What Children Can Learn
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton
There is no set curriculum for teaching the Bible. What works best is what keeps the child's interest in learning. However, here are some suggestions for various age levels:
Toddlers (2-3 years old)
Behavior: Learning good behavior, listening, and sitting in a chair during class.
Concepts:
- General ideas about God: That God loves him, God hears him when he talks to God, God is everywhere, God made everything in the world
- General ideas about Jesus: That Jesus loves him, Jesus is God's Son, Jesus died but God brought him back to life, and Jesus lives in heaven with God.
- General ideas about the Bible: The Bible is God's special book
- Being good, helping at home, praying, saying "thank you," singing songs
Topics:
- Simplified stories from the Bible such as the Creation
- SImplified stories about major characters of the Bible that emphasize a simple point
Pre-School (4-5 years old)
Behavior: Treating other people with respect, listening, memorizing through songs
Concepts:
- About the Bible: The Bible is a set of books divided into the Old and New Testament, the first book is Genesis and the last book is Revelation, the books of the Bible, the days of Creation, the twelve apostles, the fruits of the Spirit, the 17 divisions of time.
Topics:
- The major characters of the Bible with emphasis on learning a point from the person's life
Early School Aged (6-7 years old)
Behavior: Bringing a Bible to class, listening, being respectful of other people
Skills:
- Find a passage by book, chapter, and verse
- The 17 divisions of time in the Bible
- Learn the 12 tribes of Israel, the 15 Judges, the 12 apostles
Topics:
- The major events of the Bible and knowing where they fall on a broad timeline
- The life of Christ
Elementary School Aged (8-11)
Behavior: Bring a Bible, notebook, and pencil to class, respect others, and listening skills
Skills:
- Find and read a passage given its book, chapter, and verse
- Memorize key passages
- The divisions of the Bible books
Topics:
- The major events or topics in each book of the Bible
- The history of the early church
Junior High Students (12-14)
Behavior: Bring a Bible, notebook, and pencil to class. Be able to do short homework assignments. Show respect for others. Improve their listening skills.
Skills:
- Be able to articulate a reasoned argument.
- Be able to use a concordance or software to locate verses on a topic.
- Learn how to use verses within their context.
- Learn how to use maps and atlases.
- How to take notes during sermons and other lessons
Topics:
- The gospels and the letters to the churches emphasizing the application of the concepts to their everyday life.
- The characters of the Bible and their moral decisions
- The nature of temptation, lust, and sin
- How people can be saved from their sins
- Jewish history
- The books of Luke and Acts
High School Students (15-18)
Behavior: Bring a Bible, notebook, and pencil to class. Be able to do short homework assignments. Show respect for others. Improve their listening skills.
Skills:
- Be able to articulate a reasoned argument and how to talk to others about their beliefs
- Be able to take a topic, find appropriate passages, and organize what they have learned
- Hermeneutics, establishing authority, distinguishing figurative speech, distinguishing examples from incidentals, when is an implication necessary
Topics:
- Making moral decisions based on what God said about various matters. Cover real-world issues, such as dating, sex, drinking, drugs, homosexuality, lying, anger, etc.
- The nature of temptation, lust, and sin
- How people can be saved from their sins
- Study Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and James
- Study Mark and John with emphasis on how to teach others from these books.
- Topics such as priorities, holiness, the work of the church, relationships with friends and family
- How to pray, prepare a short talk or lesson, sing, and teach children
- Evidence for Christianity
