5 Easy Ways to Teach Preschool Children Bible Verses

How do you Teach Preschool Children Bible Verses? Is there an easy way to help preschoolers remember Bible verses? Is it even that important? We live in a totally different age from our own childhoods. When we were younger, we had to remember information and learn facts. Today, we ask our smartphones for the answer and within seconds we have it. It’s no longer about knowing information, but knowing how to access information.

But is this true for the Bible? The goal of teaching preschool children Bible verses is not to add to their information, but to give them:

• a direction to live by
• hope in difficult times
• knowledge of God’s will
• to feed them spiritually
• to help them listen to God

The pre-school years are a great time for forming strong Christian values in your children. In addition to having a Family Devotion Time, Memorizing Bible verses will build their faith and when they grow up, they will not depart from them. If you grew up in a Christian home, just start thinking of some of your most well known Bible verses. Chances are you probably learned them as a child.

Pre-school children can understand the Bible. We are to teach our children the word of God in every way possible (Deuteronomy 11:18-20). 

Don’t shy away from teaching your children the Bible because you think they will not understand it. When God instructed us to teach our children His word, it’s because He knew they could understand it and how important it is.

The 5 ways below will help you teach your preschool children Bible verses. 

#1 Sing the verses

Children love to sing. It’s fun, and it gets them excited and energized. A good way to get kids to memorize Bible verses is to sing them. If you are musically inclined, you can compose a tune for the common household verses. If not, you can buy or download an album with Bible verses in the form of song and sing along with your pre-schoolers. You can get the CDs at your local Christian book or music store or purchase them online. If you have any recommendations, please share them in the comments.
Play the CD and sing and dance along with your children and watch them enjoy Bible time. Have the children stand in a circle and everyone gets to sing and dance. Songs have a way of sticking with you over the long haul. I’m sure you still remember the songs you sang at Sunday school or Kindergarten. Once you master the songs on the CD, you can lead the children in singing them when away from home. They’ll enjoy singing along and teaching their friends. 

Here are two albums to get you started:

1. Hidden in My Heart: A Lullaby Journey Through Scripture
2. Hide ‘Em In Your Heart: Bible Memory Melodies (Vol. 1) – Steve Green

#2 Use actions or objects

Preschool children are always up to some fun. Bible time can be fun if you inject some actions or objects to help them remember a verse. Actions help them remember the key message of the Bible verse and sticks with them much longer. For example, kneeling when approaching the throne of grace; hiding behind dad to show “our lives are hidden with Christ in God”; pouring water into a glass to signify the living water that Jesus gives us; a globe representing the earth or nations; hugging a teddy bear to show that God will never leave or forsake us; or you lying on the couch and your child laying hands on you and praying a healing prayer. 
Use any action, activity or object that you can think of that means something special to your child. The important thing when you Teach Preschool Children Bible Verses is that the message gets across to your child and they can associate the action or object with the Bible verse. 

#3 Divide each verse

As simple as some Bible verses are, preschoolers may not always recite a whole verse at a go. At this stage, they are still trying to grasp words and phrases. 
You can select a simple and common Bible verse and divide it into phrases. Start by reading the entire verse to your children and explain what it means. If there are any difficult words, define them. Use a dictionary if you must. Give them the reference for the verse so they know where it is in the Bible. 
Break down the verse into phrases and ask your children to repeat each of them. Using actions and objects will come in handy here. Have each child recite the first phrase before moving on to the next. Do this till you cover the whole Bible verse. Afterward, have the children recite the whole verse at a go till they get it. It may take some time but be patient as they learn.

#4 Repeat the verse for a week

For your children to memorize Bible verses, teach them one verse in a week. Focus their attention on one verse until they know it by heart. Each day get them to repeat the verse during breakfast, prayer time, bedtime, in the car or any other opportunity you can get. It doesn’t have to be on all these occasions, select the ones that will help you maintain consistency. 
If you need to take an extra week to do so, that’s okay. The important thing is for your children to internalize the verse. Once you are sure they know it, you can move to the next. 
A word of caution: If your children have repeated the verse so long and are showing signs of boredom, you can move on to another one. You don’t want them to get the impression that a relationship with God is boring. It SHOULD NOT be like the Maths drills of old school days.

#5 Apply the verses to everyday living

It’s one thing to memorize Bible verses, but it’s another to live them out in everyday life. Your preschool children will need help in applying the verses they learn to their lives. Involve the whole family in this exercise. For example, thanking God for food at the dinner table (1 Timothy 4:4), praying for others – specific people (1 Timothy 2:1-2), calling on the name of Jesus after a bad dream or when scared (Romans 10:13), praying for those who treat them unkindly instead of hating them (Matthew 5:43-44), declaring healing verses when they get hurt playing (1 Peter 2:24), avoid watching TV programs or cartoons that will corrupt their minds (Ezekiel 14:3), etc. 
Look for ways to relate Bible verses to situations you face each day as a family. Even when you correct them, use a relevant verse that will capture the lesson. 

How our lessons help you Teach Preschool Children Bible Verses

In most of our lessons we include a verse or verses through different activities. Sometimes, they will be in the form of a song, other times we add them to a coloring page or onto a craft. On other occasions, we included them on a worksheet or a puzzle. We try to vary it each week, to make it fun for different learning styles and keep it new.

Teaching preschool children Bible verses is easy with some creativity and wisdom. Use the tools you need to help your children understand the Bible. Whether they recite the verses in full or part, celebrate them and encourage them to keep at it. You’ll find that on some occasions they remind you of a relevant verse in a given situation. 

Have you discovered interesting ways to teach preschool children Bible verses? Please share.