FREE Bible Text Features Chart

Grab this FREE Bible Text Features Chart, a sample from my Bible Text Features Pack.

One of the things I have observed over my years of teaching kids at church {and at home} is that kids often don’t know how to use the text features or study tools found in their Bibles to help them dig deeper into God’s Word.

Teaching them the features of their Bibles AND how to how to use them is vital to their growth as disciples of Christ as well as helps them identify false teaching when they hear it.

*Click on the green download button towards the END of this post to snag the free printable pack, perfect for 4th grade and up!
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I pray you’ll enjoy this chart with your kiddos. The Bible text features {or study tools} included are:

1. Testaments ~ The Bible has two main parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament has 39 books and is at the front of your Bible. The New Testament has 27 books and is towards the back of your Bible.

2. Chapters & Verses ~ Each book of the Bible is split into chapters. And each chapter is split into verses. Some books of the Bible, like Jude and Philemon, only have one chapter, so you often wont’ find chapter numbers. Chapters and verses help you quickly find a verse in a book of the Bible.

3. Introduction/Background ~ Some Bibles have a little paragraph or page before the book of the Bible that shares about the author and the background of the book. Don’t skip these pages, as the background can help you better understand the book.

4. Study Notes ~ Study Bibles or Life Application Bibles will have notes about confusing verses or ideas for applying the Bible to your life. These can be helpful to refer to if you’re confused or would like to dig deeper into the meaning of a passage.

5. Table of Contents ~ Found at the beginning of your Bible, this page helps you locate the page number for each book of the Bible. Even if you know your books of the Bible, it can still be a handy reference. Sometimes people will have tabs in their Bibles that can also help them quickly locate books.

6. Maps ~ Maps are often in the back of your Bible. They help you visualize where places are. When the Bible tells you someone walked from Point A to Point B, you can find it on a map. It’s important to note that the places in the Bible were and still are REAL PLACES, though some of the names have changed.

7. Headings ~ Headings (called pericopes) can help you quickly locate where a passage or story is in the Bible if you already know the general vicinity. For example, if you know that The Prodigal Son is in Luke somewhere, the headings can help you find it when you scan the pages.

8. Concordance ~ A concordance works like an index and can be found at the beginning or at the end of Bibles. Concordances may feature topics (such as worship or love), words (such as depart or gift), and/or people and places in alphabetical order with Bible references so you can more easily find them.

9. Cross References ~ The Bible references or refers to itself often. For example, Matthew refers to the Old Testament prophecies. Some Bibles will have a small letter beside the verse. Then, down at the bottom of the page, it will tell you where that cross reference is found somewhere else in the Bible.

Important Note: Features like the Old and New Testaments, a Table of Contents, or headings can be found in nearly all Bibles. Other features like an introduction/background, study notes, maps, or cross references may only be found in study Bibles or life application Bibles. When you’re teaching kids how to use these features, you want to be sure the Bible they are using has these features, The NKJV Study Bible for Kids is an example of this.

Keep scrolling to snag the free chart or
grab the entire pack in my shop!