BJU Press Bible 4: Pathway of Promise Student Worktext 2nd Edition

BJU Bible 4 teaches young students about God’s presence, God’s kingdom, and God’s covenants as they study the Old Testament. Using an engaging format, kids trace the Old Testament storyline from Genesis to Malachi, helping them to understand God’s wonderful redemption plan. Children explore 147 Bible Truths with interactive lessons through stories and activities. In this new second edition, several changes have been made: three lessons were removed; a separate student book has been added summarizing biblical passages; a new activities book corresponds to the student book; images have been updated; new teaching strategies have been implemented along with new images, teaching strategies, and assessments. Components include a Teacher Edition, Teacher Edition Companion, Student Edition, Activities Book, Assessments, and Assessments Answer Key.

Lesson plan overviews and detailed lesson plans are in the Teacher Edition. The overview is at the beginning of every chapter along with the list of objectives and resources used in each lesson. Reduced pages of the Activities Book with answers are included. Teacher instruction in the sidebars and below the reduced pages help guide parents/teachers through each lesson. Differentiated instruction makes it easy to teach all types of learners.

The Teacher Edition Companion is designed to help simplify the lessons for homeschoolers. The front of the guide has a quick overview of each chapter and lesson. The one-page lesson plan includes page numbers the lesson covers in the Teacher Edition, Student Edition, and Activities Book. A visual representation of the Student Edition and Activities Book pages is on the right sidebar. The content of each page includes Reading Check Questions, Objectives, Biblical Worldview Shaping, Required Materials, and Assignment Options. This helps parents tailor the lessons to their child’s needs. The guide also gives parents instruction on how to access the Homeschool Hub that contains digital resources to support the lessons specifically for homeschool parents. While the Teacher Edition has more extensive teacher help, the companion guide gives you a big picture view of every lesson. The guide is not sold separately and is only included through the purchase of a teacher guide.

The softcover Student Edition would be a wonderful resource all on its own! It is full of biblical information relayed in a kid-friendly format. The sixteen chapters cover the Old Testament – from Creation and the Fall through Malachi’s Message and Christ as King. The timeline is not always chronological but is organized topically. Bible Truths like, “What does it mean for humans to be made in the image of God?” are addressed, relating to the content in each lesson. “Fast Facts” give interesting information about specific books of the Bible (the author, theme and other facts). “Who Was” sidebars highlight different Bible characters. Critical thinking questions are scattered throughout the stories. Definitions of key terms such as “atonement” or “foreshadow” are also given.

The consumable Activities Book aligns with the Student Edition to reinforce learning. Each lesson has two pages (front and back) of varied activities. Every lesson includes a “Think Like a Bible Sleuth” activity that helps kids reflect on and apply what they have learned. A handy H.A.B.I.T. chart is at the beginning of every chapter with scripture listed for daily Bible reading. Chapter reviews are also included.

Assessments include sixteen tests, one for each chapter. Tests have a mix of multiple choice, true/false, matching, fill-in-the-blank, ordering events, and answering questions. Assessments Answer Key includes a copy of the quizzes and tests with answers in red. ~ Gina