Science

Science CurriculumScience Resources

The secular story of man's origins is a simple equation: slime + time = the world as we know it. Sometime in the primordial depths of history, an amoeba-like being crawled out of the sludge and into posterity. Sludgy-boy was the father of all that is, and through limitless permutations and evolutions his little one-celled self became the majestic Living World with its kingdoms, genera, and species.

God's Word tells a different story. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. God made man, the planets, Earth, rivers, the ozone layer, electricity, bullfrogs, and volcanic activity. It's a strange inversion from the story atheists and naturalists like to tell—where they posit the simplest form gave birth to increasing complexity, Christians believe the most complex Being in the universe created a plethora of simpler living things out of absolutely nothing.

But arguing "Creationism" vs. Evolution is not the soul or substance of science. If atheists want to waste their breath, effort, and money trying to "prove" a phony theory, let them. Not that we shouldn't counter their claims, but we have to keep in mind that the battle is spiritual, not scientific and not even merely ideological.

To contrast, real science—observation, hypothesis, theory, and correction—glorifies God by attributing to Him the honor and praise for everything learned about the world, its inhabitants, and its mechanics. For Christians, it should be a joyful and positive pursuit, not simply a retort against secular rebellion. Man is commanded by God to subdue the Earth, to care for it, develop it, and use it, and our duty is to see that done in ways that honor Him.

It's essential that we not think of phenomena in isolated terms. The laws of physics aren't true by themselves, they're true because God decreed them and sustains them. The planets and stars don' crash into each other because mathematical equations keep them on trajectory; God keeps them on their appointed paths, and the equations only describe their movement.

Technology is often equated with science, but technological development is only one aspect of science. It's more broad than we tend to think, too—it's not just electronics and iProducts, it includes the wheel, shovels, stickframe construction, and gas stoves. Our responsibility is to make and use technology in ways that don't negatively affect the rest of God's creation, that help others, and that glorify the Creator of all things.

The world is a fascinating and wonderful place. Christians have more basis than anyone for saying this, since it isn't simply a randomized collection of cells and life forms but the creative work of God. Our study of science and nature should reflect this knowledge, and guide us in our research and development. Our prayer is that increased scientific knowledge will translate to increased thanksgiving and praise of the Maker of all things.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

 

