You can teach the best Bible class in the world, but if your students don’t remember the lesson, it really doesn’t help them. Since giving tests in Bible classes for children and teens won’t work well, we have to find other tools to encourage memory of important content and scriptures.
A study found that when students attempted to memorize a list, saying it aloud increased their memory of the list from 65% to 77%. It’s only a few points, but can make a significant difference for many of your Bible students. So what are some ways to encourage children and teens to say important scriptures and biblical concepts out loud?
One thing you want to avoid is having students read from the Bible aloud. Many students struggle with reading and asking them to read scripture aloud can cause them and the other students who are listening discomfort. Fortunately, there are some fun ways to get young people repeating important things from your Bible class.
- Songs. A favorite that goes back at least as far as the book of Psalms, singing can be a fun way for kids and teens to say scripture aloud. Look for songs that quote the Bible directly.
- Scripture memory. Longer passages are more likely to move to long term memory. You can make it more fun by having a class prize like a field trip after the class as a whole has memorized a certain number of verses of scripture.
- Fun memory devices. I know of a Bible class teacher who had broken down the overarching story of the Bible into little Dr Seuss like snippets. Before starting the new lesson, he would encourage the class to say the snippets leading up to when the story for that day took place.
- Rhymes and poems. Have students take important information and create rhymes and poems they then read aloud to the class.
- Drama performances. Have the actors quote actual scripture for dialogue as much as possible.
- Choral reading. Write a verse of the day or the biblical principle of the day where everyone can see it. Periodically throughout the lesson, have the class read it aloud together.
- Pneumonic devices. Did you know Psalm 119 is a pneumonic device in Hebrew? Create a few in English and then regularly have the class repeat them aloud.
- Quiz games. Don’t overdo this, but quiz games are often great for encouraging students to say answers to basic Bible story memory questions aloud.
Have fun with it, but the more your students say the things you are trying to teach them, the more likely they are to remember them.