Marrying up God and evolution for a 4.5yo - help please

[indignatio]

I was listening to my ds yesterday discussing god with his friend of the same age. ds goes to the local c of e primary and his friend (df) goes to a local community school. They were discussing the first people on earth - named as Adam and Eve - created by God and who came after the ice age after the dinosaurs became extinct. Whilst I was most impressed that both had clearly been listening in assembly I was also concerned that they were only being given one side of the arguement.

With Christmas I came up with the line that Father Christmas gives out presents to boys and girls because we are celebrating Jesus' birthday and he was so special that everyone has presents.

Can anyone come up with a way of introducing the concept of evolution to a bright 4.5yo without negating any of the christian "principles" he is being taught in school.

Many thanks

I'm reading Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder at the mo and one point it mentions is that a God that created evolvable creatures would be rather good, and it forms a nice compromise I think. Doesn't help much with the primal soup end of it though, unless God caused that, but then you struggle with Adam and Eve. Sorry, I'm not much help, am I?

You're happy for him to believe in Father Christmas, but not a creator god? I'd wait until you've burst the FC myth (and others), and then you can tackle evolution. Of course the school will also teach evolution - in their own time. It isn't part of the reception syllabus (at least not in our school!)

Thanks TooTicky

I think that children of this age are very open to ideas and concepts and perhaps they lose this skill as they grow older. Was it the Jesuits who said give me a child to the age of 7 and we will show you the man ?

That is why I want ds to be aware of the concept of evolution, BUT not to the detriment of the Christian teaching he is receiving in school.

When my ds1 was 3 or 4, he used to say that when he died he would be a bird. He didn't then struggle with Christianity when he started school. I think these concepts do not have to be mutually exclusive, but at some point you will get the inevitable why questions - but you'd get those anyway.

I just always say - some people think X and some people think Y, what do you think?

I love to hear them explore their own views - and throw in the odd propmt or off the wall comment just to keep the thinking fluid.

IMO they need to understand that there is no right or wrong - just different opinions and they have to make their own judgement as to which they feel is most likely.

I take exactly the same tack with FC - but mine both still just about believe Too much vested interest not to I think!

I would say something along the lines of "that in olden days, people knew that God made them, but they didn't understand how he made them or who the first people were". So to help them understand, they made up a lovely story of where the plants and the animals came from, and Adam and Eve too.

I agree with Soapbox - you actually dont need to make these two different concepts 'match up'. Its fine to explain that some people believe in evolution and some people believe in creation and some people believe in both. Or neither.

You can say what you believe too. My children know that i dont have supernatural beliefs and am fascinated and inspired by evolution, but we explore and openly discuss all types of beliefs and they know they are free to choose. And change their minds as they go, if they want to.

One way to explain it is that when the bible refers to the fact the world was created in 7 days they actualy meant 7 periods of time so one of these periods included dinosaurs then later primitive man.

Pity the rest of the bible isn't so easy to explain .

That's a good one to try skribble, thanks.
Ds is currently of the view that the Creation story as told in the Bible is so scientifically flawed that God cannot possibly exist. Despite attending church and Sunday School every week with genuine enthusiasm...

Thank you all - sorry for the delay in responding.