What do kids need to know about the Bible? When do they need to know it? Let’s look at age appropriate Bible study!
As a Sunday School teacher, homeschool mother of four graduates, I know the struggles and fears that come with such a question. I want to share with you the outline that my husband and I used with our children and that we have seen work for over 20 years with families, churches, and schools around the world. It is not a magic formula but an outline that I encourage you to add to and modify to fit the needs of your class or family.
Preschool is the perfect age to introduce children to the importance of learning the Bible. Children ages 4 to 5 can learn the most familiar Bible and the fact that God wants a relationship with them.
Like preschool children, kindergarten children can take the next step in growing their faith.
In addition to what you teach at the preschool level you can add a few additional things as you teach students in Kindergarten.
Once Kindergarten children learn the major characters and events of the Bible and have confidence to pray to the Lord, they will be ready to move to the next level
Between Kindergarten and the early elementary grades children begin to understand time, so this is the perfect time to teach the chronology of the Bible.
During the early elementary years, teaching and memorizing the Bible timeline as well as biblical facts will give students a solid foundation to build on in the years to come.
In addition to the things above, children in grades 4 to 6 are at the perfect age to help students learn when and where the Bible took place.
Whether you have students who know their Bibles well or students new to the Bible, these things will grow their confidence.
Building on the skills they have learned to this point, we begin to teach students how to study the Bible on their own. If you have students new to the Bible, we do recommend helping them learn the major characters and events before teaching them to study on their own.
As parents, it was at this age that we began to consider our teens’s strengths and focus our biblical training to help them fulfill their life missions. We took them to workshops, seminars, and other places that allowed them to learn from other believers. If you are working with youth, try to find experiences that will
Now that we have an outline for our students, what is our responsibility as teachers?
These are the things we recommend that children know about the Bible. As a teacher, you will add things to your list for your students or children. Our prayer is that we, as teachers, can give each student a solid biblical foundation to equip them to be ready to teach the next generation. I am glad you are joining us at Grapevine to raise up a biblically literate generation of Christians.