Every week, thousands of children and teen Bible class teachers all over the world pull out their teacher’s manual and hopefully a Bible. In many ways, that will work for you as a volunteer teacher. Have you ever wanted to make those stories come more alive for your students, though? Have you wanted to give them information that would help them understand things better? Do you want them to be able to visualize the stories as you tell them?
Taking a few extra minutes and checking a couple of additional resources can help your class become even more meaningful and impact your students in important ways. Every teacher probably has a slightly different list, but these outside resources are my absolute favorites for getting maximum help with minimal effort.
- NIV Archaeological Study Bible: An Illustrated Walk Through Biblical History and Culture
. This Bible actually comes in more than one version now. I love the footnotes and the boxed entries that go into more detail. The notes and entries provide information on archeological finds, outside historical documents, customs and much more. The authors will sometimes present more liberal ideas of scholars, but sides with the idea that the Bible is accurate and represents the Truth. The author also explains in detail why he believes the biblical account is accurate as opposed to more liberal ideas.
- Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts, 3rd Edition
. It doesn’t necessarily have to be this edition or by these publishers. I like to have a book that contains a lot of maps and charts to help put things into a visual format for students.
- Bible app with photos. There is a free version of this app, which contains photos of places in the Bible. There are also some books available, although I don’t have a favorite.
- Teach One Reach One website. Every week we try to add new resources to help you teach. Whether, it is our tips blog, activity ideas or more general aids, get to know this website and check back periodically for new materials and ideas. They can help you exchange your pencil and paper student workbook for meaningful, hands-on activities to make your lessons “stick” with your students.
I know how valuable your time is. There are a million valuable ways you can spend your time. Taking a few extra minutes to consult additional resources when planning your lessons can help you change your classes from forgettable to unforgettable! Your students will be glad you did.