I collect vintage picture books, and it amuses me to realize that the ones I still have from my own childhood are now considered vintage and collectible as well! But oh, the precious memories of snuggling in a loving parent’s lap slowly turning the pages and studying the delightful illustrations while hearing the accompanying story—for what I’m sure seemed like the millionth time to my longsuffering parents. (No skipping words or sentences, mind you.) Of course, when my children were young, I was able to experience the same sweet ritual. And no, I could never skip a part to speed up the process either, as my littles knew every beloved book by heart.

My favorite picture book illustrator has always been Eloise Wilkin whose charming, colorful, old-fashioned drawings are a delight to the senses. She was also a favorite of my children too, and we have many of her books. But although these timeless classics are a joy to read and savor, I found another way to use them during our early homeschool years when my children were first learning to read and write.

I wanted my children to appreciate the heartwarming stories, verses, poems, and beautiful illustrations—but I also wanted them to appreciate God’s creation. I wanted them to learn to hide His Word in their hearts and to understand that they were always protected in His loving arms. Moreover, I wanted them all to have a servant’s heart.

So, I started on our bookshelf, pulling out the Eloise Wilkin versions of Prayers for Children, My Little Book About God, Prayers for a Small Child, Inspirational Stories, as well as other Bible storybooks and/or picture books designed to nurture little hearts and minds.

Prayers for Children (illustrated by Ms. Wilkin) is an excellent example. First, we would read the prayers and verses together. We would ooh and ahh over the illustrations and pick our favorites. Then, I might choose a small prayer or verse from the picture book as our daily focus to write and memorize. I would divide longer prayers into stanzas to work on throughout the week. Over the days, my children memorized the prayer, perfected their handwriting and copywork skills, and most importantly, they dwelled upon God’s love, mercy, grace, and care, as well as other worthy thoughts and ideas.

I’ve always believed the way to foster and reinforce good writing skills is to study and emulate other examples of excellent writing while still developing our own styles and creating our own content. Of course, sometimes I had my children copy verses or chapters directly from the Bible, which is also an amazing way to do the same thing—and to memorize scripture on top of that!

My children are now in their late teens, twenties, and early thirties. Like me, they still have fond memories of our ‘picture book’ school sessions and the delightful verses and prayers they learned to read, copy, and memorize. And best of all, it is all still tucked down deep in their hearts to be shared with future generations.

A Child’s Prayer
By M. Betham-Edwards

God, make my life a little light,
Within the world to glow;
A little flame that burneth bright,
Wherever I may go.

God, make my life a little flower,
That giveth joy to all,
Content to bloom in native bower,
Although the place be small.

God, make my life a little song,
That comforteth the sad,
That helpeth others to be strong,
And makes the singer glad.

God, make my life a little staff,
Whereon the weak may rest,
And so what health and strength I have
May serve my neighbors best.

God, make my life a little hymn
Of tenderness and praise;
Of faith, that never waxeth dim,
In all His wondrous ways.

Visit Amy at amyoquinn.com.

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