Have you ever wondered if the things you teach your students in Bible class impact them in any way? To encourage them to reflect upon and make changes based on key Bible lessons, your students need to engage with the material outside of class. Often the bell to end class rings and our students rush out with little more than a good-bye from us.
Studies have found curiosity encourages young people to continue interacting with what they are taught outside of a lesson. Questions are a great way to spark that curiosity and have them thinking about your Bible lesson, reading scripture, praying or making changes in their lives based on it. The key is to ask the question at the end of class so they can’t depend upon you to give them an immediate answer. (Even though you may ask them to give you an immediate response.)
So what are the types of questions you can ask to encourage your Bible students to continue thinking about what God wants them to know, understand and do? There are lots of options, but here are a few of our favorites.
- Guiding questions. Each of the free Bible lessons on our website contains one or more guiding questions. Normally, these are asked at the beginning of a Bible lesson to focus student attention on an important aspect you want them to consider. Why not ask the guiding question for the coming week’s Bible lesson as students leave? Depending upon the question, it can spark their interest and even encourage them to read their Bibles to find an answer.
- What surprised you about the lesson? Did they learn something new? Understand something differently than they had in the past? They may not initially think anything surprised them, but the very question itself can encourage them to think back through the lesson in an effort to answer it.
- What was something new you learned from the lesson? As strange as it may sound, some of your students may not fully understand they attend Bible classes to learn new things God wants them to know. Asking them to name one new thing they learned can encourage them to focus on learning those new things.
- What other Bible stories or big ideas did this lesson remind you of? There are lots of important connections in scripture, but often students look at each lesson as being entirely disconnected from anything else in the Bible. This question can help them make some of those crucial connections.
- What new question(s) do you have because of this lesson? Learning new things can spark new questions. Often we don’t allow enough (or have enough) time to encourage students to ask these new questions. Unfortunately, if we don’t somehow capture and answer those questions, those unanswered questions can eventually become stumbling blocks for their faith.
- What’s one new thing you will do this week because of this lesson? Once again, as strange as it may seem, many young Bible students don’t fully understand they are supposed to take what they learn in Bible class and apply it to their lives. This question can underscore the importance of applying God’s commands and principles to real life. (It can also help you see whether or not your students are understanding the application principles you are teaching them.)
When asking these questions, don’t have students respond out loud. Have them write their answers on a sticky note or text them to you. They can keep their anonymity if they/you wish. Don’t read or comment on their answers in the moment. Give them the week to continue thinking about the question. At the beginning of the next class, repeat the question and see if anyone has something they want to add or change about their answer. You don’t have to reveal all of their answers, but give a few examples of good responses. If there is an obvious misunderstanding in an answer, it’s probably a misunderstanding others may have, too. Address the misunderstanding subtly so no one is potentially embarrassed. Since many of these questions are subjective though, this should be a rare issue.
Don’t ask the same question every week. Add new ones to the list above. They may not engage every student outside of class, but for some Bible students those final questions can be the encouragement they need to think about God and engage with Him outside of your class.