Step Ⅳ READING TASK

T: Do you know about the world famous painting "Mona Lisa"?

S: Sure. The woman is very attractive especially with her perfect smile!

T: Do you know who painted the great picture?

S: Yes. His name is Leonardo da Vinci, a great Italian artist.

T: Do you think Leonardo da Vinci is really a good painter? What else do you know he is famous for?

S: Of course. As far as I know, he is an Italian artist, scientist, and engineer. And an all-round genius whose paintings and inventions changed the world. As he intended to be a painter by profession he carefully studied drawing from life. Besides, he made designs for mills, working machines and engines that could be driven by water power. In a word, he is a true Renaissance man.

T: Good. Leonardo da Vinci is in fact an outstanding talent in many fields. Now, I'd like you to read a passage entitled WAS LEONARDO DA VINCI JUST A PAINTER? And then work with your partner to complete Exercises 1 and 2.

Sample answers:

1. Because painting did not always provide a steady income when he was young so he had to develop his drawing skills to earn money in other ways and he learnt to design whatever his employer wanted.

2. Because he had developed a new attitude towards machines. He realized that by understanding how each separate machine part worked, he could improve them and combine them in different ways to improve existing machines.

3. While he was studying under Verrochio, Leonardo observed and used a variety of machines. By studying and drawing the machines, Leonardo gained knowledge about their design and structure. His drawing skills enabled him to produce clear drawings of his mechanical ideas easily, many of which can still be used to create perfect working machines. The use of mechanical gears was his most interesting part and he came up with numerous inventions based on the gear.

4. His understanding of machines for his painting was more important because by understanding how each separate machine part worked, he could improve them and combine them in different ways to improve existing machines, which lead to a lot of inventions.

T: As we all know, one of the remarkable things about Leonardo da Vinci was his natural ability in so many subjects. Are you as clever as Leonardo? I'd like you to make a comparison about da Vinci and you yourself and find out by filling in the chart in Exercise 2.

Sample answers:

Possible skills Evidence from Leonardo Evidence from you

artist By the 1480s he had begun to produce paintings of his own. I could draw nice pictures when very young.

engineer a. Some of his early drawings showed clearly how various machine parts worked.

b. In this way he began to design machines no one had ever seen before. I