The Old Schoolhouse Magazine

things. We’ve got to pay attention to that next generation.

Part of it, I think, is being intimidated by all of the so-called science out there. You have a scientist who has a master’s degree, and he’s been on various outings or expeditions, and in your mind, he’s five or six steps ahead of you. We are intimidated because we think we don’t know the science. We think, “How do you expect me to confront them?” But really, these scientists are engaged in the realm we should be masters of, which is faith. Evolution is a faith. They’re just simply taking their faith, which is uniformitarianism, and packaging it in scientific terms. We have to help our kids learn how to take that apart.

You don’t have to be a biochemist to spot where they are mixing faith with science. To be able to identify and recognize what parts of the statements these people are making are science and what parts are simply philosophy is something they’ve got to be equipped at doing. I think that is my biggest concern and probably my main passion, to help kids be effective at that. They don’t have to know nuclear physics or biochemistry. All they have to learn is how to recognize what part of the statements that are being made are philosophy and history, and what parts of them are actual science.

If you can get serious and just say, “You say that’s science, but you haven’t told me how science really supports it,” we can get into learning how to challenge them. I think it’s a possibility to plant some seeds of doubt and work with the Spirit. We’ve got to combine the Word with a conscience, and the only way to get at the conscience is to expose some doubt that they really don’t know as much as they say they know. That’s what our kids have really got to be sharp in doing.

TOS: How do you handle the fear that kids (and many of us) have of not having all the answers?

Patrick: Students need to catch them-
selves before they are bowled over by all the
scientific knowledge someone knows, and
listen for the underwriting assumptions,
interpretations, and faiths. The science is
not going to be what is going to convince
the person. You’re always going to run into
somebody who knows more than you. It’s
really learning how to handle statements
that are made and identifying what part of
it is assumption, what part is interpretation,
and what part of it is science. That part we
can know without knowing everything.

If students can become sharp at doing that, then I think we’ll be seeing some workers for the future that won’t be afraid because they’ll know that the whole dilemma is over conflicting worldviews, not over science versus the Bible. That’s what I’m most passionate about.

Earth science is often overlooked when families build curriculum, but the equipping of the worldview behind the earth science is what’s not being done, and that really takes more concentration of effort than simply getting any kind of curriculum does. Kids are an open book, and we have to take the opportunity to give them this foundation now.

TOS: We appreciate you taking your time out of your busy schedule to talk with us today. Thank you so much!

Bonnie Rose Hudson works as the Director of Schoolhouse Teachers .com, the curriculum site of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine . Her desire is for every child to feel the love of God and know how special they are to Him. She would love for you to stop by her author’s blog WriteBonnieRose.com for resources to help teach your children about missions and the persecuted Church, free history and writing printables, and to discover how you can write for the homeschool market .

Patrick Nurre

Patrick Nurre is a popular speaker at home-school and church conventions on geology, the Flood, and creation/evolution . He teaches numerous private and homeschool classes in the Seattle, Washington, area, in addition to leading field trips to Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier, and annual family trips to Yellowstone National Park . Patrick is the vision behind Northwest Treasures, a non-profit devoted to high quality geology curricula, kits, and samples. He also operates the Geology Learning Center in Lynnwood, Washington, a museum devoted to helping educate the public about geology and the Flood through displays and classes . He has written 17 books for geology study for all ages. His books and classes are from a young earth view. Patrick and his wife have three grown children and one lively grandson! To see more geology resources, visit his web site at Northwest Rock AndFossil .com .