For Early Learners ages 4-6
Children are a blessing from
the Lord. The four to six year olds
in your home are a reward from
God. As a parent or guardian,
you have been entrusted with the
responsibility of helping them to
know and love the Lord.
The Word of Life Gopher Buddies
program is specifically designed
to help in the task of imparting the
foundational truths of Scripture
to children. To enable children
to know, understand, and obey
Scripture, the Gopher Buddies
program is built upon the solid
foundation of…
lies using the Gopher Buddies
Local church leaders and fami that early learners will…
program will work toge ther so
as Savior.
1. Come to know Jesus Christ of a Christian world view and
2. Grow in their understanding
belief system.
and conduct the difference
3. Show through their characterlife.
Christ can make in a child’s
learners
n designed to teach early ts. The Bible
Thirty-six lessons have bee iptu re and key character trai
foundational trut hs of Scr ), Scripture
y Bible reading (quiet time
lessons combined with dail children, and faithfulness in church will
memory, books rea d to the will affect who
n what they believe which
help children begin to lear
they become.
r to
hs of Scripture so that fou
To teach foundational trut elop a positive understanding
dev
six year old children can which to build their lives.
of Scripture upon
tand
children can know and unders
Since Scripture teaches that municate foundational truths of
the Word of God, we will com
ativity and clarity.
Scripture to children with cre
-2
othy 3:15 ■ 2 Timothy 2:1
■ Matthew 28:19-20 ■ 2 Tim
tand Scripture which
Children can know and unders spiritual growth.
leads the m to salv atio n and
The following pages will show you in detail how
this dynamic program will impact the character
and conduct of children.
■ 2 Timothy 3:15-17 ■ Deuteronomy 6:6-9 ■ 2 Timothy 2:15

Believing that the Bible is true and relevant for children, we endeavor
to lead each child to an understanding of foundational scriptural truths.

The weekly Bible study, combined with parental interaction at home,

will affect changes in the character and conduct of each child.

Each year’s curriculum will cover six foundational biblical truths (24 lessons),
four character trait studies (8 lessons), along with four holiday and theme
night lessons. Each lesson is written to speak to the heart of a child. Some
adaptations are suggested for small groups, large groups, and children with
special needs.

As the children comprehend

the foundational scriptural
truths taught weekly, they will
grow in their desire to know
and please Jesus.
■ Deuteronomy 6:6-7 ■ 1 Peter 2:2 ■ Psalm 5:3

Believing that the Word of God is essential to a child’s spiritual

growth, the Early Learners’ Quiet Time is designed to help parents
read God’s Word to their children and discuss the truths of God’s
Word with them daily.

The use of the Gopher Buddies Quiet Time will allow each child to learn
how God speaks to them through the Bible and that they can talk to God
through prayer.

Each day the Gopher Buddies Quiet Time will reference a passage of
Scripture to be read to the child. The I Can Know section provides a
sentence summary of each day’s passage, I Can Learn is an interactive
section, and the I Can Pray section reminds the child to talk to God
through prayer.

Children will be excited to spend time listening to

the Bible read to them each day. Talking with
God through prayer will also be a highlight
of their daily quiet time. Parents will
be grateful for a practical tool to
assist in the spiritual growth and
development of their child.
■ Psalm 119:11 ■ Psalm 1:2 ■ Joshua 1:8

Believing all Scripture is profitable compels us to assist children in

committing to memory portions of the Word of God.

Scripture memory will shape the child’s thinking and impact their behavior.

The Gopher Buddies leaders and parents will assist the children in
memorizing portions of Scripture that correlate with the lessons. The
parent’s page that will be sent home each week will contain the portion of
Scripture the children are to learn. To enhance long-term retention only
ten references are committed to memory for the 36 lesson series.

The children will better experience

the teaching, convicting,
correcting, and training
ministry of God’s Word
through their active
participation in
Scripture memory.
■ Proverbs 20:11 ■ 1 Samuel 2:18 ■ 3 John 4

Believing that children are capable of serving the Lord should motivate parents
and leaders to provide character building service opportunities for the children.

The character and compassion of the children will be developed through

Christian service opportunities.

Each child is encouraged to participate in a minimum of three Christian service

activities under the direction of their family and the local church. Suggested
activities are listed in their Quiet Time. The Bible study also contains
Christian service projects for the children to participate in as a group.

Serving God by helping others will develop the character and compassion
of the children.
An incentive program that is creative and fun awaits the children. As you
look over the next few pages you will find many different ways to reward the
children for being faithful to Biblical Principles. You can put together the awards
that you want to make your program fun and exciting.

Every child needs a Quiet Time, a Gopher Buddies tote bag, and an activity
packet. The back cover of the Quiet Time folds out to reveal Gopherville; a fun
place where the gopher family lives. Gopherville will serve as a progress chart
that will motivate the child and inform parents of the child’s progress.

The Gopher Buddies Record/Award Sheet also serves as an individual record

sheet for the leader. As you peel off stickers to put on Gopherville, you will also
write down the date on the sticker sheet. This will automatically show you their
progress.

On the back of this sheet there is a place to put name, address,

and other vital information about the children as well as
a place to keep track of attendance. This will greatly
simplify the paper work for leaders.
 Reward any achievement throughout
the year with colorful certificates.

Each year a child can earn three award patches; one for
each of three achievement levels. The patches are new
each year. There are a variety of fun patches featuring
Gopher Buddies to collect! The patches are placed on
the Gopher Buddies tote bag as they are earned.
 Encourage good behavior, helpfulness or anything
you would like with these self-storing fun hand
stamps featuring the whole gopher family.

Word of Life also offers

various items for your church
to purchase as year-end
awards or for other special
occasions.
Membership is easy and when children earn it, they will
receive a membership sticker. This sticker is placed on
the identification tag for their Gopher Buddies tote bag.

Place church or leader information here

ELPO-09