Academy for GOD Preschool: What the Bible Says About Discipline

Amanda in circle time with the poster: Discipline begins with teaching children expectations. In PreK, teachers like Mrs. Amanda use stories and pictures as examples of behavior, inviting children into an observational process that relates closely to their own lives. This process helps engage children's thinking and connects lessons to their reality.

What does the Bible say about discipline practices and how does that line up with the world today?

Early childhood is an extremely vulnerable and sensitive time for children. There have been too many unfortunate occurrences of harmful “disciplinary” actions throughout history and in recent years. It makes sense why there has been a swing away from disciplinary practices that are seen as punitive. However, if we aren’t intentional, we can find ourselves moving like a pendulum swinging from one extreme to the next. What we think is right is frequently changing and affected by the different ideologies of the world around us, for better or worse. So how can we access wisdom beyond our own ideas of what we think is right?

In Toddler class, books are crucial to engage children's developing imaginations. Teachers use stories and short sayings and more closely monitor social interactions at this age. Approaches to discipline must be developmentally appropriate to the child's age and individual understanding.

I have some thoughts on this topic, and if you have ever taught children, you likely have some thoughts on this as well. Discipline and classroom management strategies are one of those things we are always trying to figure out as teachers. Every student is different and has different needs, but order also needs to be maintained in class, and children need correction and guidance.

At the Academy for GOD Preschool, our staff has been discussing this topic together, and over the next few months, our blog posts will cover our teachers' classroom and behavior management strategies as well as where they derive their disciplinary considerations from in the Bible. We will cover this topic across all the ages we teach, from 18 months to 5 years old.

Here, Miss Natalie uses hand-drawn illustrations correlating with the Biblical law, story, and social emotional value of the month to teach. Her 3-4 Year Old class is ready to engage more conceptual topics, but still needs practical examples and pictures to scaffold their learning process.

We will look at wisdom gleaned from years of teaching experience and biblical education, as well as what experts are saying in regards to discipline and what is healthy for children. We hope by the end of this series, you will be well informed on current approaches to discipline, as well as real life experiences with implementing different discipline strategies. Most importantly, we hope that with these different perspectives, God’s word and the considerations derived from it can help you think through the topics for yourselves and come to fruitful conclusions as we work to raise up this next generation together.

Written by, Olivia Beaverson