In our Early Childhood classrooms, children begin the spiritual journey by learning how the Bible points to God, its Author, and how He works through imperfect people for His glory. In this curriculum, students will begin learning key Biblical themes and narratives, each of which displays part of God’s character and work. Like the Lower School, our children begin each day in a time we call the “First Five” going through the New City Catechism questions and answers. The NCC is a modern-day resource aimed at helping children learn the core doctrines of the Christian faith.

In Lower School, our 1st and 2nd graders’ Bible curriculum continues to place our kids in the Scriptures to develop, Lord willing, an enjoyment of the Scriptures by learning Biblical principles through hymns, art, poetry and character studies. The major themes covered are the character of God, one’s identity in Christ, and how to develop a daily faith-walk in God that is not shaken by popular culture. Our 3rd graders focus on the New City Catechism curriculum that takes them deeper into the core doctrines presented through a question-and-answer format. Like Early Childhood, our Lower School children begin each day in “First Five,” going through the New City Catechism. The NCC is a modern-day resource aimed at helping children learn the core doctrines of the Christian faith.

Upper Elementary School Bible curriculum focuses on God's plan of redemption through the narratives of the Old and New Testaments that gives students a biblical framework through which to understand and impact our world today. Students survey the important biblical accounts and examine how they point to and fulfill God's plan through Christ. Through the study of God’s Word, students learn who God is, His attributes, and how we fit into His complete story.

In Middle School, our main desire for our 7th and 8th graders is that students continue in what they have been taught in their elementary years and deepen their grasp of the glory and beauty of God through the storyline of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation and learn to apply it to their stage of life today. Specifically, they will study an overview of the life of Christ as seen in the four Gospels focusing on the characteristics and salvific acts of Christ from His birth to His ascension. Then they will study how the death and resurrection of Christ and the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit began the 1st century spread of the early Church through the preaching of the gospel, the Spirit-empowered miracles of the apostles, and the blood of the martyrs. Throughout each year, they will be challenged to apply what they are learning to their daily lives to the glory of God, their own joy in Him, and for the good of others.

Upper School classes strive for the following:

1. To understand the main themes and continuity of God’s redemptive plan in both the Old and New Testament Scriptures centered on Christ.
2. To foster an environment in the classroom where our students not just study the gospel but experience the gospel…to be fully known and fully loved by God, other students, and teachers.
3. To foster an environment that challenges our students’ minds, affections, and actions and that allows them to reflect deeply on these values.
4. To address some of the most difficult timeless and timely issues of life with a gospel-driven approach that equips our students to have thoughtful and theologically sound answers for questions emerging in today’s culture.

By the time students graduate ECS, we hope they are equipped to be propelled into the rest of their lives with a great and glorious vision of God so that they know how to grow in their walk with Him and then go in the power of the Holy Spirit to the people in their lives and work for their good and joy in Christ.

Bible 9 –1 credit — Old Testament in Depth
Bible 9 gives students the entire year (4 days a week) to study God’s in-depth plan of redemption going from Genesis to Malachi, from God’s creation of Adam and Eve in the garden and ending with the return of God’s people from exile. This class  focuses on how our God with a covenant heart speaks and acts in the lives of His people. While His people do show faith, the storyline of the Old Testament is primarily about God being faithful to His promise of redemption. With each unit, our core question is "How is this passage part of one big story leading us to Jesus?”

Bible 10 – ½ credit — Life of Christ in Depth
Bible 10 takes an in-depth look at the person of Christ. Jesus is the sun around which this course orbits, but to reach the sun(son), we must examine important preliminary matters such as the meaning of faith. Moving more deeply into the specifics of faith, we examine two central Matthean themes: what it means to call Jesus “King,” and what the kingdom of God is. We wrestle with “so what” questions, such as “Am I a humble subject, spreading the gospel in word and deed, or an insurrection  attempting to build an anti-Christ encampment in the shadow of his expand rule?” The ultimate goal of this class is for the Spirit to give us eyes to see the beauty of this Son and imitate his radiance.

Bible 11 – ½ credit — Epistles Applied
This course is designed to equip students to see and understand the world through the lens of the gospel. We will provide an overview of previous Bible curriculum (Old Testament and the life of Jesus) as well as learn to engage culture by following the example set by the authors of the New Testament letters. We will use the method of counter-catechesis to identify cultural narratives, understand the roots of their development, and then demonstrate how the gospel of Jesus Christ is the one true narrative offering the hope of salvation to a world desperately in need of it.

Bible 12 – 1 credit — Senior Bible
Senior Bible builds upon past Bible instruction and completes our students’ study of the glory of God as seen in the grand narrative of the Bible and specifically in the books of Romans and Revelation. This class is designed to call seniors to this great end: Live today for the glory of God, in Christ, by the Holy Spirit, for your joy and the good of others until you see Jesus face to face, by your death or His return. Therefore, the deep hope for this class before a student graduates is that he/she will know how to follow Jesus today (not waiting for “adulthood”) by 

• Resting in His finished work of redemption,
• Enjoying Him and loving others in the power of the Holy Spirit,
• Persevering through trials with hope of the New Creation,
• All to the glory of God.