The Riot and the Dance: Foundational Biology by Gordon Wilson. The cover features a lot of sketches of animals.

The Riot and the Dance: Foundational Biology

(1 review)
$79.00

Gordon Wilson

Material:
Material: Hardback

New hardback version is available now!

If you thought high school biology was the tedious province of secular scientists, think again: The Riot and the Dance is biology like you've never seen it before.

With over 130 original illustrations and several hundred figures total, this book is first and foremost an approachable and readable explanation of the basics of biology. But Dr. Wilson doesn't dumb down the concepts, either. Using analogies, anecdotes, and simple, personable language, Dr. Wilson teaches students the bottom-line themes and key details of biology. The Riot and the Dance is not a pile of disconnected facts: it is an integrated foundation for understanding biological life, and it will stir up curiosity about all life from fungus firearms to familiar vertebrates—that, along with a greater desire to praise the Creator of it all.

In "Part 1: The Living Cell," you will be introduced to:

  • the basics of cellular and molecular biology, including the "motors" of flagella and other awe-inspiring nano-machines
  • the "how and why" of photosynthesis, cellular respiration, the central dogma, mitosis, meiosis, recombinant DNA technology, and Mendelian genetics, and more...

In "Part 2: The Diversity of Life," you will be taken on a fascinating tour of:

  • the major phyla and classes of all of the six taxonomic kingdoms
  • important concepts in the creation/evolution debate
  • an exciting survey of God's living handiwork, including the tiny, deadly Trypanosoma, fungus firearms, sedentary sponges, bizarre echinoderms and unfamiliar facts about the lifecycles and habits of familar vertebrates and plants
  • the basics of ecology, such as symbiotic relationships, food webs, and the interdependency of life
  • a biblical approach to conservation, and much more...

Rather than teaching a pile of disconnected facts about biology, Gordon Wilson gives the reader a foundational knowledge of living things alongside his primary goal, which is to stir up a long-lasting wonder and curiosity about life and a greater desire to praise the Creator. 

Each chapter of the book includes some review questions. For educators and homeschoolers, we have created a pdf with all the answers to the review questions which you can download here.

What People Are Saying:

"The Riot and the Dance by Dr. Gordon Wilson is not your typical biology text book, as is obvious from the title. It is written in a more personal style—like a conversation between the student and the professor. As a consequence the reader feels more like the author is a real person and they are reading a real book (rather than trying to plow through a dictionary or encyclopedia). All the essential biology is presented, and is presented well—but in a more user-friendly context. The author is transparent in his Christian perspective, but remains strongly focused on the biology at hand. His very limited interjection of personal perspectives preserves the book's professional character but adds a dash of salt. There is no attempt to deal in depth with various theories regarding the history of life, which I feel is appropriate and intellectually honest." -John Sanford, PhD, Courtesy Associate Professor, Department of Horticulture, Cornell University

"As a former college professor, it was refreshing to read a biology textbook that was not saturated in evolutionary fairy tales. Wilson doesn't hide his beliefs about creation beginning with God's Word. I enjoyed the conversational style of the book that will engage students with the information versus the typical biology textbook that is a boring recounting of facts. I also appreciated the use of analogies as these are a very effective teaching tool in the sciences. The Riot and the Dance will make a great addition to any biology classroom that desires to learn about God's world beginning with God's Word." -Georgia Purdom, PhD, Answers in Genesis

READER REVIEWS:

"Our previous high school biology curriculum was just not cutting it with neither my daughter nor me. What a difference with The Riot and the Dance! My daughter doesn't cringe when it's time for her to do science." -Leslie

"This is a textbook that is not like other textbooks because it is fun. I have used this book as a help in teaching high school biology, I've referred to it during medical school (for his summaries of metabolic pathways), and I have read big chunks of it for pleasure and out of curiosity. Dr. Gordon Wilson is a very talented teacher and he does a wonderful job of illustrating the content of his book." -Ryan

