7 Tips for Preparing an Exciting Lesson Plan: Bible Edition

Does coming up with a Bible lesson seem daunting? Do your kids zone out because they've heard the stories over and over again through the years, or maybe you're teaching other people's kids and you're looking for a way to bring the stories to life to kids who perhaps have never heard the Bible before. Whether you're teaching your own kids, the pastor's kids, or kids who have never been inside of a church building before, these 6 steps will take your lesson planning from stressful to fun! More importantly, it will help you keep the attention of the little people God has entrusted to your care. 

If you're new here, hi, welcome! I’m Tonya Johnson, and I’m a homeschool and ministry consultant that specializes in working with parents and ministry leaders who are focused on building a solid foundation for the next generation. I believe that it’s important to stay ahead of the crowd when it comes to keeping the attention of our children. The world is fighting for their hearts; we need to fight harder. Check out our socials for weekly freebies and trainings. 

Ok, so how do you go about creating a lesson plan that will wow any age? It's actually super simple! 

First step is always pray. God can write a better lesson than the best teacher in the world can do through their own strength. Pray for guidance when it comes to choosing a story/topic to cover, pray for a cool illustration to come across your path that reinforces said topic, and pray that God will speak directly to the hearts of your students (yes, even if they happen to be your own children). As someone who is a teacher to both my own child and a host of other people's children. This is actually something I was very convicted about a few years ago. Why should I put time and money into lessons for my students but then roll out of bed and halfheartedly go through a lesson with my own child just to check a box? What message does that convey to our own kids? 

You may have a story chosen for you, or you may be on your own. Either way, choose something and then move on. No need to overthink this. 

The rule of thumb here is 2-3 minutes per year of the child's age when it comes to how long they will sit still and focus on what you're telling them. If you're a parent, this is easy, you know your child better than anyone and you already know how long they'll be able to sit still and listen without losing interest. 

If you're teaching a Sunday school class or jr church group, your job is a little bit harder. For example, if you have a mixed group of 6-11 yr olds, 15-20 MAX would be your ideal window. You also have to keep in mind that this time can't be filled with just just speaking. A good teacher provides hands on learning and teaches to all 4 different learning styles. You also need to take into account learning disorders as well as the home environment of the kids you are teaching.  For example, a child who gets a high amount of screen time usually has a lowers attention span which lowers the amount of teaching time you get. Regardless of all other factors, the more creative and hands on you are with your lesson, the more focused time you earn from your students. 

Specifically for parents, I have a quick quiz you can take to identify your child's learning style as well as a video on how to make devotion time fun and exciting! If you're a children's pastor or Sunday school teacher, feel free to check out those resources also, but just know that they were originally created with home use in mind. 

Click the video above to access this free training on how to make devotions fun for all ages. 

This is going to be one point that you want the kids to remember that they can apply today. 


If you have a slightly older group (2nd grade or older), you can get away with doing 2-3 points that weave in with one another by using an alliteration. 

Good teachers get really good at using a couple senses in their lessons, usually sight and touch. Great teachers perfect the art of using all 5 senses in their lessons whenever possible: sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell. Check out the corresponding video for examples on how to seamlessly add all 5 senses into your lesson plans. 

Here's a sample schedule. Watch the corresponding video to see how each part fits with the next and where the five senses come to play. 

You can only prepare so much, the rest is up to God. Ideally, you'll prepare your lesson plans 4-5 weeks out. When everything is done, you'd be surprised the amazing ideas God brings across your path to reinforce that lesson. If you give Him the time to work, you'll have things pop across your path that fit perfectly into one of the elements of your lesson. 

The last things I want to leave you with is this: Kids decide within the first couple of min if you’re worth listening to. If you have a lot of behavior problems in your class, chances are it’s because you’re failing to grab their attention in that initial window. My husband and I have been teaching groups of kids from all walks of life for over a decade at this point and the first couple years were a little rough. We didn’t have this flow down because we were brand new into ministry. Once we got the flow down, we rarely had disruptions during our lessons. We live in a world where kids are used to being entertained, so by creating that wow factor and grabbing their attention, you become the entertainment. I know it’s not popular to think about it like that, but that’s how it is. Welcome to ministry in the 21st century. 

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