4 Methods for an Adult Bible Class

I love my Bible classes. On Sunday mornings, I teach what we lovingly call the “not-so-young” adults (it’s a class for 35-50), and on Wednesday nights I teach a general auditorium class.

One of my favorite things to do in these classes is to teach verse-by-verse. That’s why it took us 23 months to cover John in my Wednesday night class! I don’t worry about “quarters,” and we just go through whatever topic or text we are studying for however long it takes.

However, I am trying to work on other ways to teach. Just as children need different methods, many adults do as well. Here are some suggestions for adult classes (and, yes, I’m writing this for myself!).

1. Ask “leading” questions. Don’t just ask students to finish a familiar verse. Ask discussion questions, then be quiet! Let the silence “force” someone to answer. Usually, once one person speaks, so will someone else. If you can gain the reputation as a teacher who accepts comments and questions, the students will open up over time.

2. Use handouts or PowerPoint. It’s fine to lecture, but having a “secondary” teaching method to go along with your lesson is also helpful. When I taught through John, I made a PowerPoint of the major points and added maps and pictures at times. As I’m teaching through First John now, I give out a four-page “newsletter” each week with extra material or articles on the text for that night. Many have said they appreciate this.

3. Read the text in “parts.” We studied Job and had people in the class assigned to read a certain person. I selected the text for that week from a modern paraphrase and we read it that way. Then, we studied the passage from a more “standard” translation. The class really enjoyed reading it this way, especially considering the length of Job.

4. Use multi-media. Many sources are now coming out with CD and DVD series that are fantastic. One class I taught used “The Silencing of God” by Dave Miller. We watched half of a lesson each week, then discussed that portion. Since there are five lessons, we made it a 10-week study. While these are expensive at times, they are well worth it, and can then be added to the church library.

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I  have other things in mind, but I want you to add to this list. What are some other things you have tried that have been successful in adult Bible classes?