I was wondering what tips any of you have for incoportaing memory verses. I don't have a Bible curriculum so its touch and go for me. I plan to cover characteristics. Anyway our first memory verse is Exodus 20:12. We are reviewing everyday and I made my own worksheets so my son can write it out. But I dont know how to teach him to memorize it. He is in K, what time frame should I use for each scripture any ideas?
I had my K'er learn a verse every couple of weeks last year, which would be on topic to what he'd learn in Sunday school. I would go over the stories that wouldn't be covered in Sunday School throughout the week. For example, as they progressed through the wilderness wanderings, I taught him about Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Not a typical Sunday school lesson, but what boy wouldn't want to learn about the earth swallowing up bad guys? heheh I'd pick a verse related to one of our lessons, or one from the proverbs that applied in principle, and I'd usually put it to a tune. For example, Joshua 1:9 was recited to the tune of 'Do you know the muffin man"? I'd tape the verse to the dash of my car, and we'd practice it as we drove. Once it was mastered, I'd write it on an index card and file it, then we'd go through ones we'd already memorized every couple of weeks or so. I'd also teach verses to the preschoolers in my sunday school class, and I'd usually pick ones that we could act out. For example, Greater love has no man than this (everyone would hug), that he lay down his life for his friends (everyone lays down on the floor with their friends). So that's another suggestion for making it stick, and kids get a kick out of watching their moms act silly!
Here's a technique a veteran teacher and Sunday School teacher taught me: Write the verse on a board (chalk or marker). Repeat it several times with the child, pointing to each word as you go. Then point to each word, while he says it several times, with you prompting as necessary. It's not necessary for him to be able to read all or any of the words by himself, it's just a visual "place-keeper" sort of thing (but if he can read it himself, he can do this process without you on the next day and to review at odd moments). Then you erase the last word, and say it with him again, but you don't say the last word, you leave that one for him to say alone. Then erase the next-last word, and do it the same again, you not saying the last two words -- then the last 3, last 4, etc., until you've erased all the words and he's said the whole thing alone. Use this process two or three days, and he should know it by the end of the week. If he knows it before that, then all you need to do is go over it once or twice daily instead of repeating so many times.
I find that my LO memorize quickly if we repeat the verse several times in a day, several times in a row. Like read it 3 times in a row, 3 times a day. It usually only takes one or maybe two days doing that for them to catch it. If you do it say while you are brushing teeth, in the car, before bed time it isn't that hard to get it in each day.
This is what we do in SS. But we let the class pick which word they want to erase. It works great! Also, memorize the verse in whole not parts!
During the public school year we use AWANA. I'm not sure what we are going to do this summer. Maybe Leading Little Ones to God, not sure yet. There are lots of free Bible curricula out there, especially for a K'er. Off the top of my head I can think of abcjesuslovesme.com but I know there is another one. As for a time frame, I usually use a week as my guide but obviously if the verse hasn't sunk in yet we would spend more time on it.
This is going to sound strange, but.... Post a "Verse of the Week" in the bathroom, where everyone can see it while doing their business in there, lol!!! You could have the kids take turns chosing which verse to post.
I designed cards for our memory verses. I'll print out several copies and tape them up all over the house. We're going to try one verse a week, as my oldest isn't good at memorization. I also plan to use the 3 times rule-go over it 3 times, 3 times a day. Then I plan to print 2 copies (one for each child) on card stock. We'll attach them together into a little 'book' of memory verses for each child, so we can often review past verses.
My boys usually have a couple weeks to learn a memory verse unless it is something longer like Psalm 23 and then they may have 4-6 weeks to learn it.
Christopher almost has his first verse memorized as of yesterday. Saying it three times each time we practice has really helped him. I am beside myself.
YAY for him!! (and you too mama!!) I wanted to share with you two things I have found (both free) recently. We're not using a Bible curriculum either, so I have decided to use these two things as our main focus. One I found at the Dugger Family website http://www.duggarfamily.com/characterqualities.html They have like 20 something character qualities listed and a Bible verse reference for each. The second is a HUGE 900+ page unit study for K-12 on The Book of Virtues http://homeschoolblogger.com/shiveracademy/Book+of+Virtues/ I think I've also decided we had better do a memory verse every 2 weeks, my oldest just does not do well with memorization at all. He's been in cub scouts for 2 months now and still doesn't have the law of the pack memorized or the cub scout promise totally memorized. He also has trouble with memorizing sight words.
Memory verse revisited. My son memorized his first scripture Exodus 20:12 and we are on to the next. My new question is how often do you review past memory scriptures.
I do it once a week. Here is how. I take 5 note cards and put one day on each card. Then as the kids learn a verse I put I write the address for that verse on a daily card. Each day we go over the memory work for that day, plus the new work as well. So on Monday we would go over the new verse a couple of times, and then the verses on the Monday card once. If I know the kids have a verse down pat we might skip it every other week or so. I do this until it gets really burned into their brain. I do this for all our memory work, poems, verses, math facts, states, etc.
Aggie, that sounds like a good idea! I think I'll try that with Phillip's verses. It would help with getting them down REALLY good for quizzing.
