[Editor’s Note: As we enter Holy Week, culminating with Easter on Sunday, we thought you might enjoy this perspective of homeschooling as a wonderful tool for discipling your children. We are so pleased that Vicki Stormoen will be one of the many excellent speakers joining us at our Parenting & Homeschool Convention, May 15-17.]

There can be moments in homeschooling where you feel like you are drowning in the busyness of academics, sports, extracurricular activities, classes, field trips, social activities, and life. In the midst of all these competing priorities, it is easy to forget the most important aspect of your homeschooling routine that can often get lost in the shuffle: biblical discipleship. One of the greatest advantages of homeschooling is the ability to teach your child according to your biblical worldview without the constant attack of that worldview from others all day. You are in a unique position to daily incorporate the Bible into every curriculum, every class, every activity, and every conversation. There are several ways to go about incorporating biblical discipleship in your homeschool setting, including adding a Bible class/curriculum portion to your school day, using a distinctively Christian curriculum that will proactively integrate biblical truths in each subject, and engaging in biblical discussions with your children throughout the day as the opportunities arise. 

Bible Curriculum Options 

There are many great Bible curricula to choose from. There are traditional publishers like Abeka and BJU, Christian Liberty, Alpha and Omega, etc. There are also some great options from Apologia, Veritas, Answers in Genesis, and Memoria Press. However, you certainly do not need to use a packaged curriculum to teach Bible. Simply studying God’s Word together is a great way to add Bible to your school day. There are a plethora of resources to use for this, such as inductive studies, the Bible Project, family worship guides, Bible reading plans, and devotional guides from publishers that line up with your family’s theological convictions. Be sure to add memorization to whatever direction you go with this. Kids have an amazing ability to memorize. Take advantage of that fact and use this season of their lives to fill their minds with God’s Word. Truly, there is nothing of more importance that will be more relevant for all their lives than that. Make sure they leave your home with a solid, biblical foundation and a sharpened “Sword of the Spirit” at their fingertips from having hidden so much of the Word of God in their hearts (Ephesians 6). 

Prioritize Christian Curriculum 

In addition to incorporating Bible as a separate subject in your education plan, private homeschooling allows you the freedom and privilege of selecting your own curricula. The wide world of curriculum options can be overwhelming. You will need to find ways to narrow your options to make your decisions less daunting. One easy way to begin to narrow those options is to limit your choices to Christian curricula. If biblical discipleship (the process of teaching others to follow Christ and live as He did) is one of your goals in this homeschooling journey, why not make sure everything they learn is coming from a biblical perspective? This is an easy way to encourage and reinforce things you are teaching them outside of the curriculum. As the kids grow and you begin outsourcing some of their subjects (if you choose to go that route), you lose this ability to select the curricula. While you have that authority, use it wisely and select a curriculum that imparts a worldview and perspective you want your kids to adopt. Whoever, or whatever, is teaching your children has a significant effect according to Luke 6:40 (ESV): “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.” Curricula stands as a “teacher” in the sense that it is through the specific curriculum a student is being taught. The curriculum is written by people. People have worldviews. People have a predisposition or bias. Make sure the people behind your curricula have the same biblical discipleship goals you do. 

Discipleship Opportunities in the Home 

Outside of the subjects and curricula we select for our kids, there are other times and opportunities to impart a Biblical way of thinking. Through homeschooling, you are in a position that enables you to be involved and present in the lives of your children in a way that you would not otherwise have. As the one physically at home with your kids, you will be the one to notice and help with sibling disagreements, selfish behaviors, disrespectfulness, indolence, complaining, and all the other character and life skills that we all wrestle with due to our sinful natures. Rather than those moments happening outside of your sphere of influence, they are happening in a setting that enables you, in real-time, to discuss a biblical response to each. Teaching our children about sin and how to biblically respond to it is crucial in biblical discipleship. We want to raise kids with a genuine understanding of their need for a Savior and their call to a life of holiness because of the work of that Savior. As the one engaging in these regular discussions with real-life applications at home, it is your teaching that will be most impactful.