Create a School Bible!

The school will create its very own Bible using every student in every classroom in the school. Each grade and classroom illuminates one scripture verse from one book in the Bible on a large sheet of paper. When the classrooms finish the pages, the Bible is sewn together, dedicated at a special ceremony, then put on display in a prominent location!

How to choose a scripture for each classroom

As a faculty, decide what books of the Bible you wish to use for the school Bible. Distribute the books across the grade levels according to what works best for your school. Each classroom is to choose only ONE verse. Every classroom then uses the chosen verse for lettering and illumination on their page to be included in the school Bible.

An example of how the books of the Bible could be assigned:

Kindergarten --Genesis or Exodus
First grade--Psalms
Second grade –Proverbs
Third Grade –Isaiah or Jeremiah
Fourth grade – Matthew
Fifth grade—Luke or Mark
Sixth grade—John
Seventh grade—Acts of the Apostles
Eighth grade—Revelations

It will be the decision of the faculty the procedure for determining book assignments.

Materials needed:

Bibles
5-8 felt tip calligraphy pens per classroom
8 ½ x 11 white paper for every classroom
Pencils
Markers, colored pencils
Large sheets of white paper, 14 x 17 or larger
Large needle and yarn or string to bind pages together
Heavy card stock paper to serve as the Bible’s front and back covers—same size as the large paper
Display area for the finished school Bible

Preparations by Faculty

1. Faculty meets beforehand to determine

How the books of the Bible will be assigned
Timeline for doing the project
The dedication ceremony
Where and how the Bible will be displayed

2. Designated faculty members gather all the necessary materials (see instructions on preparing the paper and supplies).

3. The classroom teachers are given a time frame for starting and completing the project.

4. The individual classroom teachers are responsible for determining the verse for the class.

Classroom Activity

Choose the Verse of the Bible

The individual classrooms begin by finding the verse to illuminate. This process may be varied according to individual classroom. The younger children will be more dependent on the teacher’s suggestions and ideas. Each classroom teacher should determine the best way to choose the verse. The classroom teacher can suggest a theme or a virtue that the classroom wants to emphasize.

Preliminary sketches

Once the verse is determined, the learners are assigned to write the verse and illuminate it on a regular sized paper to start sketching out ideas. All students should be creating their very own work. Include the following on each sketch:

The first letter of the verse is illuminated.
There is a drawing about nature on the page such as a flower or a bird.
There is a border or decorations along the edges of the page.
There is one larger illumination about one-eighth to one-quarter the size of the page.

Determining the design and actual layout of the verse

This will be accomplished more easily if the classroom teacher has some guidelines in place for how to proceed. The classroom teacher will need to divide the work up amongst the students. It may be up to one small group of students to put together the actual layout of the verse on the page. Once the layout and design is determined, the class can proceed to do the individual jobs assigned.

There can be a list of jobs for the students to choose or the teacher may decide. The different jobs include:

Layout persons who lightly sketch in the verse on the large sheet of paper for the school Bible

Scribes (about 3-4, depending on the length of the verse) who do the actual lettering

Illuminators—divided in some ways such as:

One person to decorate the first letter on the page. The first letter is large and ornate.
A few individuals to decorate the borders or edges of the page
Someone to draw the large illumination-- should be an eighth of a page no bigger than one fourth of the page
Several individuals to add in the natural decorations such as birds, flowers, plants on the page.

NOTE: With 20-25 children working on one page, it might take a considerable amount of time to finish this project. A suggestion is to allow one or two children at a time to work on the page while the other classmates are doing another classroom activity or during a recess time throughout the school day.

When Completed — Have a ‘Bible Dedication’ Ceremony

The school should have a ‘Bible Dedication.’ On a special day, the children can gather in a large gathering area to dedicate the Bible. This ceremony can include prayers, the reading of the scriptures, and songs. An added touch would be to have all children ‘dress-up’ for the occasion and to invite their family and friends to join the celebration.

Further Use of the School Bible

This school Bible can serve as a special ‘traveling’ that goes from classroom to classroom. Perhaps this could become a special honor to have the Bible in a classroom on a monthly basis.

If the school is participating in a service project, the Bible could be a treat for an exemplary classroom. If a classroom has a special event coming up, such as First Holy Communion, that classroom would keep the Bible for that occasion. These are just a few ideas for use of the Bible.

Another idea is to communicate with other Catholic schools who are making their own school Bible. If the schools are nearby, a Bible exchange could be arranged.

Another special use is in the school liturgies and prayer services. It is possible to incorporate the special scriptures into these services. The idea of the school Bible is to use it and open it often! Let it become an annual project.

Take Pictures! Send them to us! We want to hear about your stories and projects. Please send us your pictures and comments on line to www.saintjohnsbible.org

Instructions for Preparing Materials for this Project

Your faculty can determine the final Bible size and type of paper used. Here is one way to make your own manuscript:

Here are some sample page layouts for the classroom pages. For further examples, look at a Bible that is illuminated. It might be helpful to copy these layouts to give each classroom teacher. There are numerous ways to make a page. Design your own depending upon the scripture chosen. These layouts are only suggestions.

14"x 17" paper or another size that works for your school

ADD IMAGE

14" wide, 17" high Each Classroom completes one sheet . Attach pages together, add a front and back cover. Add a colorful ribbon.

ADD IMAGE