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Scripture memory question
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This my first time posting. Hello everyone. I have a question regarding scripture memory. I have been doing this method for a little while now with my 4, 6, year old. They are doing well with remembering the scriptures but not where it is found in the bible. Should I be waiting to move on, if they cannot remember the book and verse? Or should I not be worrying about that part and just get the scripture planted into their minds?
Are you using SCM’s system? http://simplycharlottemason.com/timesavers/memorysys/
At that age, my sons memorized entire scriptures. However, we made sure the scriptures were short then progressed in length as they grew older. I don’t know how long your scriptures are but maybe you can find them something shorter in length. HTH
Hi, Kim –
I don’t usually hold back a verse just for reference’s sake. Since they hear the reference three times every time we review a verse, I figure it will sink in eventually. The three times are like this: person who has the box pulls the card and reads the reference aloud, everyone repeats the reference, then the verse, then says the reference again at the end.
I wondered how this was working, but had a great little peek into its effectiveness a little bit ago. My third daughter was trying to remember a reference. She came to me and explained that she couldn’t remember where this verse was found. Then she told me the verse, and automatically said the reference at the end. 🙂
On a related note, my oldest is starting to put together the pieces as she does more Bible book studies on her own. She’s beginning to see the context in which the verse or passage fits in the book as a whole. That has seemed to help her too.
And I figure that even if they remember just book and chapter, they will be able to find it. Hope this helps!
I don’t stress with the chapter and verse reference at first. Young children seem to easily memorize the words, but can struggle with the book and numbers, IMO. Actually, so do I—I can remember lots of words to verses but I still struggle to remember the chapter and verse numbers, although I usually can remember the book it’s in. Like Sonya said, if you remember the verse itself, you can find it if you want.
However, that being said, there are some verses that we memorize that I think the children ought to know the chapter and verse as well. John 3:16, for example. I move on with a new verse when we completely memorize an old one, but I have a simple game that we play to work on the chapter and verse of some important scriptures. When I have several, like 6 or so, that I’d like the children to remember the reference, then I take a small piece of posterboard and divide it into 12 rectangles about the size of an index card in two columns. I write the references down one side of the posterboard, make additional copies of the verse cards I want us to do this with, without the reference printed on them, and leave them out and periodically ask the children to place the verses next to the reference. This really seems to help retention of this. I play this game myself to help ME, also. 🙂
Another thing I’ve done is to try to find a keyword to attach to the reference. I have a sequence of verses I’d like my children to be able to recite WITH the reference. So we simply memorize the verses themselves. Then we memorize a keyword to go with each verse. For John 3:16, for example, you might choose LOVED and a picture of a heart. Then, after the verse and the keyword are associated, associate the keyword with the reference. You can do this with the game I mentioned above–except they match the keyword to the reference.
I don’t know why, exactly, but my kids can do quite a string when we do things like this. We also do keywords for each sentence in a very long passage, which really seems to help when a child gets partway through and then gets stuck; he can tick off “Ok, I got X and Y and next is Z, so the next sentence is . . . “
HTH! Remember the virtue lies in the Word of God, not in the references–those are merely for our convenience. I console myself with this all the time when my brain refuses to come up with the reference of a verse I want. 🙂
Michelle D
Absolutely and Amen! The references are man-made (though helpful).
Your ideas reminded me of something we did, Michelle. I have the hardest time remembering references for Proverbs verses. All the other books I can put the verse in context within the book’s organization and flow, but Proverbs is so random in its order. Anyway, here’s what we did for the Proverbs verses from Wisdom and the Millers.
We tried to draw a scene that would remind us of the verse but that somehow incorporated the numbers from the reference. So for Proverbs 26:17 we drew a stick person holding a stick dog by its ears. The stick person’s arms looked like 2 and 6 (for the 26) and the dog’s ears looked like a 1 and a 7 (for the 17).
For Proverbs 11:24 and 25 we drew a garden with two long rows for the 11, and little seed packet-type row labels on sticks at the end of the rows, one with 24 and one with 25 on it.
It worked well for some of the references and helped them stick. But others I still struggle with. 🙂
This has been very helpful. I will be officially starting my son homeschooling this September. The only thing that I have been consistent more of less is this memory box system and reading from Catherine Vos. bible story book and reading out loud to them living books. I am excited to get more of CM ideas in also. As for my question regarding scriptures my children do not know how to read yet, so I will keep some of these games for later. The pictures will definitely help them to remember some also. My children are learning the words but I usually have to say Psalm 23 The Lord… Then they can repeat the rest. I have not been doing the verse scripture verse though so I will for sure try that. I must say I am very excited about this system because I have my 4 yr old reciting also. I usually don’t go on until she has it. Thanks so much for your ideas. I will implement them.
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