Bible Reading For The Early Elementary Child

For a child who has never or seldom been read to and who is in their early elementary years, I would stick with the same kind of story book Bible as used for preschoolers, such as The Big Picture Story Bible. You need to create for your child the habit of being read to first, and it’s easier to start with something with few words but a dynamic message than with a lot of words that require processing to follow along.

Elementary-aged children may not need or want as much repetition in their reading selection as their preschooler counterparts. They don’t need to read the same story over and over to try to master the plot line and dialogue. Often they’re ready to move on to the next story and are happy for the variety (a blessing you’ll be thankful for). You’ll readily be able to tell where your child is by his reaction to your story selection.

If your child is ready for it, reading the story Bible front to back, covering a story at a time, will offer perhaps a month’s worth of daily devotions. When you finish the story Bible you can then ask your child for requests of a favorite story out of the book, going back to some of the same ones and allowing your child to more deeply learn certain characters and events.

As your child develops the ability to sit and listen to stories for longer periods of time, or becomes more adept at reading, you can move to more advanced story Bibles. These books will, of course, have more words and thus, more descriptive narrative. There are several good story Bibles on the market, but what you’re looking for is a sound retelling of the Bible for children, and not just stories about Bible characters and events. We want to develop a love of Jesus in our children through His Word, not just entertain them with neat bedtime stories that they could just as well get out of any secular book.

One good example is The Jesus Storybook Bible: Every Story Whispers His Name by Sally Lloyd-Jones. With over 40 stories covering Genesis to Revelation, it does a good job of following the Bible and relating the message of the gospel in every chapter. The artwork is fun and both the story and the pictures will appeal to children in the younger elementary grades. The book received overwhelmingly good reviews on Amazon.

Always remember that there’s not one way to carry out family devotion time. You’re not bound by the sequence of chapters, you’re allowed to skip around, and you can break up chapters if you find your child fixated on a particular picture, concept or idea worth discussing. If your child starts asking questions about rainbows while reading about God’s promise to Noah, go with it. Explain God’s love for us, His desire for us to love Him, and how it ultimately revealed itself in our Savior Jesus. You’ll have covered a multitude of God’s truths just by talking about a picture that struck your child’s fancy. That special time of intimate discussion is what makes for memorable devotions, intimate family relationships, and a growing love for Christ in your child.