Scripture Memory for Toddlers

Reading, studying, and memorizing Scripture are a top priorities in our homeschool. I want my children's shield of faith to be strong, and the Bible tells us "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17)

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I have mentioned before that we are using the Scripture Talk DVD this year in our little homeschool co-op. Big Brother and his friends are having lots of fun learning passages of Scripture together once a week. Big Brother also spends time each morning at home reciting his verses and doing the accompanying hand motions.



However, I had no idea how much Little Brother (now 19 1/2 months old) would enjoy learning verses as well!

At first he would just watch in awe as Big Brother recited and then would perhaps try copy some of the motions. Something about the poetic flow of the words (another reason to love the KJV) seemed to have a calming effect on him, so at naptime or during diaper changes I would recite the Bible verses for him, much to his delight.

Over the past few weeks, we have realized that Little Brother has been memorizing these Scripture passages! I will begin quoting one of our passages, and if I stop, he continues on with the next word or phrase. Many times he will crawl up in my lap and start doing some of our Scripture hand motions, indicating that he wants to recite verses. He has happily spent as much as half an hour at a time totally engaged in this!

His favorite passage so far seems to be Matthew 7:24-27, the parable of the wise man and the foolish man. We pat our knees to say "the rains descended," then raise our hands when we say " and the floods came," and then we wave our arms for "and the winds blew (or 'bwew' as he says). Then his favorite part (which he says very well as he claps his hands together loudly) "and BEAT upon dat house!" It is just so sweet, and even though many of his words are not so clear, he definitely knows them all!

So far in this manner he has learned:
Matthew 7:24-27
Psalm 1
Mark 12:28-34
Psalm 100 (Not on the Scripture Talk DVD, but we made up our own hand motions for this one.)

Similarly, he has learned the words of both "Amazing Grace" and "What a Day That Will Be" quite unexpectedly. Those are the songs Daddy always sings to him when he rocks him at bedtime. :)

I am sharing all this not to brag, but to hopefully encourage and inspire those of you who have babies and toddlers. THEY REALLY ARE LISTENING AND WATCHING!! Their brains right now have the ability to learn and soak up language more than they will have at any other time in their lives. What an amazing season of opportunity we have RIGHT NOW! Yes nursery rhymes are fun and lullabies are sweet, but how much better to teach them early to love the Words of Life?!

Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. Psalm 119:11


And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:  And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. Deuteronomy 6:6-7

 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6

How to Teach Your Child the 10 Commandments

I mentioned in my Welcome post that I want my boys to have a strong shield of faith when they graduate from our little homeschool. One of the ways we are moving toward that goal is through memorizing Scripture! Hiding God's Word in our hearts is so important for us as Christians, and what better time to start with our children than when they are young? They memorize much easier and their little hearts are still tender.

Today I want to share with you a fun unit we did to help Big Brother learn the 10 Commandments from Exodus 20. These activities will appeal to visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners alike.




If you work on teaching just one new commandment every other day, in 4 weeks of school your child will know all 10 Commandments...and probably never forget them! :)

So spending 2 days on each commandment, here's the plan:

Day 1

1.) Write the commandment on the board and read it with your child. Explain to them what it means.

2.) Teach the hand signal for this commandment (I will give you those below). Review it at random times throughout the day.

3.) Get out some LEGO bricks and a dry erase marker. Write each word on a brick and ask your child to build the verse by putting the words in order as in the picture below:



The dry erase marker wipes off easily!

4.) Review the commandment (and previous commandments as you add them) throughout the day.

Day 2

1.) Review the commandments you've taught so far as well as the current one you are teaching.

2.) Write the newest commandment on the board. Have your child say it. Now erase one word. Have your child say the verse again, making sure they fill in the missing word. Keep going until the entire verse has disappeared from the board!

3.) Review your hand signals.

4.) Have your child write, copy, or trace the commandment in their notebook. For a younger child, you might write the commandment in bubble lettering and let the child color or even paint the words.

5.) Continue to review the commandments the child has learned throughout the day!

Keep following this plan as you add a new commandment every other school day. Don't forget to review throughout the day!

Hand Signals for Each of the 10 Commandments

1. Hold up 1 finger (Remember: There is only one God! "Thou shalt have no other gods before me")

2. Hold up 2 fingers (Remember: Two gods is one too many! "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image")

3. Hold up 3 fingers (Remember: Your fingers look like the letter W. Watch your Words! "Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain")

4. Hold up 4 fingers (Rememeber: The thumb is resting! "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy")

5. Hold up 5 fingers (Remember: It looks like you are making a promise on your honor! "Honor thy father and thy mother")

6. Point your left index finger toward yojr open right hand (Remember: Looks like the left is pointing a gun at the right! " Thou shalt not kill")

7. Stand your first 2 fingers of your left hand on the palm of your open right hand (Remember: Your fingers look like a couple getting married! "Thou shalt not commit adultery")

8. Hold 4 fingers from each hand up in front of your face (Remember: Looks like you are behind jail bars like a thief! "Thou shalt not steal")

9.) Hold up 5 fingers on right hand and 4 on the left (Remember: Your left thumb is whispering lies about the other fingers! "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor")

10. Hold out out all 10 fingers and wiggle the tips of your fingers toward yourself. (Remember: It looks like you are greedily saying Give me, Give me! "Thou shalt not covet")

Big brother loved learning the 10 Commandments this way!

I pray you will find these activities useful in teaching your own children!

How do you help your little one's learn Scripture? Share your ideas below! Have you used some of the activities from this post? Tell me about it!!!

God bless!!

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