Check Out the New Advanced Bible Reader Program
| by | Kyle Butt, M.Div. |
At Apologetics Press, we are constantly trying to provide tools that can strengthen faith in God, defend the Truth, and spread the good news of Christ. About a year ago, we realized that various school systems use the Accelerated Reading program to encourage their children to read. In this “AR” program, which is nationwide, students read books and take tests that cover the material in those books. Depending on the length of the book, the tests are worth a certain number of points. Tests over longer books are worth more points; tests over shorter books are worth fewer points. Teachers and schools then reward the students based on the number of points they accumulate over a certain amount of time, generally a grading period or a school year. The program has been extremely successful in encouraging kids to read books that they might not otherwise read.
At A.P., we thought, “Why not use a similar system to encourage young people to read the Bible?” Thus, we came up with a program called Advanced Bible Reader, or ABR. This new program from Apologetics Press allows students to create a username and password of their own. They can then log on and take tests based on books of the Bible that they have read. Each test is worth a certain number of points based on how many verses the reading covers. All of the tests are composed of ten multiple-choice questions. When the student accumulates points by taking the tests, those points add up in the student’s accounts. At each 100-point segment, the student can download a beautiful, full-color certificate.
The biblical education potential of this program is unlimited. Bible class teachers at churches can use it to encourage their students to read the Bible. Homeschools can use the program to supplement their Bible education. Private schools can implement it school-wide and encourage the kids to read the Bible—just like they have been encouraged for years to read secular books. And the program is great for parents to promote Bible reading along with other work that their children are bringing home from school. In fact, the Lads to Leaders program recently incorporated it into their Bible reading program.
We hope you will take the time to check out the site at www.abrkids.net (or click on "Advanced Bible Reader" in the far left column on our site). Right now we have about 500 kids involved in the program. We believe that tens of thousands can benefit from it. If you are looking for a way to encourage kids to read and study the Bible, Advanced Bible Reader is a tremendous tool to use. If you have influence with any kids, whether your own children, grandchildren, or just kids you know, why not send them this link and encourage them to get involved?