Our Family Tree: An Evolution Story

Yes, this book has the ability to let students develop thought about evolution and what that is. It allows students to develop the process of understanding this idea deeply by presenting it in a way that probably has not been done for them before.

Author: Lisa Westberg Peters
Illustrator: Lauren Stringer
Year Published: 2003

Science Topics

Minimum Suggested Grade Level

4th Grade

Maximum Suggested Grade Level

7th Grade

Summary

This is a narrative, told from the perspective of a present day person, who tells the story of evolution. With this story telling, the narrator explains the changes that the Earth had and the changes in organisms, starting from the beginning of life as cells and following "our family" down until you have humans in present day.

Evaluation

Appropriateness: High
Authority: Medium
Accuracy: Medium
Liteary Artistry: High
Appearance: High

Questions

Does the book foster development of processes?

Does the book provide an opportunity for children to ask and answer their own questions?

Yes, this book has many appropriate stopping points that allow for student thought, reflection and discussion. There a number of possible questions that could arise from this reading and in most cases. I believe they will be able to answer them based on text evidence given throughout the story with either the text or pictures.

Does the book encourage children to think for themselves?

Yes, again, this book has many stopping points that allow students to think critically about what they are reading. Although, this book presents evolution as fact, it is done in the way of a narrative that still allows the students to be thoughtful when and if they question it.

Is the science topic addressed in ways that are appropriate to the lesson?

Depending on what lesson you are trying to teach, most of them can be done very appropriately with this book. The main concept that is being explained here is evolution. Within a science lesson plan, focused on evolution, yes this book is very appropriate for all ages.

Is the content based on sound scientific principles? Is it accurate?

This book is based on scientific principle. While the evidence in the book is generalized and often not focused on a singular aspect, it is still based on scientific principle. You can tell the author went to great lengths to choose her words carefully for this book and accurately display this information. However, she also went to great lengths to make sure that it is presented in a non-challenging, positive, inclusive way.

Does the book distinguish between fact and fiction?

While some may argue that there is fiction to evolution, if we are assuming that evolution is in fact proven by science, then yes this book does distinguish between fiction and non-fiction. There are many times where the author gave many examples and elaborated on what evolution is. There was no fictional aspects in this book.

Are the illustrations clear and accurate?

The illustrations are beautiful. Some pages are full page bleeds and cover up whole sections so the readers can understand the book better. Instead of aiding to the academic content of what evolution is, it aids to the overall emotional tone of the book which allows students to understand this more deeply.

Is the book written at the level of your students?

Yes, I think this book is appropriate for grade 5 (my students). However, I also believe that this book, depending on how you approach the topic and what kind of lesson you do with it, it can be appropriate for any grade form about 4th through middle school.

Is there a multicultural component? Is it free from stereotyping?

There is one slight multicultural component. Towards end of teh book, when the narrator is talking about how we are all humans, she states "On the inside, we are all human... on in the outside we are all human." Whether this was intentional way to be all-inclusive for an approach from a scientific perspective, I am not sure. Preceding that, during the front cover pages there is a small family shown by the beach. They are a white family with blonde hair and are on the first few cover pages before the story begins.

Is the book free from gender bias?

Yes, I believe so. There is no mention as to men versus women or any pronouns giving gender. It is presented with a universal "we" and "our." Humans are talked about in terms of humans as a whole, and not broken down or seperated.

Does the book show the close association between science and other disciplines?

To me, the strongest association with another subject is social science. I believe this book could be used well with children when discusses differences and multiculturalism in conjunction with science. I think that this would go very well in S. S. also because of the era we live in where scientific fact is being challenged and there is a cultural gap that is becoming more relevant in today's life.

Does the book present a positive attitude toward science and technology?

Yes, this book talks about evolution, the idea of it, and the understanding of it in such a cheerful and exciting way. We talk about evolution, and the book connects it to family and culture. This gives off a very comfortable and positive tone throughout the book.