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March, 1998


Exploring Leonardo
https://www.mos.org/leonardo/
GRADE LEVEL: 4-8

CONTENT:
This interactive Web site explores Leonardo Da Vinci: his scientific projects and inventions, his artwork, and the historic time in which he lived

AESTHETICS:
This attractive site balances the use of text and images, creating pages that are both visually appealing and easy to load.

ORGANIZATION:
Exploring Leonardo is organized into four major learning areas and a resource center, with easy navigation between them. The Letter To Teachers acts as a site map, and should be your first stop.

REVIEW:
If Leonardo Da Vinci is considered the "Renaissance" man, then this is truly a "Renaissance" site in its across-the-curriculum exploration and its ability to teach students about him and his work. It is divided into four major areas: Inventor's Workshop; Leonardo's Perspective; Leonardo: Right to Left; and What, Where, When? "Inventor's Workshop highlights some of Leonardo's futuristic inventions, introduces the elements of machines, and lets students explore how these elements can work together. Leonardo's Perspective introduces Leonardo's way of looking at the world and explores Renaissance techniques for representing the 3D world on 2D surfaces. What, Where, When? is a brief biography of Leonardo da Vinci with images. Leonardo: Right to Left explores Leonardo's curious habit of writing in reverse." With lessons in science, art, history, and language arts, students can experience the thread of creativity that makes learning and exploring all subjects fun and exciting. The site has unique lesson plans as well as areas that encourage students to participate online. To have complete access to the site, however, you will need the Shockwave Plugin for your browser. Make sure you scroll to the bottom of the pages, because this is where you'll find links to activities and other related pages. Hypertext words throughout the site link to a glossary - a nice feature. Exploring Leonardo is a diverse site that students in all subject areas can creatively and interactively learn from.