How We Teach Bible: Resources, Routine, and Our Charlotte Mason-Inspired Homeschool Approach
Our Objectives for Teaching the Bible More Than As a Subject
Our goal isn’t simply to finish a Bible curriculum or memorize Bible facts. More than anything, we want to help our son develop a personal relationship with God that will continue long after our homeschool years.
Our objectives are simple:
- Help him know and trust God through reading the Bible, listening to Bible stories, singing hymns and worship songs, and praying together.
- Build lifelong habits of faith by creating a daily rhythm of Bible reading, prayer, quiet reflection, and journaling.
At this stage, we’re laying a foundation, not just of biblical knowledge, but of a heart that knows where to turn, who to trust, and how to put God in the center of everyday life.
Resources and Bible Reading Plan
We are following our homeschool provider’s Bible reading plan for Year 1. I intentionally chose it because, for our family, it offers a more relaxed pace than the Bible reading schedule in Ambleside Online. I don’t feel the need to rush through it now. At his age, my priority is not finishing the Bible as quickly as possible, but helping him build a consistent habit of reading Scripture, understand what he reads, and enjoy spending time in God’s Word. I believe there will be plenty of opportunities to revisit the Bible throughout his education. For now, I’d rather give him the time to read thoughtfully than move quickly just to complete a plan.
In high school, my son might read through the Bible following Ambleside Online’s Five-Year Devotional Scripture Plan. I like it because there is an assigned reading per day, and it is arranged more chronologically. He’ll be able to finish reading the Bible before turning 18.
Click below to read about the Bible resources we have used throughout the years.
Routine and Approach
We do our Bible study first thing in the morning, within 30 minutes, as much as possible.
- We listen to at least one worship song per day while my son is doing his morning routine. I usually play the assigned hymn for the period.
- I prepare a light breakfast (easy options: apples, wheat bread, oatmeal, pancake, cereal, milk/choco). We eat while doing our Bible study.
- Morning prayer
We pray together. I also invite Kirv to say his personal prayers out loud. - Review
I ask him to do a short oral narration of the last topic we had read. - Before reading the assigned scriptures for the day, I will present the Bible timeline to give him an idea of the setting and time period. I also prepare for possible questions from him. When we read Bible stories, we like to look up the places mentioned so he can visualize where they are. We use a map and globe.
- After that, I will read the assigned scriptures.
- My son will narrate back what we read, while I am documenting his narration when necessary.
- My son will update his history timeline notebook.
- He’ll do copywork of verses related to our readings.
- For memory work, we attend church every Sunday so we use the memory verses from our church. I encourage my son to listen to the pastor’s preaching as much as he can; that’s why the memory verses are familiar to him since these were talked about the previous Sundays. He also memorizes the related scriptures in our habit training.
- My son will draw and write in his Bible journal whenever we finish one topic. I’ll invite him to sketch some of the scenes he felt most impact on him. He cut and pastes the title cards I printed himself to mark his journal page. This also serves as a monitoring of completed lessons.
13. I invite Kirv to write his favorite verse in the journal; this is something we do once in a while.
14. We play audio narration of Bible-related books at any time of the day.
