I did BSF for 4 or 5 years and volunteered in the middle and high school programs several times. At those grade levels, the students read weekly notes, listen to a lecture, and do daily lessons just like the parents. It is simpler ans shorter of course but follows the exact same format as the parents. They even sang the same hymns we were singing upstairs. The leader would stop between songs and explain some of the more confusing lines and ask the children questions about the songs. I vaguely rememeber helping with the elementary age children once and I’m pretty sure it follows the same format but maybe someone else know more about the younger school program.
I was extremely impressed with the students’ answers. There were definitely some one word responses, but the teacher really encouraged them to go deeper in their understanding of the passage. I didn’t have kids of my own at the time but I remember thinking that I would have to get my kids in the school program when I did have kids.
In the end, I personally had to take a break from the intensity of BSF. Every class and teaching leader is different. We moved and I felt like the new class I went to was too heavy on the intellectual side and out of touch with real life and emotion if that makes any sense. If you haven’t done BSF before, just know it takes a good 20-30 minutes each day of the week and it will really stretch you (and your kids if you put them in the program). It’s not a “light” Bible study!