Did you find this review helpful?
66 Items found Print
Active Filters: Botany & Mycology, 3rd grade (Ages 8-9)
A Closer Look at Plant Life
Closer Look books
by Bernard Stonehouse, illustrated by Richard Orr, Philip Weare, Gary Hincks
from Gloucester Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Beginning Knowledge Book of Backyard Trees
by Hanniford Rush; illustrated by Raul Mina Mora
from Rutledge Books
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
Berries, Nuts and Seeds
Take-Along Guide
by Diane Burns
from Northword Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Botanicum
Welcome to the Museum
by Kathy Willis; illustrated by Katie Scott
from Big Picture Press
for 3rd-12th grade
in Oversized Science Books (Location: SCI-OVER)
$37.99
Botany Adventure!
by Kim Wright
for 1st-4th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
Burgess Flower Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$19.99
Burgess Flower Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$18.99
Burgess Flower Book for Children
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Living Book Press
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$28.99
DK Eye Wonder: Plant
by Fleur Star
from DK Children
for 3rd-6th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
DK Smithsonian Trees, Leaves, Flowers & Seeds
by Dr. Sarah Jose, consultant Dr. Chris Clennett
from DK Publishing
for 3rd-6th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Exploring Creation With Botany
Young Explorer Series
by Jeannie Fulbright
2nd edition from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Young Explorer (Location: SCICUR-AEM)
$44.00 $28.00 (4 in stock)
Exploring Creation With Botany (old)
Young Explorer Series
by Jeannie Fulbright
from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Science (Old Versions only) (Location: OSCI-AEM)
$9.00 (3 in stock)
Exploring Creation With Botany - Notebooking Journal
by Jeannie Fulbright
2nd edition from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 3rd-6th grade
in Apologia Young Explorer (Location: SCICUR-AEM)
$31.20 $17.50 (1 in stock)
Fall Walk
by Virginia Brimhall Snow
from Gibbs M. Smith
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Nature Study & Journaling (Location: NAT-GEN)
Fall Walk
by Virginia Brimhall Snow
from Gibbs M. Smith
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Nature Study & Journaling (Location: NAT-GEN)
$7.64
Favorite Perennials - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Ilil Arbel
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Flowers & Plants Coloring Books (Location: COL-BOT)
First Book of Plants
by Alice Dickinson
from Franklin Watts
for 3rd-6th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
First Look at Leaves
by Millicent E. Selsam, Joyce Hunt
from Walker and Company
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
Flower Grows
by Ken Robbins
from Dial Press
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Fungus is Among Us!
by Joy Keller, illustrated by Erica Salcedo
from The Innovation Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
God's Miracle –a Seed
by Rebecca Newswanger, illustrated by Harold Weaver
from Christian Light Education
for 1st-3rd grade
in Christian Light Reading (Location: REA-CLE)
Herbs - Coloring Book
by Stefen Bernath
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-4th grade
in Flowers & Plants Coloring Books (Location: COL-BOT)
$4.24
How a Seed Grows
by Helene J. Jordan
Revised from HarperCollins
for 1st-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
How and Why Wonder Book of Mushrooms Ferns and Mosses
by Amy Elizabeth Jensen, illustrated by Cynthia Iliff Koehler and Alvin Koehler
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 3rd-6th grade
in How and Why Wonder Books (Location: VIN-H&W)
How and Why Wonder Book of Wild Flowers
by Grace F. Ferguson, illustrated by Cynthia Iliff Koehler and Alvin Koehler
from Wonder Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in How and Why Wonder Books (Location: VIN-H&W)
How Flowers Grow
Usborne Beginners
by Emma Helbrough
from Usborne
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Usborne Beginners (Location: SCI-USBREA)
$4.99 $3.00 (1 in stock)
Humongous Fungus
by Lynne Boddy, illustrated by Wenjia Tang
from DK Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
Introduction to Wild Flowers
by John Kieran, illustrated by Tabea Hofmann
1st edition from Doubleday & Company
for 1st-4th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
Katya's Book of Mushrooms
from Living Book Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$12.99
Life Cycle of a Tree
by Bobbie Kalman & Kathryn Smithyman, illustrated by Barbara Bedell
from Crabtree Publishing
for 2nd-4th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Magic and Mystery of Trees
by Jen Green, illustrated by Claire McElfatrick
from DK Publishing
for 1st-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$8.50 (1 in stock)
Miss Maple's Seeds
by Eliza Wheeler
from Nancy Paulsen Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.64
Mushroom Fan Club
by Elise Gravel
from Drawn & Quarterly
for 2nd-4th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
My Garden Grows
by Aldren A. Watson
Second Printing from Viking Press
for 2nd-4th grade
in Vintage Science & Math (Location: VIN-SCI)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
National Audubon Society First Field Guide: Trees