"The Riot and the Dance is everything you need a biology text to be. It’s college prep. It’s interesting. It covers biology from the cellular level all the way up to the macro level (but does not cover humans) and ends with a well written chapter on ecology. It traffics in awe and wonder... If you are looking for a biology curriculum for high school, The Riot and the Dance is worth your consideration. It’s a solid, informative text, it’s engaging, and the labs are good. What’s not to like?" -Brandy

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PAGE COUNT: 440

ILLUSTRATIONS/PHOTOS: 300+ 

SIZE: 8.5x11"

ISBN-10: 1591281238

ISBN-13: 9781591281238

PUB. DATE: January 20, 2015

More teaching resources for The Riot and the Dance:

The Riot and the Dance Teacher's Edition contains detailed reading objectives, quizzes for every chapter, unit exams, and a complete answer key. Students can take the quizzes and exams directly from this book as the pages are perforated for easy removal.

The Riot and the Dance Lab Manual contains 25 labs to accompany the textbook, along with materials list, objectives, exercises, detailed lab instructions, and a year long schedule of interactive labs corresponding to the Student text.

The Riot and the Dance Complete Bundle contains the Student Textbook, the Teacher's Edition, and the Lab Manual.

The Riot and the Dance Documentary is a beautifully shot film narrated by Dr. Wilson and directed by children's book author N.D. Wilson.

Check Out the Trailer here: 

Customer Reviews

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David C
Creation science is not biblical

As early scientists, mostly Christian, began to investigate earth history in the 1600's, they gradually found evidence of vast time. Evidently, the Bible had skipped over theologically irrelevant pre-human events; no theological problem. However, by adopting an "Enlightenment" trust in individual reason, some people were fooled into thinking that the Bible ought to be science in order to be really true. Misreading the Bible as if it were modern science and history, instead of proper understanding as an ancient Near Eastern book focused on theology, led to the error of modern young-earth creationism, at first in the Seventh-Day Adventists and geocentric Missouri Synod Lutherans before being spread through much of conservative Christianity. But the purported scientific arguments for a young earth or against evolution are terrible. Every piece of evidence about the age of the earth from geology, biology, and astronomy supports a vast age, with humans only at the end. (This went against ideas popular in deistic speculation, so Christians in the 1800's cited this pattern as supporting the accuracy of the Bible.) Similarly, the recognition that evolution by natural selection is an effective way to create a diversity of organisms that matches well with the observed patterns was accepted by many Christians as describing how God has worked. Every day, we use geological resources that were discovered using old-earth models; creation science is not even coherent enough to tell where to look. Teaching students creation science sets them up for apostasy whenever they encounter genuine science. The creation science movement has become a legalistic false gospel like that of the Galatian judaizers, substituting the following of young-earth claims for faith in the atoning work of Jesus Christ. By chasing miracles, they end up denying God's constant working in the ordinary processes of creation.

Science is merely the study of the ordinary physical patterns in creation. It is of great practical value, but rather limited in its theological use. Genesis 1, in its thorough repetition of the point that all things are parts of God's creation with their proper places, assures us that there are no rival gods or untamed powers out there to disrupt the working of creation. Nor is the creation a product of blind chance, that might change at any moment. Thus, we can study it with confidence and gain the knowledge that we need to be good stewards of creation, as we were created to be. As Job 28 and Ecclesiastes point out, science gives great knowledge but not the wisdom to use that knowledge rightly; for wisdom we need the fear of the Lord. Because we can figure out answers to science questions ourselves, there is no need for revelation of scientific information to be hidden away in the Bible. The Bible reflects the accurate scientific knowledge derived from the authors' experiences, but that is in the background to the focus on teaching about God and about our duties. Science is of use in understanding the Bible when it comes to recognizing metaphors; archaeological and linguistic data give valuable background, but not generally essential to theological understanding.