The intelligent design advocate Jonathan Wells wrote in Icons of Evolution: Science or Myth? (2002), "Although it is widely used to show that we are just animals, and that our very existence is a mere accident, the ultimate icon goes far beyond the evidence." [8] The book likens a selection of evolution theory textbook topics to the cover illustration thus qualified. The artist didn't intend to reduce the evolution of man to a linear sequence, but it was read that way by viewers.... The graphic overwhelmed the text. It was so powerful and emotional. [6] The picture of progress in evolution was anticipated by Thomas Henry Huxley's 1863 Evidence as to Man's Place in Nature. History of life: Grades 6-8] Through billions of years of evolution, life forms have continued to diversify in a branching pattern, from single-celled ancestors to the diversity of life on Earth today. The image has frequently been copied, modified, and parodied. It has been criticized as "unintentionally and wrongly" implying that " evolution is progressive". [4] The image has been described as having a "visual logic" of linear progression. [1] The Lancet called it "proverbial, much quoted or adapted, familiar to multitudes who have never seen its original version or heard of its maker". [2] The image has become better-known than the science behind it. [3]

Ramapithecus, 13–8 million year old ape and possible ancestor of modern orangutans (now considered a female Sivapithecus) a b Gould, Stephen Jay (1989), Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of History. W.W. Norton & Company, pp 30–36.Evolution is defined as the process by which different living organisms develop from earlier forms throughout history. The history of all of Earth is rich and impossible to go through in detail, but this timeline can help you give your children an overview of how we came to be today and all the events in between. What other resources can I use to teach the Earth timeline?

Posters are a wonderful way to support learning on a specific topic, by providing a helpful source of visual reinforcement in the classroom as well as helping to make your classroom a more colourful and welcoming place! More evolution-themed resources a b c d Howell, F. Clark and the Editors of Time-Life Books (1965), Early Man, New York: TIME-LIFE Books, pp. 41–45.

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History of life: Grades 6-8] Present-day life forms are descended from past life forms; all life is related. (LS4.A) Contrary to appearances and some complaints, the original 1965 text of "The Road to Homo Sapiens" reveals an understanding of the fact that a linear presentation of a sequence of primate species, all in the direct line of human ancestors, would not be a correct interpretation. For example, the fourth of Zallinger's figures ( Oreopithecus) is said to be "a likely side branch on man's family tree". Only the next figure ( Ramapithecus) is described as "now thought by some experts to be the oldest of man's ancestors in a direct line" (something no longer considered likely). That implies that the first four primates are not to be considered actual human ancestors. Likewise, the seventh figure ( Paranthropus) is said to be "an evolutionary dead end". [5] In addition, the colored stripes, across the top of the figure, which indicate the age and duration of the various lineages clearly imply that there is no evidence of direct continuity between extinct and extant lineages and also, multiple lineages of the figured hominids occurred contemporaneously at several points in the history of the group. Studying evolution: Grades 6-8] Evolutionary relationships may be represented by branching trees (i.e. phylogenies or cladograms).