. Curiosity may have killed the cat, as the saying goes, but it poured life into the young Leonardo. Most children are born with a natural curiosity concerning the world around them, but Leonardo had an intense desire to discover the “why” for everything. He was fascinated with nature and demonstrated a unique ability to record his observations in very accurate drawings. He believed that careful observation and life experience held the keys to understanding.
Da Vinci was a natural born scientist. He had a hunger to know that couldn’t be satisfied. It merely produced more questions. As a child he tugged on his Uncle Francesco’s sleeve begging, “Tell me….” As an adult he constantly wrote, “I question….” His notebooks covered such a wide range of topics that some historians have declared Leonardo to be the most curious person who ever lived. In this section, we will explore several of the very same ideas he investigated.
It is expected that this part of the unit will take 7 weeks. |