“Leonardo’s Horse”
Organizer Questions
DAY 1
pgs. 362 – 363
1. What clues on pg. 363 lead you to predict that young da Vinci would become an artist?
Artists are constantly observing their surroundings to inspire themselves, and Leonardo stopped to examine everything. He would even look at a landscape as if he was memorizing it.
2. Analyze the illustration on pages 362 and 363. What details can be found there which support the main idea that Leonardo da Vinci was on his way to becoming a great artist?
Possible response: The illustration shows him sketching the landscape, carrying pens and other art supplies on his horse. It also represents him with a look of serious concentration as he does his work. He takes his art seriously
pgs. 364 – 365
1. What clues on page 365 lead you to think that Leonardo respected all kinds of life form?
Possible response: He wouldn’t eat anything that once had been alive. He couldn’t stand the sight of caged birds. He would buy caged birds for sale, release them, and watch them fly away.
2. What animal inspired Leonardo to create a flying machine?
the birds
3. According to the text, what does the term Renaissance mean?
Renaissance is a time of rebirth when people became curious again for discovering new places, inventing, and looking at things in a new way.
4. Why can you consider Leonardo an extremely creative person?
He was a creative person not only because he was an artist, but he was also considered an architect, a musician, a philosopher, and even an astronomer.
DAY 2
pgs. 366 – 367
1. Why was Leonardo eager to make the bronze horse for the duke of Milan?
He loved the idea of people pointing at the horse and remembering who had created such a marvelous work of art.
2. If you were the duke, would you ask Leonardo to make the horse? Why or why not?
Possible response: Leonardo was a creative person with many art skills and talents; he also took his artwork very seriously.
3. Why didn’t Leonardo send the letter to the duke? What did he do instead?
Leonardo didn’t send the letter because making the horse was very important to him. He decided to leave a picture he was painting and went to Milan to talk with the duke himself.
pg. 368
1. Besides making the bronze horse, what other job was assigned to Leonardo by the duke?
He was in charge of the entertainment at the duke’s palace: he sang, played musical instruments, juggled, and asked riddles. He also created plays for special occasions.
2. How old was Leonardo when he began working on the horse? Describe his physical features.
Leonardo was thirty years old. He was handsome and had a curly blond hair.
3. What details on pg. 368 support the fact the Leonardo was a gifted and talented person?
Possible response: Leonardo got the job of making the duke’s bronze horse, and he was also in charge of entertainment at the palace.
DAY 3
pg.369
1. How did Leonardo prepare himself to create the bronze horse?
Possible response: He learned the bone and muscle structure of horses by making numerous drawings of them, and he visited statues of horses.
2. On this page, the duke asks Lorenzo de ´Medici who he should ask to make the bigger statue of the horse. Why did Lorenzo say that Leonardo da Vinci was the only one to make the statue? Make an inference using evidence from the text to support your answer.
Possible response: Lorenzo probably knew many artists and their work so he could make the judgment that Leonardo was the best artist for the job.
pgs. 370 – 371
1. Evaluate how the illustration on pgs. 370 – 371 matches the pictures you created in your mind as you read the text. Is the scale of the horse consistent with the statement in the text that it stood 24 feet high? How can you tell?
Possible response: Yes, you can compare it to the height of the people.
2. Go back at the prediction you made earlier on Reader’s and Writer’s Notebook pg. 19 and check if it was accurate. Then preview the rest of the story and adjust or make a new prediction.
Answers should be consequent with what you have read so far.
DAY 4
pgs.372- 373
1. In the second paragraph on pg. 372, you learn that the duke sent Leonardo’s metal to be made into a cannon. Is this an important event? Why?
Yes, it is an important event because it may stop Leonardo from achieving his dream.
2. How was Leonardo’s clay horse destroyed?
The French soldiers’ arrows aiming at the horse’s model as well as the rain falling on it, destroyed the horse.
pgs. 374 – 375
1. Why did Leonardo become depressed?
Leonardo felt he had not accomplished any important goals he had set for himself during his life; not casting the horse in bronze was one of his greatest disappointments.
2. Do you think Leonardo was being too hard on himself? Why or why not?
Possible response: He was too hard on himself. He was one of the most known artists of his time. He had many skills and abilities that he was able to put into practice. He designed and created many works of art ; he was able to sing and create on stage plays; he even visualized great inventions used today such as the bicycle as well as “flying machines”.
DAY 5
pg.376
1. How was Leonardo’s goal of making a bronze horse finally achieved?
Charles Dent, as a huge fan of Da Vinci, wanted to make Leonardo’s horse to honor his memory and his great legacy, but unfortunately he died. So a sculptor named Nina Akamu carried on with Dent’s dream, and on Sept. 10, 1999 Leonardo’s horse was finally displayed in Milan, Italy.