My oldest child shared with us (the parental unit), a video of another albeit, wildly different home school mom, "debunking" evolution.
All I can say is that, you are entitled to your own opinion, but not to your own facts. This is one of those "we aren't all like that person" diaries. We, being home schoolers.
The attitude expressed in said video has been a pervasive and frustrating issue for me, because I live in a place where some teachers hold similar views and share them in public schools.In fact, certain forms of what I consider extremist Christianity are and have been pervasive in this area, since I was a kid. And this knowledge of the now and experience of the past were both primary factors in my decision to home school, which confuses a lot of people upon first learning of our exquisite obsession.
Since I have started home schooling, I have had a difficult time, finding the right kind of books to use, in order to teach my kids about Science, the Scientific Method, and Evolution. It took me some digging, but I did find them. And I bought them. Whether you home school your children or send them to a public or private school, if you want to ensure your children are reading/learning about evolution in the proper context, here are some books and videos to help you achieve just that.
Reader's Digest: How Nature Works.
This book contains beautiful pictures and illustrations. For new parents, or those who are buying for families, Kids love pretty pictures. A well written book + pretty pictures is always a winner. The kid will stare at the pictures alone, eventually getting into the book. Though in truth this book is meant to be used by parents or adults with children. There is a second title in that series, "How Science Works." I found these books at a half price book store. I have never seen them on the shelf of a Barnes and Noble in my area.
Sadly, many of the Evolution books I find, I find at used book stores or at thrift stores. Because book stores stock what sells, conveniently forgetting we have Mardels to cover all your medieval home schooling needs in this department.
The Kingfisher Book of Evolution.
I saw some negative reviews on this book early on. I liked it. Once again, it has nice illustrations in it, to capture the attention of young readers. Remember when you are starting out with very young children, it's important to adhere to the KISS principle at first.
Barron's Essential Atlas of Biology
Prentice Hall Science Explorer, Cells and Heredity. I have the 2000 publication, the latest is 2009.
Routes of Science: Evolution by Jen Green.
DK Eye Witness Book, Ecology. I include ecology here, because I believe its important to show the interdependence of these animals in their communities and habitats in order to better understand the driving mechanisms of evolution and extinction.
The Science of Life: Projects and Principles for Beginning Biologists by Frank G Bottone Jr.
Looking at the Mechanisms and Patterns of Evolution with Graphic Organizers by James Norton.
The Origin of the Species by Charles Darwin
The Voyage of the Beagle by Charles Darwin.
Remember I had to scavenge almost all of these books at either used book stores or thrift stores. I never see these on the shelves anywhere in Oklahoma. With the exception of DK books, they rarely show up on basic internet searches here either unless you also enter a title and/or author. I believe that this is because the publishers intend to sell in bulk only to schools, which is a shame. That means if the parent doesn't know how to search for those text books, the parent will likely never find them unless of course they are like me and happen upon older copies at a used book store or thrift store.
I would add, Keeping a Nature Journal: Discover a Whole New Way of Seeing the World Around you by C.W. Leslie and C.E. Roth. Sometimes the best way to step into the world of Science is to start with the simple act of mindful observation. Keeping a nature journal is a great first step in the direction of the Scientific Method.
The dumbing down of America can be an insidious and counter-intuitive thing. If we want this country to raise children to be scientifically literate, then Science Text books have to be made available for single purchases, otherwise all we have to choose from are coffee table books and the religious alternatives or nothing at all. A collection of options I have faced over and over while home schooling which has caused me to put many a dent in a wall with my head.
Keep in mind I have been home schooling for nearly a decade. Sometimes after a couple of years of frustrating outcomes, I stop looking in some places. So things may change while my attention is directed elsewhere. I gave up looking for textbook type publications in regular bookstores. They simply did not exist. When I do find a textbook that appears to not be religious in nature, I almost always buy it, because at the time it feels like such a windfall. You literally become giddy, like finding a holey stone or a four leaf clover. (its such a sad thing to confess).
