September 17, 2025 – The Importance of the Bible in the Homeschool

David West

Scripture: The Most Important Subject

We’ve taught many subjects in our homeschool, some courses using workbooks, some as life lessons. We’ve taught our children reading, writing, and arithmetic. We’ve also taught such things as gardening and cooking and how to do laundry. We’ve attempted to give our children the life skills needed to function in the world beyond our home. We’ve labored to teach them things technical and academic, and the people skills and social behaviors necessary to navigate life. But, of all the things taught in our home, the most important has been God’s Word.

When homeschooling officially began for each of our children, when they were learning the alphabet and the sounds for each letter, we told them reading would be important to their lives. Reading is important because Scripture is important. In our home, we learn to read so we can read the Bible. There is no deeper well of wisdom and no fountain provides more life-giving water.

When each of our children began reading on their own, we gave them a Bible. Not a picture Bible, but a grown-up, big‑person Bible. And we engraved their name on the front. This is one way we emphasized the importance of Scripture in our homeschool. Reading, and getting a big Bible, became a rite of passage.

Over the years we’ve filled our home with Scripture in many ways. Our children have memorized verses, listened as we read Scripture at dinnertime, and we’ve taught courses in Biblical studies. Along with filling our home with Scripture, we’ve prayed for God to shape and mold our children according to His Word, to renew their minds, and equip them for life. The Bible contains the very words of our Lord. Nothing else taught in our home holds such power and potential. For Christian homeschoolers, Scripture is the most important subject.

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About the author

David West is an ordinary father serving an extraordinary Savior. He is husband to Danette, father of six, deacon at The Cornerstone Bible Church, past chairman of the Sacramento Organization of Parent Educators (scopehome.org), sales manager by vocation, and a lover of books and writing.

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

Raising Children Anchored in Truth
by Rhonda Robinson

When your children see you opening your Bible and soaking in God’s Word each day, the impact can last a lifetime. As a homeschooling parent, you hold a rare gift—the freedom to make Scripture the very foundation of your children’s education.

In a culture where Biblical truth is belittled or ignored, adding Scripture strengthens hearts and shapes worldview. When the Bible is central, lessons move beyond academics. History tells the story of God’s faithfulness. Science reveals His creativity. Language arts sharpen communication for sharing truth. Math reflects His order and design.

Most importantly, Scripture forms character. As you study together, your children learn to discern truth from error, face challenges with faith, and anchor their identity in Christ. These are lessons no textbook can teach or test score can reflect.

As God’s Word becomes the cornerstone of your homeschool, it prepares your children not only for life but also for eternity—while building a family where both faith and learning thrive in Christ.

Discipleship begins at home! Equip your homeschool student with a strong Biblical foundation through RVL Discipleship: The Curriculum. This forty-lesson video series immerses students in Scripture using captivating visuals and rich cultural context to deepen faith and understanding. Prepare your teen with clarity and confidence by making the Bible the cornerstone of your homeschool. Plus, enjoy lifetime access for unlimited students!

About the author

Rhonda Robinson is a mother of nine and grandmother of thirty-seven, an award-winning author, and writer for Focus on the Family. She is the author of FreeFall: Holding onto Faith When the Unthinkable Strikes, and The Thriving Homeschool: A Christian Parent’s Guide (Focus on the Family, April 2026).

Learn more, explore a free sample lesson, or purchase The Curriculum here: https://store.focusonthefamily.com/rvl-discipleship-the-curriculum?refcd=2260102&utm_source=email&utm_medium=extemail&utm_campaign=rvlcurriculum&utm_content=tos_sept_bible_article

Todd Wilson

“This Is the Day That the Lord Has Made”

How important is teaching the Bible in your home? Huge. Your happiness may depend on it later. I mean this with all respect, but my mom has pounded the ‘this is the day’ verse (Psalm 118:24) into my head for most of my life in the most annoying way. She sang the song. 

This is the day, this is the day
That the Lord has made, that the Lord has made.
I will rejoice, I will rejoice
And be glad in it, and be glad in it.
This is the day that the Lord has made.
I will rejoice and be glad in it.
This is the day, this is the day
That the Lord has made.

She believed in the verse so much that she used it on her answering machine for the last twenty or thirty years. “This is the day the Lord has made,” she would say so perkily it made your eye twitch, “rejoice and be glad in it.” Well, that was when the sun was shining, she had some fun stuff planned, and was having a great day.

Now life is pretty hard for my mom and dad. My dad is in a nursing home, and my mom worries about him and if they’re going to be able to live in their home. She gets teary eyed and starts to get overwhelmed and she looks at me with childlike eyes hoping I’ll have answers about bringing Dad home. Instead, I look at her and recite the verse that she taught me when I was a kid: “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

At first she jokes and says, “That’s easy for you to say.”

