The Foundations of Science: Animals (Textbook)

“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?”

—Job 38:4

The Foundations of Science introduces children to the wonders of the natural world in light of God’s providential care over creation.

Too often we hear messages that science is in conflict with faith, but Pope St. John Paul II wrote that faith and science “each can draw the other into a wider world, a world in which both can flourish.” Foundations seeks to spawn this flourishing in the hearts and minds of young readers, guiding them into a world that will delight their imaginations and inspire awe in the awesome power of God.

Authored by Dr. Timothy Polnaszek, this eight-part series covers an extensive scope of scientific studies, from animals and plants, to the galaxies of outer space and the depths of the ocean, to cells and organisms, to the curiosities of chemistry and the marvels of our planet. Still more, it reveals the intricate order found beneath the surface of creation and chronicles many of the Church’s contributions to science throughout history.

Animals: Creatures of the Wild offers a tour of the animal kingdom and the habitats in which mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, insects, and fish live and thrive. Children will discover how animals find and hunt for food, how and why they live in concert with other animals, why they migrate or hibernate, and more.

Did you know . . .

• spiders eat more than 400 million tons of insects each year?
• honey bees sometimes “dance” to communicate with each other?
• the olm salamander can go ten years without eating anything?
• snapping turtles can use their tongue as bait, making it look like a worm, to lure fish close to their mouths?
• a bald eagle could read a newspaper from across a football field (assuming they could read, of course!)?
• the arctic tern flies from Greenland to Antarctica (and back) each year, which means that it flies more than forty thousand miles per year?
• cheetahs can run over sixty miles per hour?
• certain species of ants count their own steps to find their way back to their anthill?

In addition, children will also learn about St. Francis, the patron saint of animals; the story of St. Brendan and the whales; and St. Modomnoc and the bees; the serpent from Genesis; and how the Church teaches that our care for animals can bring us closer to God.

Take a journey back to when God laid the foundation of the world with this groundbreaking science curriculum!