When working on a project like sculpture or painting, he didn’t hesistate to question the underlying questions and assumptions while working with the subject. This naturally led him to be interested in science of it all. He was easily distracted by this so much so that, people who entrusted him with significant projects hired others to ensure that the work was delivered on time. That meant that he didn’t let these factors affect his way of learning from observation and experimentation.

“Thus Leonardo became a disciple of both experience and received wisdom. More important, he came to see that the progress of science came from a dialogue between the two. That in turn helped him realize that knowledge also came from a related dialogue: that between experiment and theory.”
Isaacson, Walter. Leonardo Da Vinci (p. 173). Simon & Schuster UK. Kindle Edition. 1

He believe that learning through experience is far more important than having theoretical knowledge. Rather than battling abstract theory, he’d use visualizations like hand-drawn diagrams, analogies, etc. to observe and validate the theory. That being said, this didn’t mean that he condemned theoretical learning. As a matter of fact, he believed that experiment only based learning was foolish and compared it to a sailor without a compass. All of his experiments had been guided by theoretical frameworks he learned by reading books from the 1490s.

“He who has access to the fountain does not go to the water-jar”
Isaacson, Walter. Leonardo Da Vinci (p. 170). Simon & Schuster UK. Kindle Edition. 1

Leonardo didn’t receive official education on the things he was interested in but he believed that learning through observation and experience was far better.

Leonardo was a keen observer and used rigid rules to study things. He believed that to advance to step two, one must first master step one.

He was able to observe the flight of dragonflies and understand how their four wings work and act differently.

His observation of flight patterns and the science behind it all, such as wing structure, wingspan, forces of gravity, and the fluidity of the air, helped him form the idea of flight.

“…Two hundred years later, Newton would state a refined version of this as his third law of motion: “To every action there is always opposed an equal reaction.”
Isaacson, Walter. Leonardo Da Vinci (p. 185). Simon & Schuster UK. Kindle Edition.

Most of these observations are valid, and the scientific principles he concluded from them are quite similar to Newton’s and Galileo’s laws of motion, discovered about 200 years later.

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