Content

• According to UC Berkeley's "Understanding Evolution for Teachers" website, judges in the United States have consistently agreed that schools should teach the theory of evolution to explain human origins and that creationism--the theory that God created the world--belongs to the realm of religion and faith, rather than science. Address faith issues if students bring them up, but promote only the teaching of the approved curriculum or textbook on evolution.
  
  

Basics

• Scientist and educator Rodger Bybee encourages science teachers to "teach inquiry and the nature of science" in order to teach evolution. He means that by teaching the principles of scientific inquiry--observations, hypotheses and experiments--the teacher gives students the ability to analyze for themselves the evidence that points to evolution.
  
  

Activities

• The National Academy of Science proposes eight classroom activities for teaching evolution. One involves an examination of fossil footprints, with students suggesting their own explanations of the evidence. Another activity uses a long paper strip as a visual aid for mapping the history of the world and human evolution. Hands-on activities help to cement ideas learned in textbooks.