Yesterday, my girls read aloud in 1 Samuel, while I assembled ingredients for scones for the tea time we had planned for the day. The girls were reading from our STAR Bible reading plan, and we have chosen the plan that will take us through the entire Bible in four years, just reading on school days, four days a week, for twenty-eight weeks. When my husband walked by and heard the girls reading, he came over to me and whispered "This is good." Yes, it is! Reading God's Word is very good. In fact, I think I could argue, it is the most important subject we study in our homeschool.

One of our tutors at STAR began reading the Bible, cover-to-cover, every year, when she was thirteen years old. I won't tell you how old she is today, but, let's just say, it's been a few years! I am proud to say that she is our apologetics tutor for the fourteen teens we have at STAR this year! Personally, I don't think any degrees or credentials or work experience would matter more than reading her Bible all the way through, every single year.

When I began developing the curriculum for STAR, I knew that guiding homeschool families all the way through the Bible was going to be an essential piece. I hesitated at first, because Bible reading plans can be found through churches and all over the internet. I never want to overload families with too many options to choose from or too many things to do. Of course, I didn't want families feeling like they had to go through their church's "read through the Bible in a year" plan and STAR's plan, too. Nobody needs that kind of stress. 

The thing is, so many of those "read through the Bible in a year" plans are overwhelming for the homeschool mom. I have tried them with my kids--multiple times--and I always felt like a failure when I realized that none of us had the capacity to make it through that much reading. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE God's Word. I WANT to get through it with my children. I think, perhaps, I was attempting this when my kids were too young and my voice was getting too tired, reading so much on my own. We also struggled to get through readings seven days per week. The weekends are different. Daddy is off work, and sometimes we do house projects or fun things. I found that we fell behind on our Bible reading plans quite often.

I had a goal of creating a Bible reading plan that was adjustable and doable for a family with children of any ages, and that a mother would be able to get through the plan with her children on school days. And, that the reading load would be less intense, so that if the family has a day full of dentist appointments or a field trip, they can catch up the next day, or on the next break.

The STAR Bible reading plan can be used to read through the Bible in one year, two years, four years or eight years. I will share the reading plan below. 

A Quick Explanation of the Cycles

Our school years are broken up into cycles. We are currently in Cycle 3, next year we will move on to Cycle 4, and the following year, we will go back to Cycle 1. The cycles are twenty-eight weeks long, with four seven week terms. When I created the STAR reading plans, I used the Claritas Publishing memory work cycles as a spine to jump off from.

The Claritas cycles move through history chronologically (Cycle 1-ancients, Cycle 2-medieval, and so on). They also include particular science subjects each year (Cycle 1-biology, Cycle 2-astronomy and geology, etc.). This gives our homeschool years some order and predictability. The Claritas Publishing memory work includes the following subjects:

• History
• Geography
• Science
• English Grammar
• Math
• Latin
• Timeline
• Scripture 
• Hymns

I added to the Claritas cycles, with the following subjects for each cycle:

• Bible 
• Apologetics
• Read aloud books
• Enrichment: Composers, Poets and Artists
• Nature
• Habit Training (Life Skills and Character Traits)

I also added read aloud and independent reading options (all scheduled out, over the twenty-eight weeks of the cycle) in all of these subjects:

• Apologetics
• History 
• Geography
• Science & Nature 
• Enrichment
• Literature

If you would like to join us in reading all of the subjects through the cycles, you can purchase the reading plans here. If you would like to simply go through the Bible with us, you may follow our plans below.

These Bible reading plans are in chronological order, and as I mentioned above, the readings are designed for a four day per week schedule.

 The charts that follow include weekly assignments instead of daily assignments. There are also daily reading plans available on a mostly blank "Family Guide" in the curriculum. For now, here is an overview of what families at STAR & families who use the reading plans on this site are reading in the Bible:

Cycle 1

Cycle 2 

Cycle 3

Cycle 4

Reading Through the Bible in One Year

In order to read through the Bible in one year, you will need to get through all of the reading scheduled for all four terms of all four cycles. To do this, I suggest that you read both Plans 1 and 2 of Week 1 of every cycle in Week 1. Then move on to Week 2 of every cycle, then Week 3, etc. Alternatively, read four weeks of Plans 1 and 2 in one week's time. Or, read eight weeks of Plan 1 in one week's time and then move on to Plan 2 when all of Plan 1 has been completed.

Reading Through the Bible in Two Years

To read through the Bible in two years, you will need to get through all of the reading scheduled for all four terms of two cycles. To do this, I suggest that you read both Plans 1 and 2 of Week 1 of two cycles in Week 1. Then move on to Week 2 of every cycle, then Week 3, etc. Alternatively, read two weeks of Plans 1 and 2 in one week's time. Or, read four weeks of Plan 1 in one week's time and then move on to Plan 2 the following year.

Reading Through the Bible in Four Years

To read through the Bible in four years, you will need to read Plans 1 and 2 of the cycle you are in. Alternatively, you may choose to read either Plan 1 or Plan 2 of two cycles in a row.

Reading Through the Bible in Eight Years

If you have young children and cannot make it through all of the reading for a one, two or four-year Bible reading plan, choose either Plan 1 or Plan 2. If it is your first time going through this cycle, I suggest starting with Plan 1. The next time you go through this cycle, read Plan 2. By the time you have gone through all four cycles twice, you will have completed the entire Bible with your children--in eight years.

Let your children hear your voice reading the Bible. And, let them practice reading it aloud themselves.

It is so important that our children learn to hear the Word and also read the Word. I do make use of the audio version of Bible Gateway sometimes, when my voice is particularly tired and the chapter consists of a long list of names that are difficult for my girls to pronounce. Mostly, I want them reading the Bible aloud and hearing my voice--their mom's voice--reading God's Word to them. I want that memory stuck in their heads as they mature.

I really hope this reading plan blesses you and encourages your family to dig into God's Word on a regular basis!