Bible Lesson List for Teachers

A requested (by several readers) list of lessons, a lesson curriculum map,
 or whatever you like to name your Bible lesson plan.

This is a really random post! But, if you want to make your own plan of lessons to teach, sometimes it is hard to decide which lessons to use. This was actually asked by a reader and after trying to find a list for them, I realized a basic list is hard to find. I do not consider myself an authority on this. But I have been writing my own lessons for over 30 years.

A couple of things to keep in mind though. This is a long list, but does not include every lesson in the Bible. I personally like to teach about the people in the Bible and teach the events in order. For Christian living (things like sharing, obeying parents, etc.), attitudes, God Made It, etc., I discuss these as the application part of the lessons. So, you won't see specific lessons for these.

 

Where I attend now, we teach for a year at a time, then the students move to the next class. The elders prefer us to teach New Testament on Sunday mornings and Old Testament on Wednesdays, so I teach about 20 weeks on Life of Jesus, add some Old Testament (like Esther, 10 Plagues, Ezekiel), then finish the year with the Book of Acts. (So I plan by the year, not the quarter and I change the lessons around as needed due to holidays, when I know people are traveling, etc.). I have been asked... Where (what lesson) do I start? I reply, at the beginning. Depending on your options, Old or New Testament, start with creation or Jesus being born.

 

There are so many variables to a list like this. What age are you teaching? Sunday or Wednesday? How many weeks are you planning for? Do want to teach an overview? Do you want to teach more in-depth? For instance, the kings could take a year if you teach Saul, David, Solomon and all the kings. Joseph, Moses, David, Daniel, Jesus or Paul can be condensed or expanded. The miracles and parables alone can be combined, or taught alone.

 

1. How many lessons are needed?

2. Do you want/need Old or New Testament? Or a mix of both? Keep your age group in mind.

3. Look through the appropriate list and decide which lessons you want to teach.

4. Look for any extra materials you will want/need. Make checklists. Plan your organization. Do you want visuals, worksheets, Bible verses, application projects or worksheets, songs, hands-on visuals, review/take home extras, etc.?

 



The Old Testament list is 53 lessons, so one can be deleted if you decide to make a full year Old Testament lesson plan. Click here to download the numbered Old & New Testament list combined with scriptures included. There is only one week of a basic lesson about the kings listed, so they would require more weeks if you want to divide them more.

The New Testament is divided by Life of Jesus and the Book of Acts and misc. Paul. There are 75 lessons for the New Testament listed. I have 47 weeks for Jesus, but personally combine some of the miracles and parables when I teach. That leaves 28 weeks listed for Acts and extra lessons from Paul.

You can see divisions of lessons under the Lessons tab at the top or:

Click here for a general list of lessons with printables.

Or, for a specific lesson, use the search button on the right side.

This will show all the lessons available for your search.

 

A couple things I want to mention ☺. Please take this in Christian love. Please have a Bible open next to you and refer to it, and let students read from the Bible that can read. Better yet, read the scripture as much as you can. Please, study the scripture and don't just read from a teacher's manual. Verify the facts from the Bible. Be prepared. Be early to set up class and be there for the students as they arrive. Make sure you have all the supplies you will need with extras for visitors.

 

I know this does not include everything. I have made my own for so long, I just know what I want to teach. I turn the updated list in every year to the Elder in charge for approval. If you have any notes, additions or questions that will help others, please leave it in a comment below.

 

I added this here so it would not be confused with the above download that includes the general lists. When I taught the 3 year old's on Wednesday night, we taught 3 quarters of Old Testament and 1 quarter about Jesus. Click here to download the sample preschool list.

 

I teach New Testament on Sunday morning to second graders. Basically half is Jesus which leads us to the early Christians and Paul in the book of Acts. I add a couple of fun Old Testament lessons in between. I teach the early Christians first, even though Saul/Paul is mixed in (the book of Acts). It is easier for the students to put their lives in perspective if I teach Paul all together in order. Click here to download a sample lesson list for early elementary.

Another question is organizing, and that is another topic. Basically, I have my yearly list, and everything is in it's own file folder in a filing cabinet(s). I have a pile of worksheets and application worksheets that I turn in to the office and they are printed for me. I print everything else. I bind those into workbooks so I don't have to deal with them every week and students that miss a class will still have the material to look at. They get one workbook for Life of Jesus and one workbook for the book of Acts. Well, I looked for this on Amazon and it is old enough I didn't see this model. I did find one on eBay. I think this is 15-20 years old (!) and proves that if you buy good it will should work for a while. This is totally personal preference. There are wire spiral binders that make a really nice looking finish which is what I would purchase if I was looking to buy now. They were not affordable for my needs when I bought this. I usually find the binder combs cheaper on eBay, but I check Amazon prices too.

 Anyway, the different sizes are determined by how many pages your book will be. Add more if you are using thicker paper. I always use a bigger size if it is close. It hard to squeeze on a small comb and hard to lay the pages open if the binder comb is too small. ** Check the church building. The office or teacher's supply room or someone probably has one you can use. Ask a secretary or office employee for an opinion.

Anything extra I need for each lesson is written on the outside of the file folder. Currently, I have stuff all over, but the hands-on visuals and take-home items are in marked clear (assorted sizes: there are 3 that fit and stack on the shelves well) Sterilite plastic containers on shelving units. They are divided by Old Testament, a lot of bigger containers for Moses, David, Acts & Jesus. I also use these Hefty Jumbo zipper bags. A lot!