by Brian Cassie
from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
in Field Guides: Plants & Fungi (Location: NAT-FG08)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Nature All Around: Plants
by Pamela Hickman, illustrated by Carolyn Gavin
from Kids Can Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
Official Sassafras SciDat Logbook 3
Sassafras Science
by Johnny Congo & Paige Hudson
from Elemental Science
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Sassafras Science (Location: SCICUR-SAS)
Peterson Field Guide to Mushrooms of North America
by Karl B. McKnight, Joseph R. Rohrer, Kirsten McKnight Ward & Kent H. McKnight
2nd edition from Houghton Mifflin
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Field Guides & Nature Handbooks (Location: NAT-FG07)
Peterson First Guide to Trees
by George A. Petrides
2nd edition from Houghton Mifflin
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Field Guides: Plants & Fungi (Location: NAT-FG08)
$9.99
Peterson First Guide to Wildflowers
by Roger Tory Peterson
2nd edition from Houghton Mifflin
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Field Guides: Plants & Fungi (Location: NAT-FG08)
Plant Life in Field and Garden
Eyes and No Eyes #3
by Arabella Buckley
from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$15.95
Plant Life in Field and Garden
Eyes and No Eyes #3
by Arabella Buckley
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$8.99
Reason for a Flower
by Ruth Heller
from PaperStar Books
Science non-fiction, illustrated for 1st-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$9.99
Redoute Flowers - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Charlene Tarbox
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Flowers & Plants Coloring Books (Location: COL-BOT)
$3.39
Redwoods
by Jason Chin
from Square Fish Publishing
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$9.99
Sassafras Guide to Botany
Sassafras Science
by Johnny Congo & Paige Hudson
from Elemental Science
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Sassafras Science (Location: SCICUR-SAS)
Sassafras Guide to Chemistry
Sassafras Science
by Johnny Congo & Paige Hudson
from Elemental Science
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Sassafras Science (Location: SCICUR-SAS)
Sassafras Science Adventures Volume 3
Sassafras Science
by Johnny Congo & Paige Hudson
from Elemental Science
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Sassafras Science (Location: SCICUR-SAS)
Science with Plants
Usborne Science Activities
by Helen Edom
from Usborne
for 2nd-5th grade
in Usborne Science Activities (Location: SCI-EXP)
$5.99 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Seed Is Sleepy
by Dianna Hutts Aston, Sylvia Long
1st edition from Chronicle Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Nature Study & Journaling (Location: NAT-GEN)
$16.99
Seed Is Sleepy
by Dianna Hutts Aston, Sylvia Long
from Chronicle Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Nature Study & Journaling (Location: NAT-GEN)
$7.99
Shine-A-Light: Secrets of the Apple Tree
Shine-A-Light
by Carron Brown and Illustrated by Alyssa Nassner
from Quarto Knows
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Spring Walk
by Virginia Brimhall Snow
from Gibbs M. Smith
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Nature Study & Journaling (Location: NAT-GEN)
State Birds and Flowers - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Annika Bernhard
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in History of America Coloring Books (Location: COL-HISA)
$5.94
Tree Book for Kids and Their Grown-Ups
by Gina Ingoglia
from Brooklyn Botanic Garden
for Kindergarten-Adult
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
Tree Flowers
by Millicent Ellis Selsam
1st edition
for 1st-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
Tree Is a Plant
Let's- Read - and -Find- Out Science
by Clyde Robert Bulla
from HarperCollins
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$3.50 (2 in stock)
Trees and Shrubs
Eyes and No Eyes #5
by Arabella B. Buckley
from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$15.95
Trees and Shrubs
Eyes and No Eyes #5
by Arabella B. Buckley
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Living Science (Location: SCI-CMLS)
$8.99
Trees, Leaves and Bark
Take-Along Guide
by Diane Burns
from Northword Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
What Is a Plant? (Science of Living Things)
Science of Living Things
by Bobbie Kalman
from Crabtree Publishing
for 2nd-5th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$5.50 (1 in stock)
Why Do Leaves Change Color?
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by Betsy Maestro & Loretta Krupinski
from HarperCollins
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
Why Do Plants Grow?
Miracles of Creation
by Susan Horner, illustrated by Nancy Munger
from Moody Press
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Wildflowers, Blooms and Blossoms
by Diane Burns
from Northword Press
for 1st-3rd grade
in Field Guides: Plants & Fungi (Location: NAT-FG08)
Wonders of Nature
from Parents Magazine Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Science Reference (Location: SCIREF)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
World of Plants
from Usborne
for 3rd-8th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$3.00 (1 in stock)