WFMW: Teaching Toddlers Biblical Words Part 2

Last week I shared some tips for teaching toddlers Biblical Words. If you want to read the first part, go here.

I talked about such things as calling things for what they are, using gestures to help them remember, relating things to their world. Here are a few more tips that I have found useful.

5. Incorporate it through their day. Repetition!

While driving in the car, standing in line, running through the park I might ask: "Is God here?"  They laugh and giggle.

When I say, "How do you know?" they tell me he's everywhere.

Then we go back to, "What's that called?"  Omnipresent

Usually they say, "trinity" to get me to say something silly back to them. It's our little game. We eventually get back to the real word.

Do you think God is powerful enough to do...? Yes.  He is!  He's omnipotent!

6.  Have fun with it.  

When we taught them that the Holy Spirit landed fire on the heads in Acts 2, they put their hands on top of their head and waved fingers to make fire.  Periodically I'll ask them, "who is your helper?" To which they answer with fingers on top of their head. I usually have to prompt them to give me the name; they think the waving fingers suffices for an answer.

We've played an exchange game - exchanging sin for righteousness.  I want them to understand that not only did Jesus take our sin, we got his righteousness (Have NOT yet taught them that this is called "double imputation.")

Role play!  We have risen from the dead, we have been in lion's dens, we have walked along a road. They love this!

7.  Sing it.

I can't sing and my kids don't care.  My husband can and usually corrects the tune.  

I have decided to teach them one song in it's entirety at a time. Sometimes it takes a few months to learn it. 

I usually start with singing one verse, saying it, having them repeat it and singing it again.

We do this in the morning as a way to start our day.

I sang Jesus Loves me to My Kids every nap time from  the day they were born.  They know it; all four verses.

I sang Holy, Holy, Holy to my daughter every night for 2-3 months.  One day, I heard her singing it to her dolls as she was laying them down.  I didn't know she knew it, but she did. It's amazing what singing will do for them.  Plus it exposed her to words like holy, purity, merciful, mighty, almighty, etc.

Play CDs while they play, in the car.  

Beware: they can and will correct you. My son corrected me on the third verse of one song. I laughed - I'm a Baptist and only ever learned. verses 1, 2 and 4.

8. Most importantly: don't force it.

There are days when I can see my 5 year old staring off in the distance completely uninterested in what I say. Some days it ends with me giving him a lecture about the importance of God's word (not the best idea) and some days it ends in the Tickle Monster showing up and tickling away.

For the record, I don't do this every day.