How To Use
The Biggest Story Curriculum includes 104 lessons designed to help children understand God's plan to redeem the world through his Son, Jesus, by leading them through the overarching story of the Bible over the course of roughly two years. Created from the ground up by a team of pastors, children's ministry workers, and content creators, the curriculum features guided lessons that can be used in Sunday school, children's church, or homeschooling contexts.
A major strength of The Biggest Story Curriculum is its modular design, allowing teachers to pick and choose which components to use based on the age of the students, specific educational goals, or available time.
The chart below shows suggested components for 30-, 45-, and 60-minute class times.
| Available Time for Lesson | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lesson Components | 30 minutes | 45 minutes | 60 minutes | |
| Teach | The Big Picture (5 minutes) |  |
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| Tell the Story (5–10 minutes) | |
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| Teach the Story (10 minutes) | |
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| Gospel Connection (5 minutes) | |
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| Engage | Discuss the Story (10 minutes) |  |
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| Activities (10–15 minutes) | |
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| Crafts (10–15 minutes) | |
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Lesson Components
The lesson components are grouped into three major lesson phases: Read, Teach, and Engage. The Read phase includes a brief set of prelesson prompts including the most important step—reading and meditating on the Bible passage itself. The Teach phase includes all the tools needed to help kids understand the story and how it fits into the grand narrative of the Bible. The Engage phase includes multiple components to help kids thoughtfully, creatively, and physically engage with the story in memorable ways. Below is a description of each component within these three phases.
1 Read
Before The Lesson
This section highlights the Bible passage that teachers should read and meditate on before teaching the lesson. For a few lessons that cover longer passages, this section offers a focus passage to review within that larger context. It also includes a simple checklist designed to guide teachers as they review the lesson and prepare to teach.
2 Teach
The Big Picture
5 minutes
This section helps the teacher understand and summarize how the lesson connects with previous lessons and the overarching story of the Bible. Teachers are encouraged to review this section ahead of time, summarizing it in their own words at the beginning of the class.
Tell The Story
5–10 minutes
After reviewing how the lesson fits into the preceding lessons and the overarching story of the Bible, teachers progress to telling the current week's story. This can be done in one of three ways: (1) watching the relevant animated video for that particular story, (2) reading the relevant Bible passage out loud to the class, or (3) reading the relevant story from The Biggest Story Bible Storybook.
Teach The Story
10 minutes
This section provides some suggested teaching points to emphasize as teachers seek to reiterate the key themes from the story. While this section is written as a script, it can also be used as a launching pad for teachers to unpack the story for their class in ways that will serve their specific students. Don't miss the Big Truth. In the margin next to this section, teachers will find the Big Truth—a short sentence summarizing the main point of the lesson. Consider emphasizing the Big Truth throughout the lesson by saying it together as a class, incorporating it into an activity, or writing it on a craft.
Gospel Connection
5 minutes
Similar to the Teach the Story section, this section can be used as a script or as a guide to help teachers show their kids how the lesson connects to the Bible's big story of redemption through Christ. Teachers are encouraged to close the teaching portion of the lesson by emphasizing how the story points to Jesus— the Snake Crusher—and his plan to save people from their sin.
3 Engage
Discuss The Story
10 minutes
Designed for use in smaller groups, the discussion questions listed in this section are a great way to help kids go deeper in their understanding of the story and why it matters. The questions listed here are intended to foster interactive group conversation between teachers and students.
Don't miss the Memory Verse. In the margin next to this section, teachers will find a Memory Verse for the lesson. These verses reinforce the main point of the lesson and are short enough for kids to memorize in a week. Consider handing out a Biggest Story Verse Card to each child as a fun tool to take home as they seek to memorize the verse.
Activities
10–15 minutes
Each lesson includes a number of suggested activities that are designed to pair well with the story. These activities are broken up into two age ranges (K–2nd and 3rd–5th) and include simple instructions along with a list of necessary supplies. Teachers can also download and print a coloring page and an activity page for each lesson for each student to work on in class or take home.
Crafts
10–15 minutes
Each lesson includes a number of suggested crafts that connect to the story in some way. These crafts are broken up into two age ranges (K–2nd and 3rd–5th) and include recommended preparation before the class begins, a list of necessary supplies, and simple instructions for doing the craft in class.
A Note on Artwork
Users will notice that some stories within The Biggest Story Curriculum include pictures of Jesus. The illustration style shows that these are not meant to be depictions of Jesus as he really was on earth. Instead, the artwork used here recognizes that Jesus is indeed the main character of the Biggest Story.
Sample Lesson Plans
The Biggest Story Curriculum consists of lesson components that can be customized for various church, home, and classroom contexts. The following sample lesson plans are intended to serve as inspiration as you develop the plan that is right for your context. A blank worksheet is provided at the end of this section for you to build your own lesson plan.
Sunday School: Small Group/Large Group Plan
This 60-minute lesson plan was developed for a Sunday school format that includes small groups led by volunteer leaders and a single large group teaching time led by a primary teacher.
| Time/Day | Duration | Lesson Component | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8:30am | 5 min | Welcome, Activity Sheets | Led by small group volunteers |
| 5 min | Transition to large group | ||
| 8:40am | 5 min | The Big Picture | Led by large group teacher |
| 5 min | Tell the Story | Video or Storybook | |
| 10 min | Teach the Story | ||
| 5 min | Gospel Connection | ||
| 5 min | Transition to small groups | ||
| 9:10am | 10 min | Discuss the Story | Led by small group volunteers |
| 10 min | Craft or Activity |
Sunday School: Simple Plan
This 45-minute lesson plan was developed for a one-room Sunday school context. It is simple and fast-moving to help younger kids stay engaged.
| Time/Day | Duration | Lesson Component | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9:30am | 5 min | Welcome, Coloring Sheets | Room Leader, Volunteer 1 |
| 10 min | Activity | Volunteer 2 | |
| 9:45am | 10 min | Tell the Story | Room Leader, Video or Storybook |
| 5 min | Gospel Connection | Room Leader | |
| 10:00am | 5 min | Snack | Volunteer 3 |
| 10:05am | 10 min | Craft | Volunteer 1 |
Homeschool or Classroom: Daily Plan
This lesson plan was developed for a daily homeschool or classroom learning environment. Two stories are covered each week and Fridays are used for review and Scripture memory.
| Time/Day | Duration | Lesson Component | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon | 5 min | The Big Picture (Story 1) | |
| 10 min | Tell the Story (Story 1) | Storybook or Video | |
| 10 min | Craft or Activity (Story 1) | ||
| Tues | 10 min | Teach the Story (Story 1) | |
| 5 min | Gospel Connection (Story 1) | ||
| 10 min | Discuss the Story (Story 1) | ||
| Wed | 5 min | The Big Picture (Story 2) | |
| 10 min | Tell the Story (Story 2) | Storybook or Video | |
| 10 min | Craft or Activity (Story 2) | ||
| Thu | 10 min | Teach the Story (Story 2) | |
| 5 min | Gospel Connection (Story 2) | ||
| 10 min | Discuss the Story (Story 2) | ||
| Fri | 5 min | Review | |
| 10 min | Scripture Memory | Choose one of the two verses | |
| 10 min | Bonus Craft or Activity |