Several well meaning friends have given me Science textbooks but those came from Christian Publishers or programs. Some with workbooks as thick as a telephone book. I pass them on, unwilling to read ALL of the material, and tease out the indoctrination from the science. I have similar attitudes about Social Studies books and History Books as well.
My observation of this is that certain religious groups have basically cornered the market on Home School material and they pretty much run the all of the local groups in these parts. So that I don't even consult those as sources for much if anything at all. What would I ask them for?
So tell me, which book do you find, offends your religious beliefs to such a degree that you tried to get the book banned? Do you remember the publisher?
It's so much fun, standing out like a blue thumb.
I also recommend the following videos. The PBS/NOVA videos can be viewed online, free, on HULU or just on the internet via the PBS sites.
Decoding Neanderthals.
What Darwin Never Knew NOVA(my kids loved this one)
Becoming Human NOVA
Where Did We Come From NOVA
Intelligent Design On Trial NOVA Everything you wanted to know about the "controversy". This is the politics and religion behind the anti-evolution movement.
Bill Nye Episode 46, Evolution via You Tube I have checked these videos out at our local public library. The quality of the Youtube video is not so great.
PBS: Your Inner Fish. A great miniseries on PBS and now available on Netflix, about human evolution and our unique genetic and evolutionary relationship with various other animals on this planet.
The BBC also has some material online for you to utilize:
BBC Earth: The "Lucy" Fossil Rewrote the Story of Humanity.
Anything narrated by David Attenborough has always been a thing of beauty. His works on the natural world are excellent companion pieces to anything on the topic of evolution.
Cosmos with Neil DeGrasse Tyson.
I am posting these finds, both books and videos, because there might be other parents looking for resources. I want to share what I have found thus far. Personally I don't see religion as being a competitor against science. At least as long as we are not dealing with a controlling cult. For individual people who personally believe in intelligent design, that doesn't really bother me either. It's only when they seek to impose their personal interpretation of their religion onto basic scientific material, that I object.
I truly perceive many passionate scientists to be somewhat related to mystics in some fashion. That they are romantically involved in their craft, and that can border or cross over into the spiritual. But when it comes to teaching Science to everyone, it is important to stick to the facts, and leave the rest in your home-office, in your bible, or in your head. Save it for those late night discussions with your closest friends and one too many glasses of wine.
Teach the kids facts, and let them discover their own passions, let them revel in all those blazing neuronal connections when that passion takes hold. Sometimes I think that the miraculous in this world hides itself in the mundane. That we are so busy looking for higher purpose in our own lives, that we forget that it's not all about us. It's not all about me or you. That sometimes it just feels that way because of our limited perspectives as single tiny human dots on a fleck of dust flying through a vast multiverse.
We need both the objective and the subjective to find meaning and context in our lives. We need Atheists and we need Mystics. Both serve important roles in human society. And we need separation of Science and Church, just as Church and State, so that we can keep the dialogue and the research free and open for objective research and results. So that we can as a society, avoid warping Science into yet another path of indoctrination for religion, politics, racism or gender bias.
It's strange to me. I know people who are Scientists. Some of them are deeply religious. And yet they feel no need to force their religious beliefs on others. Whatever it is they feel when they are staring into a microscope or a telescope or a petri-dish, that is religious in nature, they do not assume others will agree or even care. That is the difference right there. They are secure enough in who they are, that they feel no need to force external validation from total strangers or the children of strangers.
If this diary helps just one parent find the resources they need to teach their children about the Science of Evolution, then it will have served its purpose. Please enjoy this youtube video, Carl Sagan's Cosmos episode on Evolution.
12:42 PM PT: I cannot believe I forgot to add, Your Inner Fish (thanks to interested posters who reminded me of this terrible oversight). It is a fantastic book and video collection. The videos can be viewed on Netflix. You can also view it on PBS: http://www.pbs.org/... free. Also remember, that many PBS videos and BBC Videos are available to be checked out at your local public library.