leonardo da Vinci: A Nonfiction Companion to Monday with a Mad Genius

This is an amazing book from “The Magic Tree House” line. It is all about Leonardo Da Vince and his contributions to science, technology, and art. It is packed full of information that is easy for children to read and understand. It has neat illustrations and pictures to interest children too. The grade level for this book would be for early elementary classrooms. It is such a good book for children to read about, because Da Vince was and still is an important part of the science world.
The book is divided up into chapters, and each one discusses and introduces information about his life. The first chapter is about his early childhood in Italy, and then progress from there. It talks about him being a scientist, artist, and inventor. show more The books also discuss his paintings such as The Mona Lisa. It discusses all his inventions, and sketches. Also included is information on his notebooks that he left behind showing all his famous ideas. The book teaches students about the renaissance period as well. The book is full of possibilities for topics of science in the classroom. I’m a big fan of these series, and hope to use them someday in my future classroom. show less

Magic Tree House Research Guide: Leonardo da Vinci is filled with up-to-date information, photos, and illustrations about Leonardo de Vinci. The first chapter provides readers with background information on Leonard de Vinci such as when and where he was born, what his name means, and his interests as a child. Additionally, within the first chapter is information about Leonardo’s notebooks and writing style as well the Renaissance, the time period in which he lived. The second chapter talks about Leonardo becoming an apprentice for Verrocchio and what he did once he set out on his own (joined a guild, set up a workshop, and started to paint and sculpt). The third chapter is about Leonardo’s ideas for inventions (underwater breathing show more device, shoes for walking on water, diving suits, life preservers, and armored cars) and designs for submarines and boats, weapons, bridges, and flying machines. The fourth chapter is all about Leonardo the scientist. His work with the human body, plants, and fossils are discussed. The fifth chapter talks about Leonardo the artist. Within this chapter, readers learn about some of his famous works- The Last Supper, Mona Lisa, and Battle of Anghiari. Chapter six is about people in Leonard’s world and chapter seven is about his death. In the back of the book, there are a variety of resources listed where readers can get more information about Leonardo de Vinci. show less

This is a book about Leonardo da Vinci's life and accomplishments. It goes into detail about his art work, and about the Renaissance. To get a better understanding, I recommend to start from the first series.

1. Main character
Leonardo da Vinci

2. Write the summary of the book.

No one is certain how Reonard looked. Some experts think that Raphael used Leonardo as a model for Plato in his painting of Greek phirosophers, called The School of Athens.
Leonardo wondered everything. The painting shows Jesus sitting at the centre of the table called The Last Supper is one of the most famous paintings in the world.
Today Leonardo's work inspires people of all ages. He would be amazed to know that every year, eight million people go to the Louvre just to see his favorite painting, the Mona Lisa.

3. Write your feelings about the book in details.

First, Leonardo studied the muscles and tendons. Later, he drew the skelton, heart, and blood vessels. These show more drawings are amazingly detailed(See p 63).

His skill of painting helped his drawing clear.

4. Write the words, phrases or sentences that impressed you most in the book and explain why they impressed you. Or you could write your questions about the book.

In 2000, a skydiver named Adrian Nicholas decided to test Leonardo's claim. He built a parachute just like Leonardo's drawing...... Leonardo got it right! Adrian landed safely!(See p 50)

He was so smart that he could design a parachute at that time. show less

GR:
GL: 3.3
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