ABOUT 'SMART READS for Kids'..."Love Art, Love Learning"

Welcome. Designed to expand and inspire young minds; this is a range of short educational books for ages 7+. Although one great artist's (and in this case scientist's) life and work are always the central theme, wider learning is encouraged as follows:

Geography & History. Locations or events mentioned are always accompanied by a colourful map or a snippet of history.
Vocabulary. A manageable number of new words are introduced and reused. They are always in bold with clear definitions and pronunciations. There is also a Glossary.
Maths. At least one maths statement and its accompanying calculation is always included.
Concentration. Each book is in the friendly first person and a trail of footprints always leads to a cartoon animal at the end. The author asks questions of the reader and there is always a quiz. These features keep kids engaged and encourage them to form their own opinions. There is a high ratio of images to text.

ABOUT THIS BOOK
Da Vinci was of course far more than a great artist. The full story of his life is covered. Children will encounter all of da Vinci's most famous paintings and drawings; no child will fail to be inspired. Includes:

An account of everyday Renaissance Italy with its tyrannous leaders.
The historically precocious and inquisitive nature of Leonardo's mind.
His inventions.
The story of his secret mirror writing (an opportunity to learn about shapes with symmetry).
the mysteries of the Mona Lisa.

There's also a simple recipe for Renaissance paint and some dragon hunting!

DETAILS

Locations Mapped: Present day and Renaissance Italy, Greece, France and The Ottoman Empire.

Paintings & Drawings: 30 including: The Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, Vitruvian Man, sketches of flying, hydraulic and combat machines, The Baptism of Christ and Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel.

Vocabulary Defined: Anatomy, Apprenticeship, Baptism, Blood Vessels, Catapult, Circa, City state, Curiosity, Engineer, Euro, Genius, Infinite, Luxuries, Observe, Obsessed, Orbit, Polymath, Renaissance, Ridiculous and Symmetry.

New Artists Introduced: Michelangelo and Ingres.

Broader Topics: Why the Renaissance occurred, the importance of freethinking and the modern scientific method, the value of pursuing many interests and seeing projects through to the end.

Words: 3900

OTHER BOOKS
Junior Vincent van Gogh
Learn 20 French Words with Junior Claude Monet
Junior Edgar Degas
Leo's Story (Fiction). Enjoy Leo's adventures in a world of magical and mischievous art.

REVIEWS OF BOOKS IN THIS SERIES
"Love, love, love this book! Great addition to our homeschool art books. I hope this becomes a series... would love to get more!"-Customer, Iowa
"I wanted to do some painting myself after I read this book, I've learnt so much"-Customer, UK
"This story was fab. Our son couldn't stop reading it."-Customer, Canada