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Saturday, January 24, 2009

The Subject of Religion

Bible/Religion: One of the many benefits of homeschooling is the ability to teach our children from our family's worldview. The subject of religion will look different in each home, whether a family is homeschooling or not. Most of our teaching and discussions are woven into the fabric of our days and other lessons, but I do have a few specific recommendations.

Levi is reading the above Day by Day Kid's Bible. It is a simplified text, written in chronological order, divided into 365 daily readings. I am thrilled that he is able to get a feel for reading through the Bible independently. Luke is making his way through The Early Reader's Bible. He loves reading the simple stories aloud to me and prefers to read his Bible above any other book.


For Bible memory, we are still working our way through A New Commandment. I highly recommend the CDs from Sing the Word. Bible verses and passages are set to music performed with excellence. We love to listen to these CDs in the car.

We desire to communicate the Word with music that is artfully written, performed with excellence, and age-appropriate. We strive to create music that:

*expresses the meaning of the Word
*enables people of all ages to memorize scripture quickly and permanently
*provides an aesthetically pleasing and enriching experience for kids
*appeals to adults (we don’t want mom and dad groaning every time Suzie asks for that song again!)
*cultivates an appreciation for excellent music of diverse styles
*encourages and edifies the listener in the faith
Speaking of music, we have enjoyed incorporating hymns into our days. I posted more on that subject here.

I mentioned the next Children's Bible in my post on history studies, but I thought I would mention it here, as well.
The Illustrated Children's Bible is a wonderful Bible for the whole family to share together. Perfect for integrating with the study of ancient history, this story Bible includes photographs and illustrations of geographical locations, people, animals, food, artwork, artifacts, maps, lineage, and so much more. I love the tasteful pastel illustrations.

In our history studies this year (medieval and early Renaissance), we will be using the Usborne Encyclopedia of World Religions to learn more about the faiths of other cultures and historical eras.

(All religion and Bible lesson updates will be posted with the Bible label.)

5 comments:

Tammy ~ Country Girl at Home ~ said...

We love the Sing the Word series as well! They go with us in the car!

Tammy

ohio12 said...

WHY are you doing this to me??? I want ALL of these now! Seriously, I love all these great recs. How do you decide how much you can spend on everything though? Do you have a budget or do you just use your best judgement as you go? PS: We really like the Jesus Storybook Bible.

Ridenour Family said...

Although I don't homeschool my children, this is very relevant to us. Thanks for the great suggestions!
~Tricia

Heidi said...

ohio12~ Sadly, I do not have a specific budget. I would like to say that I use my best judgement as I go along, but 'best judgement' is probably a stretch. We aren't destitute yet, but I do have a terrible book buying habit. {Grin}

Tricia~ I'm so glad you found the recommendations helpful! Yes, many books and other resources are wonderful for children and families regardless of schooling choices. :)

Christi said...

I've been wanting the Sing the Word CDs for a while - thanks for reminding me about them.

Off to check out these other resources!