The relationship between religious and scientific views on the origin of life
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain scientific views on the origins of human life and how Christian views interact with them.
Key learning points
- Evolution, proposed by Darwin, explains species' development through natural selection.
- Many Christians accept theistic evolution, believing God used evolution to create life.
- Creationists follow Genesis literally, rejecting evolution.
- Most denominations see evolution as compatible with faith, but some, like the Plymouth Brethren, disagree.
- Humanists view evolution as a natural process based on science, without God.
Keywords
Creationism - the belief that God created life exactly as described in Genesis
Evolution - scientific theory of the development of species which involves a process of natural selection and survival of the fittest
Natural selection - the process where the fittest organisms survive and reproduce
Theistic evolution - the belief that God works through the process of evolution
Common misconception
Christianity and evolution are completely incompatible.
Many Christian denominations accept evolution as part of God's creative process, including the Catholic Church and the Church of England.
Teacher tip
You might want to recap Christian approaches to reading the Bible, both literal and metaphorical.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is a key difference between the two creation accounts in Genesis 1 and Genesis 2?
Q2.How might Christians who accept scientific explanations about the origins of life interpret Genesis?
Q3.What does Genesis 1 suggest about the nature of God?
Q4.The belief that God created humans in His likeness is known as the doctrine of .
Q5.The scientific theory that describes how life evolved over time is called .
Q6.Christians who believe that science and faith are compatible are often called .
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is the key idea behind the theory of evolution?
Q2.How does theistic evolution differ from creationism?
Q3.Which Christian denomination teaches that Genesis should be read metaphorically rather than literally?
Q4.The belief that God created life exactly as described in Genesis is called .
Q5.According to the theory of evolution, species change over time through .
Q6.Christians who believe that God set evolution in motion follow the belief known as .
To help you plan your 11 religious education lesson on: The relationship between religious and scientific views on the origin of life, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 11 religious education lesson on: The relationship between religious and scientific views on the origin of life, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 religious education lessons from the Religion and life unit, dive into the full secondary religious education curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.