It’s the third Tuesday of the month, which means 5 Minutes for Books is hosting their monthly Kids’ Picks carnival.

This month, I thought I’d share about a series of Bible study books that work well for tweens.

Over the summer, one thing C. (11) and I wanted to do was to find a Bible study for him to work on. Yes, we read the Bible as a family, and he learns about God in church and school, but we also know there is value in learning to personally go a little deeper in the exploration of God’s word, and we wanted to find some tools to help C. do just that.

The problem was, our options were pretty limited. On one hand, there were “devotion books for kids,” that were pretty light and surface-y, and seemed to just tack on a Bible verse at the end of a “true to life story.” That’s fine, but it wasn’t what we were looking for. Then again, serious Bible study aids aimed at teens and/or adults seemed a bit too complicated or involved.

We were very happy when we found the perfect compromise: a series of books written specifically for kids that shows them how to read, study, understand, and apply God’s word. I shouldn’t have been surprised to find they were written by Kay Arthur (renowned Inductive Bible Study instructor). The series is called Discover 4 Yourself Inductive Bible Studies for Kids.

When I found them, I may have gone a little crazy stocked up on a bunch of them. There’s a tremendous variety, covering Old Testament and New Testament, and some topical studies. Fortunately, C. was glad I stocked up, because he like them immediately.

So far, C. has worked through Jesus in the Spotlight, which explores the first ten chapters of the book of John, and part of Jesus — Awesome Power, Awesome Love, which covers chapters 11-16. Each book takes Kay Arthur’s usual inductive methods and breaks them down into small, do-able chunks for kids. One day, C. will read a passage and underline or mark key words (the text of the Scripture being studied is included in the book), another day, he’ll answer questions about what he’s read, and another, he’ll look at ways to apply the Bible to his everyday life. Each day’s assignment is relatively short — 10-20 minutes. And the books include background and other helpful material that make it easier for kids to understand the original culture and context of Scripture.

Last night, I asked C. to tell me specifically what he likes about this series and he said:

• The length of the assignments. They’re not so long that they’re overwhelming, but still long enough to learn things.
• The fact that he’s really studying the Bible and learning more about it, instead of just reading over it.

Amazon.com lists these books as appropriate for ages 9-12, and I think I’d agree, thought there’s probably some additional leeway at either end of that range.

Don’t forget to visit 5 Minutes for Books to find out what other kids have been reading this month.