Summer Is the perfect time for encouraging Bible reading in your family

Family life is chaotic, with many demands upon finances, time, and energy. Parents are often trying to juggle the demands of parenting, school, work, childcare, clubs, and wider family commitments. Book bags come home from school with books to read, spellings to learn, and projects to complete. Getting to the end of the day with everyone fed and (sort of) in one piece is nothing short of a tiny miracle. And then it all starts again tomorrow.

just 46% of parents reading with their child(ren) daily, compared to 66% in 2019

Are we reading with our children?

Weeks pass and we wonder, when did we last read with our child? To snuggle at the end of the day with a book, to enjoy the words and perhaps pictures together, can seem like a luxury for some, or another guilt-inducing chore to add to the to-do list for others.

The National Literacy Trust’s (NLT) 2025 survey found that reading to and with children is a declining activity, with just 46% of parents reading with their child(ren) daily, compared to 66% in 2019. To assist parents in improving literacy at home, they have created a parenting platform called Words for Life. While this is admirable and will help lay good foundations for children’s learning and development, Christian parents have more than words for life; we have words of eternal life, laying an even better foundation so that children’s lives can be built on the solid Rock of Jesus Christ.

22.5% of respondents in the Bible Society survey said they did not read the Bible to their children because they were too busy

Are we reading the Bible with our children?

In a 2014 Bible Society survey, 669 parents of three- to eight-year-olds were asked about the frequency with which they read Bible stories to their children. Only 17.5% of respondents said they read a Bible story at least weekly, with just 6.5% reporting that they read daily. Meanwhile, 44.5% stated that they never read a Bible story to their children. As the National Literacy Trust has seen a decline in reading to children between 2019 and 2025, there is little reason to think Bible reading would be any different. In fact, 22.5% of respondents in the Bible Society survey said they did not read the Bible to their children because they were too busy and this has not changed.

Let’s seize the summer!

As summer approaches, is there anything Christian parents can do to increase, or perhaps begin, reading the Bible with their children? Though there is still much juggling, the pace often shifts and activities vary, giving opportunities to introduce new routines. Many clubs and extracurricular activities, which our children need taxiing to, have stopped. There is little or no homework, and bedtimes are often later. Perhaps this is a time when families can be more intentional about engaging with God in both the extraordinary opportunities a break from school offers and the ordinary moments of each day.

Read more:

6 tracks for Christian parents to add to their family car play list this summer

Holy habits for the school holidays: Helping your family stay close to God this summer

What can we do?

There are many resources available to help families engage with Scripture together: story Bibles for younger children, the Family Edition Good News Bible with space for everyone to draw, write, and doodle, science-based devotions, and resources specifically designed for mealtimes or bedtimes. The options are vast, so there is sure to be something that fits each family’s routines and preferences. Reading an age-appropriate Bible story while sitting at home, in bed, or chatting about it while walking down the road (Deuteronomy 6:7) are all patterns laid down in Scripture.  One single mum I know of led family devotions in the car each morning as they waited for the school gates to open. She found there were fewer distractions, and the panic of getting out of the house was removed, so their time together was more focused.

On those weeks when there is more time, or on family days out, make Bible reading fun and relevant to what is happening around you. If visiting a castle, read Proverbs 18:10 and think about what it means for God to be a strong tower. On a beach day, read Psalm 139, where the psalmist says that God’s thoughts are greater than the number of grains of sand. Looking out at the sea, read stories of Jesus calming the storm, Paul’s missionary journeys, Jonah, or shipwrecks. Read a story and build it with Lego or act it out with tea towels and kitchen implements. Ask questions such as, “Where is God in this story?” On long journeys, sing Scripture using songs from groups such as Seeds Family Worship, then read the passage in context later.

summer may provide an opportunity to begin a new habit or revive one that has slipped away.

When is a good time to start reading the Bible with young children?

The NLT has introduced its Early Words resources to surround children with language and reading from a young age. Christian parents can intentionally do the same with Scripture. I once read of someone who began reading the Bible to their baby from the day they came home from hospital. When asked why, since the child could not understand the words, they replied, “They don’t understand when I say, ‘I love you’, but I still do it.”

Reading the Bible with our children does not need to be another item on an already overflowing to-do list. Often, it is the small, regular moments that have the greatest impact. Parents can faithfully place their children where they can hear God’s voice through his Word and summer may provide an opportunity to begin a new habit or revive one that has slipped away. After all, if we are intentional about helping our children learn words for life, how much more should we seek to share with them the words of eternal life?