I need to explain evolution to a six year-old.

[Nanda]

Why not debate it here. We are here arn't we? The subject has already been started hasn't it? I can't think of a better place. You first.

Except that the subject is "How to explain evolution to a six year-old," not "which of us knows the truth," so this isn't the place for it.

 

[Random]

I guess a six-year old might understand Evolution in pictures, there are some good flow charts postulating sequences in which organisms changed. But personally, I think that it would be better if mothers had available a sort of "Evol for kids" kind of book which would explain the story in simple metaphors, like a fairytale. The reality of it will become apparent to them when they're teens @ school, anyway.

 

[Autodidact]

I'll start a new thread rather than hijack Nanda's. Watch this forum.

 

[Valjean]

Descent with modification occurrs at every level, from bears to bacteria, and it's all so simple a six-year-old can understand it...

Sammy strep was a bacterium who lived with lots of other Strep family cousins in the left upper lobe of Homeless Homer's lung. But s/he was not happy.
Even though the economy was booming, and everyone had all s/he needed, and everyone was having lots of children, Sammy had no friends.

Sammy was a little different. S/he was always sweating, and his-her cousins would tease Sammy: "Eeewww! -- you smell like penicillinase!" Nobody ever wanted to play with Sammy.

One day Homer went to the Emergency Room of UNM hospital, complaining about coughing and shortness of breath. The Doctors there gave him a terrible magic pill.

After Homer swallowed the pill, Sammy's world began to fall apart, and so did his-her friends -- literally.
A strange poison began to cover everything. Almost everyone who touched it fell apart. Their safe, cozy shells became soft and their insides leaked out. All of Sammy's friends died.

But, for some reason, Sammy did not fall apart. Sammy slogged through the poison, but remained perfectly healthy.
With all his-her cousins gone s/he had plenty to eat, and plenty of room. Sammy began to have children of his-her own. All of them were just like him-her -- sweaty.
Soon Homer's left upper lobe was full of Sammy's' sweaty Streptococcal progeny. They even migrated into Homer's right middle and left lower lobes

Soon, Homeless Homer was coughing up blood, and went back to the hospital, and the Doctors gave him more magic pills, but Sammy did not care. Their magic pills had no effect on his family!

Homer was very ill, and his friends were concerned about him. They gave him some nice blankets and a cozy spot under the I-25/I-40 overpass, but Homer did not get better.

One morning Homer did not get up. Sammy's family's imperialistic, green revolution, Friedmanist lifestyles had dstroyed Homer's lungs.
Homer stopped breathing, and he never got up again. But Sammy Strep did not care. He and lots of his family had moved into Homer's friend's lungs.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The economy was booming, everyone was very happy, and everybody was very secure, knowing that magic pills would have no effect on Sammy's new naturally selected sweaty streptococcal family.

[Tune in next week for the story of Billy and Betty Blowfly's discovery of poor Homer...]

 

[fantome profane]

Descent with modification occurrs at every level, from bears to bacteria, and it's all so simple a six-year-old can understand it...

Sammy strep was a bacterium who lived with lots of other Strep family cousins in the left upper lobe of Homeless Homer's lung. But s/he was not happy.
Even though the economy was booming, and everyone had all s/he needed, and everyone was having lots of children, Sammy had no friends.

Sammy was a little different. S/he was always sweating, and his-her cousins would tease Sammy: "Eeewww! -- you smell like penicillinase!" Nobody ever wanted to play with Sammy.

One day Homer went to the Emergency Room of UNM hospital, complaining about coughing and shortness of breath. The Doctors there gave him a terrible magic pill.

After Homer swallowed the pill, Sammy's world began to fall apart, and so did his-her friends -- literally.
A strange poison began to cover everything. Almost everyone who touched it fell apart. Their safe, cozy shells became soft and their insides leaked out. All of Sammy's friends died.

But, for some reason, Sammy did not fall apart. Sammy slogged through the poison, but remained perfectly healthy.
With all his-her cousins gone s/he had plenty to eat, and plenty of room. Sammy began to have children of his-her own. All of them were just like him-her -- sweaty.
Soon Homer's left upper lobe was full of Sammy's' sweaty Streptococcal progeny. They even migrated into Homer's right middle and left lower lobes

Soon, Homeless Homer was coughing up blood, and went back to the hospital, and the Doctors gave him more magic pills, but Sammy did not care. Their magic pills had no effect on his family!

Homer was very ill, and his friends were concerned about him. They gave him some nice blankets and a cozy spot under the I-25/I-40 overpass, but Homer did not get better.

One morning Homer did not get up. Sammy's family's imperialistic, green revolution, Friedmanist lifestyles had dstroyed Homer's lungs.
Homer stopped breathing, and he never got up again. But Sammy Strep did not care. He and lots of his family had moved into Homer's friend's lungs.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The economy was booming, everyone was very happy, and everybody was very secure, knowing that magic pills would have no effect on Sammy's new naturally selected sweaty streptococcal family.

[Tune in next week for the story of Billy and Betty Blowfly's discovery of poor Homer...]

:clapThat is a fantastic story. I am not sure that I would recommend it for a 6 year old but still a fantastic story.:clap

 

[Valjean]

But my point is, it is easily understandable from a 6 y/o mentality.

Evolution is neither cryptic nor byzantine. The principles are simple.

 

[budhabee]

Except that the subject is "How to explain evolution to a six year-old," not "which of us knows the truth," so this isn't the place for it.

I don't know the truth. I said it was a mystery. Also I don't think the six year old is actually reading this post. Do you? Then again. Who knows. OK I will start another thread. Just for you. For your rules.

 

[Autodidact]

I already made one for you, budha, but I misspelled your name.

 

[Papersock]

Just show your son the new Chick track.
Moving On Up!
It's so accurate

 

[methylatedghosts]

Ok here goes. Evolution for a six-year-old:

A very very very long time ago, even before the dinosaurs, the world looked very different. There were no plants or animals. One day, there was a cell. A cell is very very very small. You can't see it with your eyes, but all living things are made of cells. And this cell made a copy of itself, a little baby cell. And it did this lots and lots of times. So many times, no-one can even count it! Some of these cells joined together and stuck to make plants. And some stuck together to make animals. And for a very very very long time, hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of years, these plants and animals have been changing to make lots of different kinds, like trees and grass and moss, and even cats, and dogs, crocodiles and even people. So from one tiny tiny cell from sooo long ago, the whole world was filled with plants and animals!

How's that for a first attempt at a kids story

 

[Smoke]

My grandmother explained evolution to me when I was very young, mostly by showing me pictures in her own books and explaining the gist of things to me. Cells never came into it, and I don't remember it being too complicated or at all traumatic for either of us.

I think the best thing would be to sit down and make and write a summary of the information you've like to convey, and then make sure you understand that information well enough yourself to explain it to a six-year-old.

This book is for 4- to 8-year-olds, though, and looks like it might be interesting:

Amazon.com: The Tree Of Life: The Wonders Of Evolution: Ellen Jackson,Judeanne Winter Wiley: Books​