Scripture Memory for Little Ones

We are in the middle of an exciting week of VBS here at Calvary Baptist Church! I plan to share a detail post at some point with my game plan for the week, as well as some helpful links. But for now, I just had to let you in on one exciting and extremely necessary aspect of our class.

Helping these little ones hide God’s Word in their hearts.

My class so far this week has consisted of three 4-year-olds, and one that is age five. And yes, they are learning verses! You might ask, “Isn’t that a bit young?” but it isn’t! I have heard children younger than that recite memory verses in their own broken way. Fours and Fives are definitely capable of committing God’s words to memory!

I’m not talking lengthy passages, or even multiple verses per night. We’ve been focusing on one verse, or even just part of a verse, each night. Two of my kids came back Tuesday night and recited Monday’s verse. I can’t tell you how that thrilled me!

I know there are hard words in the King James English. I know that these kids don’t completely understand all I am teaching them. As far as I know, all four of these kids are unchurched, and sometimes when I speak about God they look at me like they don’t know Who I’m referring to.

But they are getting scripture, snippets of truth lodged in their little brains. God has promised that His Word will not return void!! 

Our theme for the week is Noah {did you see my “ark”??} so several of our verses directly mention his name. That has been easy for them to remember. We’ve used verses such as…

Genesis 7:5 “And Noah did...all that the LORD commanded him.”

Genesis 6:8 “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.”

Hebrews 11:7 “By faith Noah...prepared an ark…”


I have found that the old wipe-a-word-off method is tried and true. I write the verse on a chalkboard, and we repeat it...and repeat, and repeat, and repeat. :) I make sure to point to each word as we say it. These kids can not read, but they can still associate words with their placement on the board, or even by the first letter. It is not hard now for them to recognize the name “Noah” or “Genesis.”

In the course of repetition I draw attention to other key words as well. I explained “commanded” and we repeated that long word by itself. I explained “grace.” And of course we talked about “Lord.”

And then I start erasing words. Just those main ones, mostly. Only 4 or 5 words, and each time we repeat the verse again. And before the night is over they know it!

Each night I send home a colouring sheet for them to finish at home with that night’s verse printed clearly on it. I reinforce that they need to have their parents help them memorize the verse at home, so they can say it to me the next night. They take it very, very seriously. And so far they’ve been doing it!

And yes, they also get rewarded! =)

It thrills me to no end that these precious little souls are grasping something...and that I have the privilege of giving them the gospel for the very first time. I pray that they will have many more opportunities to hear God’s Word in the future!

I’d love to know...what is your desire for your little ones in the area of memorization? How early would you start? Any other tips or tricks you can share?


Linked up with: Womanhood with Purpose, Classy Clutter