Teacher Development Skills
Encourage learners to come to know the Savior by studying the gospel daily—study goal.

“Encourage learners to come to know the Savior by studying the gospel daily—study goal,” Teacher Development Skills: Invite Diligent Learning (2023)

“Encourage learners to come to know the Savior by studying the gospel daily—study goal,” Teacher Development Skills: Invite Diligent Learning

Principles of Christlike Teaching: Invite Diligent Learning

Encourage learners to come to know the Savior by studying the gospel daily—study goal.

Skill

Assist students in creating a daily scripture study goal.

Image
picture of Jesus Christ, physical scriptures, scriptures open on computer and tablet, and colored pencils

Define

Helping students develop a habit of studying the scriptures daily will allow the Lord to teach, strengthen, and direct them in the ways that they need. You can assist students by helping them to create a daily scripture goal. This can effectively be done by helping students to:

  • Understand the promised blessings associated with daily scripture study,

  • Be prayerful in setting a daily scripture study goal,

  • Decide when and where to study the scriptures each day, and

  • Decide upon a scripture study method to use.

This could be done at the beginning of a term and revisited as necessary to help students continue to progress.

Model

Here are a few examples of how you might help students set daily scripture study goals as they seek to study the current year’s book of scripture each day:

  • Ask students to consider what blessings they have experienced by studying the scriptures daily.

  • Invite students to search the scriptures or general conference talks for promises regarding the blessings that come from studying the word of God.

  • Remind students to be prayerful in setting a daily scripture study goal. Have them seek the Lord’s guidance in what they need most and how they feel they could improve upon their previous efforts as they continue to learn and progress.

  • Assist them in setting a daily goal of when and where to study by having them reflect upon their current daily routine. Invite them to consider a time and place for daily study where they can be alert, attentive, and focused.

  • Help students decide how they would like to study the current year’s book of scripture. Have them consider a variety of study methods. Invite them to set a specific goal, reminding them that these goals can be adjusted and adapted as they go forward.

Click here to see a video of this model.

Practice

Use one or more of the following practices to improve your ability to help students set daily scripture study goals:

  • Personally review some of the promised blessings associated with studying the scriptures daily. These can be found in the scriptures themselves or in the messages of general conference talks. Select one of these promises to share with students as you plan to invite them to discover the promises for themselves in an upcoming lesson.

  • Consider how you might invite students to be prayerful in setting a daily scripture study goal. Write down one or two questions you might ask students that would help them to invite the Lord into their goal setting.

  • Practice inviting students to decide when and where to study the scriptures daily. Write down one question you could ask students to consider that addresses daily schedule, attentiveness, and eliminating distractions.

  • Practice helping students select a scripture study method by giving them options and discussing the benefits of each. Practice illustrating some of these approaches for students so they can see how they might adjust their own study to best meet their needs as they seek to study the current year’s book of scripture each day.

Discuss or Ponder

Ponder what you have learned from this experience. Perhaps you could record some of these thoughts in a study journal. Consider the following questions:

  • What have I done previously to help students set scripture study goals?

  • What have I learned from this experience that could improve my ability to help them set scripture study goals?

  • How can I help my students be consistent with their scripture study goal?

Incorporate

  • Prayerfully look over your class roles while considering the examples in the model and practice sections of this training. Consider which examples will best help your students create a scripture study goal. Using one of the examples or one of your own, start with a small change that helps your students develop a good habit of daily scripture study. Set a time when you can consistently follow up to see how it is going and help them revise their goal as necessary.

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Skill

Develop and ask questions that help learners connect what they have learned in their personal and family scripture study to the classroom experience.

Define

To connect is to bring or join two things together. As teachers help learners connect their scripture study at home to the classroom, they are bringing or joining these two experiences together. There are many ways to do this. One way is to ask open-ended questions that (1) include students’ personal or family experiences with their scripture study at home, (2) explore how those experiences connect to what they are learning in class, and (3) give them time to reflect and remember what they studied at home.

You can also prepare discussion questions for class that will help students take what they are learning in the classroom and use it at home. These questions are similar. You invite students to think about what learning experiences they had in class that day and how they can be useful at home. These questions can help us become more home-centered and Church-supported in the classroom and prepare the students to have more learning experiences outside the classroom.

Model

Questions that connect learning at home to experiences in the classroom:

  • What have you learned in class today that is connected to what you are learning at home?

  • What did you and your family learn about Jesus Christ this week?

  • What questions have come to you as you have discussed these scriptures?

  • What has been your favorite thing to learn as you or your family have studied these scripture passages?

Questions that connect learning in the classroom to experiences at home:

  • What did you learn today that would be a blessing to you and your family?

  • If you prepared a five-minute lesson on these truths, what would you focus on, and why?

  • What experiences did you have today that would be useful for your family? What would you change or do differently to suit your family’s needs?

Click here to see a video of this model.

Practice

Practice #1: Using the examples in the model (or one of your own), determine how you will connect what students are experiencing with their study at home to what they are experiencing in class based on the following example lessons.

Practice #2: Develop a question to connect what students are doing in the classroom to their experiences at home, based on the following example lessons.

Discuss or Ponder

  • What have you learned about inviting diligent learning through this experience?

  • What are other ways you have been able to connect what students are experiencing in their home study to what they experience in class?

Incorporate

Take three minutes before class each day for the next two weeks to look at a student’s name on your roll. As you see their name, ponder what he or she might be learning in personal and family study at home. During class, ask the class or that individual student one of the questions that you have practiced. You might also write down what you learn as you ask and listen.

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