Are you wondering which scripture memory verses your toddler should memorize? This post shares five Bible verses to get you started!
Toddlers are very good at scripture memory.
They are especially good at it when you turn a Bible verse into a song or add hand motions to go with it. Listening to my toddler quote his scripture memory verses always brings a smile to my face.
Toddlers’ minds are like sponges!
No, they may not always fully comprehend what we tell them or teach them, but incorporating scripture memory verses into each day is a great way to help toddlers store up God’s Word in their little hearts.
Then, when they are able to comprehend everything, the foundation is already laid. Therefore, today I want to share with you five scripture memory verses toddlers can memorize.
5 Scripture Memory Verses Toddlers Can Memorize
Genesis 1:1: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
We chose Genesis 1:1 as our son’s first Bible verse to memorize.
Creation reveals its Creator, which make it important to know. Unless we believe God created us, the rest will make zero sense.
John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
Creation pales in comparison to the person and work of Jesus Christ!
God created us and He loves us. John 3:16 is a truth-packed verse that is easy for little ones to memorize.
They should know from a young age that God loves them so much that He sent His Son to die on the Cross for them.
Ephesians 6:1: “Children obey your parents in the Lord for this is right.”
During the early years of life, it’s important to understand that God has given Mommy and Daddy authority over their little ones.
Ephesians 6:1 is often quoted throughout the day as a reminder that it is God who wants children to obey for it is right.
Matthew 22:39: “And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
We memorize this verse to help us understand sharing with others! It is important to us that our children understand early on that loving others is an important part of being a Christian.
Galatians 5:22-23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
Often throughout the day, children require correction for wrong behavior. As parents, it’s easy to correct the behavior without telling them what God’s way looks like.
We had our son memorize the fruit of the Spirit in order to help him know not only what he should put off, but what he should put on instead. I am even built a curriculum around the Fruit of the Spirit to help instill this concept further.
These are the first scripture memory verses we have our toddlers memorize. There are, of course, many more verses you can choose!
Tell me in the comments what scripture memory verses your toddlers have memorized!
If you want help learning out to memorize scripture, then check out this Scripture Memory System that Works for Kids & Adults!
Want to share the Gospel with your toddler on a more regular basis?
Want to start teaching biblical truths to your toddler but not sure where to start?
You’re not alone.
The Fruit of the Spirit Curriculum for Toddlers is a downloadable eBook designed to help you teach early learning skills to your child while instilling God’s truth. One week at a time, I will guide you through sharing the Gospel with your child through various Bible stories and learning opportunities.
Click here to learn more!
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My 2 & 4 year old both have John 3:16 memorized, my 4 year old also has Psalms 23 memorized! Thanks for this great list, i’ll have to print it out and have them memorize these as well 🙂
OHHH, I’m really wanting to move forward with Psalm 23! Thanks for sharing!
We work on one verse a month right now with our 2yr old He can say Ephesians 6:1 & Psalm 118:24 with prompting and has also been working on Genesis 1:1 – but mostly just does actions for that one. I like your suggestions… will definitely work on a few of these ones soon too!
My kids are 7 and 5 and have been reciting the Lord’s Prayer at bedtime for several years. They also had memorized Psalm 23 and Proverbs 3:5-8 a while back. They have been attending AWANA this past year and they memorize scripture every week. It’s wonderful. Deuteronomy 6, particularly verses 6-9, is my inspiration.
My son was able to attend VBS at our church when he was two because i was volunteering. When my neighbor kids were practicing memorizing the verses in the evenings at my house, my 2 yr old memorized Ephesians 6: 10-18 as well with prompting talking about the whole armor of God. He also knows Ephesians 6:1 and just recently started working on Psalm 119:105.
It is so true! I have been amazed, I personally have been working on memorizing Proverbs 3, and just by saying it to myself in the morning my two year old has picked up the first 5 verses. Totally incredible.
Thank you for sharing! I didn’t grow up memorizing Scripture and it has been hard for me to memorize passages and keep them. That’s one reason I want to start young with my children. They are little sponges soaking up everything. His Word will not return void. We also listen to Seeds of Worship as a way to memorize Scripture. Thanks for this great resource!
I could not agree more!
Thanks Leigh Ann for these verses for toddlers. I will try to use them on my videos to teach kids Spanish.
Thanks and Blessings.
Jose L.
I have a two year old and I would love to get him to learn Scripture. How exactly do you teach a two year old to memorize it? Thanks
We do regular scripture memory during/after breakfast. We say the verse and have our child repeat it. I say, “Genesis 1:1.” He says, “Genesis 1:1.” I say, “In the beginning.” He says, “In the beginning.” And on and on until we’ve said the entire verse. Then, we state the reference, Genesis 1:1 again. We do this every single day until he can say it on his own. When he has this one memorized, we move on to another one. This could take 1 day to 6 months to 1 year. Just go at your child’s pace. You can see this post: https://intentionalbygrace.com/family-devotions/ for more information. Be sure to click through to the Family Devotions with a Toddler post as well (you’ll find it in the post I just linked). Both of those posts have videos and explanations that you might find even more helpful. I’m so excited you want to begin this with your child. I’m finding I MEMORIZE more scripture because I’m memorizing right alongside my child. It’s a wonderful way to get God’s Word into my heart as well.
Phil 2:14; Col 3:23; Eph 4:32 ; Psalm 119:11 and Rom14:19 are great for little ones to memorize. It BEST if you can set them to a tune to sing , or use dramatic motions, hand movements or other memory ” tricks” to add fun & prompting memory. Truly, very young children can learn just about ANYTHING through repetition, songs & movement. What BETTER thing to teach them than the WORD OF GOD?!?!?☺
We do scripture memory and catechism questions as a part of our homeschool time. I’m no where near where I should be with consistency, though, because it’s our first year homeschooling and I am far from a type A, consistent personality. Buuuttt, my 2-yro and 4-yro are making progress and are definitely able to memorize.
A couple helpful resources I like are Desiring God’s foundation verses (a list of verses for children to memorize) and Wise Words for Moms by Ginger Plowman (a list of verses to use in general training and correcting with our kids).
My kids started an ‘I can’t campaign’. I can’t get my shoes on, I can’t turn the light on, I can’t pick up my toys, etc. So I got them to say “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!”
My daughter is 22 months old and her first bible verse we learned this week “God made me”
Do you have more short ones?
We started our 2 year old with the second half of 1 Corinthians 10:31…whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Then Ephesians 4:32…Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
Working on Ephesians 6:1 now! It’s amazing what they can memorize at such a young age.
It truly is, isn’t it? Blows my mind!
I don’t have any babies (yet…I’m still in school!), but in my freshman year theology class we were talking about the fruits of the spirit and we watched this cute little cartoon song video about them and it would ask if a fruit of the was an _____? (apple, pear, etc) and then it would list the actual fruits of the spirit, and it seemed like a really great video to introduce a toddler to the fruits of the spirit
Yes! I love Crazy Praise version of Galatians 5:22-23. I actually refer to that song in my Fruit of the Spirit Curriculum for Toddlers!
Is there an easy quote about how God asked Man to look after the animals? I keep telling my almost 3yr old that God put us in charge of caring for our animals and treating them with kindness and respect. After reading this, I think it might be an easier concept to remember if she had a quote she could rattle off. Thank you.
I have just been thinking about teaching my toddler some Scripture, and the first two I thought of are also the first two on your list! How funny. Thank you for sharing these, I think they’re great ones to start with ☺️