Vacation Bible Schools Align Lessons with Common Core Standards

Amanda Casanova | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Updated: Jul 09, 2015

Vacation Bible Schools Align Lessons with Common Core Standards

Vacation Bible School teachers at a church in Louisville, Ky. are tailoring the lessons to fit into state education standards.

The Midwest Church of Christ is hoping that incorporating the state’s Common Core standards will keep students on top of their education during the summer, USA Today reports. 

"We're still using Bible stories, but we're asking questions that are tied to Common Core," said Olivia Hanley, who helped create the curriculum for vacation Bible school at the church. "What we're trying to do is ask questions in a different way, a way that's aligned... to the critical thinking and other questions in Common Core."

In response, Jefferson County Public Schools offered training course in the state standards to interested churches. More than 30 area church representatives attended the training session in June. 

"The biggest thing for me was how the alignment of the curriculum of the Common Core took some of the fear out of Common Core," said Lawrence Wilbon, a youth pastor at Kingdom Fellowship. "It took out a lot of the academic learning and really got to the nuts and bolts of the work."

Other churches say they aren’t interested in aligning with the Common Core standards.

Archdiocesan spokeswoman Cecelia Price said that vacation Bible schools "have a faith-based content and approach. Therefore, I do not believe the (Common Core standards) would be applicable."

Said Denise Donohue, deputy director of the K-12 program at the Cardinal Newman Society: "The focus of vacation Bible school is to fulfill hearts, for young people and young children to know the Lord in a deeper way.”

Publication date: July 9, 2015



Vacation Bible Schools Align Lessons with Common Core Standards