Homeschool Bible

Many parents think that they need to buy and expensive curriculum to teach homeschool Bible. Here is an article that gives you some ideas of the choices you have. My comments are at the end.

Bible Homeschooling - You Have Many Choices by Don Rodriguez

Interested in Bible homeschooling? Then you have many choices. Although many parents mistakenly argue that the Bible commands them to teach their children at home as opposed to sending them to public or private schools, what the Bible actually teaches is that parents should teach the word of God to their children at home; the Bible offers no advice on whether reading, writing, and arithmetic ought to be taught at home or at a public or private school. Nevertheless, for those parents who are interested in teaching their children at home and a biblical perspective is important, there are many choices to choose from.

There are Catholic schools which provide a complete curriculum for home schools. There are also evangelical and other perspectives on the Bible. Baptist as well as nondenominational views are also prevalent. Parents can choose a complete curriculum from a religious world view or they can combine religious education with secular training. Endless possibilities exist, limited only by the parents own desires and ingenuity.

Lifepac and Sonlight are two of the most popular Bible based curriculum from a Protestant perspective. Seton Home is a nationally recognized source for Catholic homeschooling. These schools provide the core state required courses in addition to their religious based courses. Some of the schools even have Bible math and Bible history. So the options are endless.

Parents might wonder how do they go about deciding which curriculum is right for their child. It might be helpful to narrow the choices down to your own religious view and then choose the one which works best for you and your child. You should also seek the advice and counsel of those persons you would ordinarily consult with on important matters. Fortunately, most of the schools allow you to test drive their courses before you buy and doing so is highly recommended.

If you would like more information about homeschool lesson plans [http://homeschoolingbasics.info/homeschool-lesson-plans] as well as general information on homeschooling, please visit [http://homeschoolingbasics.info] These links are not active but I am required to include them here.

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My Comments: Although purchasing a homeschool Bible curriculum sounds appealing, unless you have lots of money laying around, you can do just as well with just a Bible or an inexpensive curriculum.

If your children see you use an expensive homeschool Bible curriculum and then see you cheat or lie to your neighbor, friend or person in authority, then you have wasted your money. It's much more important that your children have parents that are studying the Bible on their own, attending a Bible teaching church, and living out their faith every day.

The author mentions Sonlight Bible and some others. I was surprised he didn't mention Abeka. They are fairly well known for their homeschool Bible curriculum, although it is very expensive.

What to Use Instead of a Curriculum... Along with reading the Bible to your children and memorizing verses, you can get lots of good children's Bible story books to read to them giving you a complete homeschool Bible program. Mary Manz Simon has written some excellent Bible stories that you can use to teach reading or reinforce reading along with learning the Bible. Some of her titles include:

Hear Me Read: Sit Down (Mary and Martha)By Mary Manz Simon / Concordia Publishing House This book presents the story of Mary and Martha, found in Luke 10:38-42, to children who are learning how to read. Just 19 words are used in this Hear Me Read Bible story. These words are repeated again and again to help your child develop a sight vocabulary and take pride in a growing ability to recognize words. Recommended for ages 4 to 8.

Rumble, Rumble (Jesus Feed the Crowd): A Hear Me Read BookBy Mary Manz Simon / Concordia Publishing House This book for beginning readers tells the Bible story in which Jesus feeds a huge crowd of people with five loaves of bread and two fishes. Just 23 words are used in this Hear Me Read Bible story. These words are repeated again and again to help your child develop a sight vocabulary and take pride in a growing ability to recognize words. Recommended for ages 4 to 8.

A Silent Night: Luke 2:8-20 (Christmas)By Mary Manz Simon / Concordia Publishing House This book retells the story of christmas and a silent night to children who are learning to read. Just 20 words are used in this Hear Me Read Bible story. These words are repeated again and again to help your child develop a sight vocabulary and take pride in a growing ability to recognize words.

Hear Me Read: Whoops! (Jonah and the Fish)By Mary Manz Simon / Concordia Publishing House This book for beginning readers retells the Bible story of Jonah and the Fish (from Jonah 1,2,3:1-3). Just 23 words are used in this Hear Me Read Bible story. These words are repeated again and again to help your child develop a sight vocabulary and take pride in a growing ability to recognize words. The author Mary Manz Simon, has a doctoral degree in education with a specialty in early childhood education. Recommended for ages 4 to 8.

The Hide-And-Seek Prince: 2 Kings 11:1-12:16 (Joash)By Mary Manz Simon / Concordia Publishing House Encourage your child's reading skills-and bring the Bible to life - with colorful, action-packed Hear Me Reads. Children love them for the easy-to-read Bible stories. Parents love them for the way they build reading skills and Bible knowledge.

Thank You, Jesus: Luke 17:11-19: Jesus Heals 10 Men with LeprosyBy Mary Manz Simon / Concordia Publishing House Encourage your child's reading skills and bring the Bible to life with colorful, action packed Hear Me Reads. Children love them for the easy to read Bible stories. Parents love them for the way they build reading skills and Bible knowledge. For beginning readers ages 6 to 8.

and many more.

Usborne also has some great Bible tales that you can use as readers or as homeschool Bible story books - The Prodigal Son, Jonah and the Whale, or a hardcover collection of their best Bible Tales readers.

Scripture Memory with Music - My children have always learned better to music. In the area of scripture memory, the Hide em in your Heart series by Steve Green have been the best.

Scripture Release offers 24 free Bible memory songs that you can download from their site. Did I mention that these are free?!!

Verse of the Day-

Older Children - For older children, you can get some homeschool Bible tools for them like a Student Bible Dictionary, a Bible Concordance, and How to Study Your Bible books to help them in their Bible study.

Teen Bible lessons by topic are available if you want to give your teenager some guidance.

If you really want a topical guide to help you teach homeschool Bible to your children, then this book is what you want....

Parenting with Scripture: A Topical Guide for Teachable MomentsBy Kara Durbin / Moody Publishers In a world where right and wrong seem relative, this valuable guide is essential. When your child expresses anger, fear, worry or a lack of moral understanding, you now have a reliable source to turn to for subject-specific Bible verses, discussion questions, and action points. Written by an experienced educator, this reference can be used for teens as well as toddlers.

I love using this. It is relevant, easy to use, lessons are not too long and not too short, simple and still uses lots of scripture.

I hope this page has given you some good ideas for tools that you can use to help teach homeschool Bible.

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