Purposeful Design (Schoolhouse Review)

We tend to take our amazing world for granted, yet when we stop and really notice how incredible creation is, it is so obvious that it all comes from God’s Purposeful Design.

Purposeful Design: Understanding the Creation ($18.95), by Jay Schabacker, is a beautiful book that describes and explains the science behind the wonders of creation, directing the reader’s attention to the Creator and His amazing creation. This book appeals to all ages, although the reading level and scientific concepts addressed are probably best suited for upper elementary  and middle school aged children.

The seven chapters in the book each focus on one day of creation.

• Chapter 1: The First Day, Creation of the Heavens and the Earth tells the reader what the Bible says, then discusses the solar system, the application of the second law of thermodynamics to the movement of the planets, and explains that the universe is orderly, that the rules of nature do not change.
• Chapter 2: The Second Day, Creation of the Atmosphere and Water explains the rain cycle and discusses how the fact that 71% of the earth’s surface is covered with water creates an atmosphere perfect for life.
• Chapter 3: The Third Day, Creation of the Dry Land and Vegetation tells about the various uses of vegetation.
• Chapter 4: The Fourth Day, Creation of the Sun, Moon, and Stars explains the seasons and how they are created, the orderly daily changes in sunrise and sunset times, the phases of the moon, tilt of the earth, and ocean tides.
• Chapter 5: The Fifth Day, Creation of the Birds and Fish and The Sixth Day, Creation of Land Creatures and Humans discusses the amazing design of these living creatures, how each is perfectly made for its own environment, and how they live in symbiotic relationships with each other. Many pages are devoted to the amazing design of the human body.
• Chapter 7: The Seventh Day reminds the reader for the need for rest and for giving honor to our creator.

This is a wonderful book—part theology, part science—all on an interest and comprehension level for children, but still containing a great deal of scientific information that is fascinating for all ages. The colorful photos and drawings make it ideal for a coffee table book to pick up and glance through for a few minutes, or to use as more serious study.

To make this beautiful book even better, there is a “Young Explorer’s Club” free  PDF curriculum available from Purposeful Design with questions reviewing the scientific concepts for each chapter, scripture verses for reflection, and faith application questions for each chapter. I had Emily work through this workbook and thought it was an excellent way to review and encourage her to further apply the lessons in the book. This definitely would be a great science/Bible program for an elementary or middle school student.

As soon as this book arrived, Emily disappeared with it. She told me that it was very interesting, and taught her many facts that she hadn’t known. She also commented that she enjoyed the study guide because it asked for her opinions instead of being a multiple choice format. I didn’t even have a chance to look through it myself until she was finished with it! I gave her 2 weeks of Bible study credit for reading the book and doing the study guide, but she would have been happy to read and study it just for fun. I think this will be a book that is read over and over many times.