Caio, my friends! This month Raising Humanitos is going to Italy. Italy is a country known for its beautiful landscapes, rich culture and delicious food but did you know it also has some of the most interesting geography in Europe?? When we think of Italy we probably think of beautiful hills turned to wineries and gondola trips down the Venice river. However, Italy is made of over 35% mountains! These include the iconic Alps to the towering Mont Blanc (15,780 ft). Because the ‘boot’(as it is sometimes called) is surrounded by water there are also over 8,000 miles of coastline to Italy! In fact, Italy is surrounded by not one sea, not two, not three, but FOUR different seas: the Mediterranean, The Adriatic, the Ionian, and the Lingurian!
Italy’s large coastline encouraged travelers from all over! This is one of the reasons that Italy was the birthplace of the Renaissance. The Renaissance or ‘rebirth’ refers to an explosion of achievements in painting, architecture, sculpture, literature, music, philosophy, science, technology and exploration. Some of the greatest artists of the Renaissance were Giotto di Bondon, Masaccio, Leonardo da Vinci and of course Michelangelo! Though Michelangelo created hundreds of works of art, one of his most famous pieces is his mural in the Sistine Chapel! Painted from 1508-1512, Michelangelo created a mural on the ceiling of the chapel that was over 500 square meters with over 300 different figures. No wonder it took him 4 years!
Want to do a fun Michelangelo activity with your little ones? Recreate the Sistine Chapel! Use your kitchen table or coffee table and tape a blank sheet of paper underneath it. Using a few couch pillows, have your little ones lay down and paint the ‘ceiling’!
Want to learn even more about Italy? Purchase Raising Humanitos’ Italy kit coming out June 15th. Each kit comes with your own copy of The Mysterious Giant of Barletta by Tomie dePaola, all materials needed to make a Roman paper mosaic and Venetian mask, delicious snacks, authentic recipes, video lesson, curated playlist, coloring pages based on real works of art, and ways to keep learning about Italy once your kit is through! We also have kits about France, Portugal, Tanzania, the Dominican Republic, and the Philippines!
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