Then I get firm with her and say, “Mom, that’s the truth. You taught it to me. This is the day God has given us and we must rejoice because it must be the best whether we feel it or not.”

She usually responds by sticking her tongue out jokingly, and then I repeat, “It’s the truth, Mom. God knows what He’s doing and would only do what is best . . . so rejoice and be glad on this day because you get to see Dad, be with your son, and God is in control of it all.”

That’s the kind of stuff you teach your children now in your homeschool so they can remind you later when you’ve grown old, weak, and forgetful.

Be real,

Todd

P.S. Need a reminder of some truth? Check out our back‑to‑school special featuring a super soft t-shirt reminding you that HOME>SCHOOL and a desk calendar that delivers a daily smile producing homeschool truth.

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About the author

Todd Wilson is a dad, granddad, writer, conference speaker, and former pastor. Todd’s humor and down to earth realness have made him a favorite speaker at homeschool conventions, retreats, and churches across the country. As founder of Familyman Ministries and the Smiling Homeschooler, his passion and mission are to remind dads and moms of what’s most important through weekly e-mails, podcasts (The Familyman Show & The Smiling Homeschooler), seminars, and books and products that encourage parents. Todd, and his wife Debbie, still homeschool two of their eight children (six have graduated with four married) in northern Indiana. You can read more at www.familymanweb.com.

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Danika Cooley

THE Reason to Homeschool 

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

As Christian parents, we want to be approved workers who can rightly handle the word of truth. We also want to prepare our children to be approved workers. Teaching the Word of God to our kids is absolutely the most important thing we can do as parents who love and honor Jesus. The Bible isn’t just a subject we ought to schedule into our children’s day. Rather, teaching the Bible is the reason we homeschool.

Sure, there are other wonderful reasons to homeschool. But, if we teach our kids advanced science and mathematics, have them read incredible literature, and school them in history, but we don’t teach them Scripture, we have missed the boat. Teaching the Bible to our kids is actually commanded by God. Take a look, for example, at Deuteronomy 6:4-9.

The wonderful truth is that you can teach the Bible to your kids, and it can be a lot of fun. In fact, you can easily read through the Bible with your children at least five times before they graduate. You can also teach them how to read the Word diligently—as an approved worker who can rightly handle the word of truth. You can even do all of this if you’ve never read the Bible cover to cover yourself.

The Lord hasn’t asked us to do anything he will not equip us to do. If we choose the way of life for our kids, we will be blessed, they will be blessed, and their future families will be blessed. Take a look at four more reasons to teach the Bible in your homeschool.

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About the author

Danika Cooley is an award-winning children’s author who blogs about Bible books, crafts, activities, and snacks at Thinking Kids. Her books include Help Your Kids Learn and Love the Bible, Bible Investigators: Creation, and the Who What Why series, a line of Christian history for 7–11-year-olds. Grab your free three-week sample of her popular Bible Road Trip™ curriculum here.

Kerry Tittle

Keep Bible (as a subject) at the Forefront! 

Much Biblical drama occurred in Moab. But one event was particularly curious. The multitudes of Israelites gathered to listen to their leader, Moses, retell the story of the last forty years (Deuteronomy 34). You might have been thinking, Moses, weren’t you there? The audience has already lived this! There were good reasons Moses did what he did. Reminding the Israelites about the consequences of sin prepared them for their new life in the promised land and they became known as the Joshua Generation. They were characterized by their faith and obedience by heeding Moses’ instruction. We, like the Israelites, are all prone to forget the faithfulness of God. This is why we must have the Bible as a foundational topic in our homeschool journey.

Not only are we preparing our children to cross over the proverbial Jordan, we are also reminding ourselves of God’s faithfulness in our own lives. Furthermore, what if this generation became the next Joshua Generation being set apart from the world and acting on God’s promises just because we took the time to foster their belief in God and helped them to shape a Biblical worldview?

Sometimes Bible can be the very first subject to fall to the back burner. I believe it is imperative that this mindset be challenged and make devotions, Bible, worldview, or whatever you want to call it, a core subject. Parents, let’s work together for the next generation!

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About the author

Kerry Tittle is a mother of nine children and a 20-year homeschool veteran. She was the owner of ReformationKidz with her husband Rob until a tornado destroyed their home and business in 2014, taking the lives of Rob and two of their daughters, Tori and Rebekah. Kerry is the founder of Refined Family, which is created to encourage others to find hope in the gospel in the midst of trials.

Ground your homeschool in the Bible at every level! From Bible Stories for Kids for your youngest, to Discovering Our Amazing God in middle school, and Methods of Bible Study for teens, SchoolhouseTeachers.com offers curriculum to nurture faith formation and scriptural understanding throughout your family.