In my last post, I introduced the Faith Formation Flywheel—a system for aligning Planning, Teaching Christianly, and Evidence so that faith formation becomes sustainable and visible.
Before we go further, it’s worth clarifying what I mean by faith formation. When I speak with teachers about using Faith Journey, a web and mobile application designed to collect evidence of faith formation, I sometimes hear a fair concern: “Aren’t we trying to capture the work of the Holy Spirit?”
They ask a good question. True faith formation—the transformation of a person’s heart and life—is indeed the work of the Holy Spirit. No digital portfolio or classroom practice can fully measure God’s work.
What we can plan for and observe, however, is faith engagement—the part entrusted to us. Faith engagement happens when teachers intentionally reveal God’s truth within their content and invite students to respond. Students don’t naturally see “God in all things.” It is our role to help them connect what they’re learning with God’s Word and His world, creating space for the Spirit to work.
Our calling as Christian educators is not to cause faith formation but to create rhythms and opportunities for faith engagement—in every subject, every day.
And that’s where planning matters. Through intentional preparation, faith engagement moves from theory to lived classroom rhythm—the daily cultivation of soil where faith can take root.
Indeed, planning is the first movement of the Faith Formation Flywheel. Planning is where faith formation begins to take shape—not just in what we teach, but in how we frame the learning so that evidence of faith can emerge
There’s no shortage of research or resources on effective lesson planning, but in Christian education, planning carries a distinct purpose: it must prepare students to see God’s presence in their learning and respond to it. Christian school teachers must plan not only for academic growth but also for spiritual formation.
You can see how I’m applying this approach in my 5th-grade math curriculum map. Each unit identifies both the conceptual focus and the faith engagement opportunity—how students might encounter God’s character or truth through the content.
The map is still very much a work in progress—an example of the flywheel at work. Like faith formation itself, it’s something I’m continually refining—learning from what resonates with students, adjusting essential questions, and improving how I help students connect faith and learning. My hope is that this curriculum map serves as a living example of what intentional planning can look like, even as I keep investigating and growing in the process.
Stephen Covey’s phrase “begin with the end in mind” from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People translates perfectly to faith-based planning. As we plan, we must ask ourselves—
- What kind of spiritual response do I want my students to have?
- What evidence would show that response taking shape?
- How do I want students to think, feel, or act differently because of this lesson?
These questions add a dimension to planning from content-driven to formation-driven.
I’ve heard many teachers say they prefer to “let faith conversations happen naturally.” While those spontaneous moments are often beautiful and Spirit-led, relying on them alone is not an effective strategy for shaping lifelong discipleship. Planning ensures that faith formation is not left to chance—the spiritual connections become an intentional, expected part of classroom life.
The Role of Essential Questions in Producing Evidence
One of the most effective tools for generating meaningful, illustrative evidence of faith formation is the use of essential questions. Like guardrails on a country road, essential questions keep the learning and faith journey focused and purposeful. Essential questions point students toward what truly matters and help them process their learning through a biblical lens.
The purpose of an essential question is not just to guide instruction, but to elicit answers from students—not always with a right or wrong response, but with personal reflection, insight, and growth. These responses become the evidence of faith formation: written reflections, artwork, projects, or oral presentations that demonstrate how faith and learning intersect.
In 5th-grade math, while studying decimals and fractions, we anchor the learning with the essential question: “Does God care about small things?” This question opens the door to biblical connections like Luke 12:7: “Even the hairs of your head are all numbered.” The resulting reflections show how students begin to see even mathematical precision as part of God’s orderly design and intentionality.
In Bible class, during a unit on Jesus’ early ministry, our guiding essential question is—“When the storms of life come, why trust in Jesus?” This question leads students to reflect on both the biblical narrative and their personal experiences, forming a bridge between biblical truth and lived faith.
Essential questions like these enable students to make meaningful connections between faith and content, reinforcing a biblical worldview and providing authentic evidence of spiritual growth.
Students don’t naturally see God in all things; they need teachers who help them look for His truth woven through the content they study. Each lesson becomes an opportunity to uncover what God has placed there all along.
Teaching Christianly
I once told my students that teaching Christianly is like holding up a lantern in a dark room. The light doesn’t create what’s in the room—it simply reveals what was already there. In the same way, God is in all things—present, active, and sovereign—even when we don’t see Him. Our role as Christian educators is to reveal His presence, helping students recognize that every subject, every idea, and every moment of learning belongs to Him. Students don’t naturally see God in all things; they need teachers who help them look for His truth woven through the content they study. Each lesson becomes an opportunity to uncover what God has placed there all along.
When we plan and teach with that mindset, frameworks like Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Restoration shape how we reveal God’s presence—helping students see His story unfolding through every subject and experience.
Resources for Teaching Christianly
There are many faithful approaches to teaching Christianly—such as Teaching for Transformation (TfT); the Creation–Fall–Redemption–Restoration (CFRR) framework; Head, Heart, Hands; and Christian worldview standards. Each offers valuable pathways for helping students see God’s truth in all things. Through my experience with Faith Journey, I’ve seen how these frameworks can come to life in classrooms—producing authentic evidence of students engaging deeply with their faith.
In the next post, I’ll focus on the third part of the Faith Formation Flywheel, which is how collecting and reflecting on evidence can sustain and deepen spiritual growth in the classroom.
Note: I am looking for fellow teachers who want to join me in implementing evidence-based practice in the area of spiritual formation. If you would like to join me in a cohort (at no cost), please email me at kentezell@myfaithjourney.com.
2 Comments on “Evidence-Based Approach to Student Faith Formation, Part 2: Planning and Teaching Christianly”
This is a brilliant and highly methodical exploration of how to bridge the gap between abstract theology and the daily reality of the classroom, turning education into a form of discipleship. I love the emphasis on “teaching Christianly” as a deliberate craft—moving beyond simply adding a verse to a lesson and instead weaving a biblical worldview into the very fabric of how students think, question, and engage with their subjects. It is a powerful reminder that faith formation isn’t a separate department, but the underlying heartbeat of an integrated education that prepares students to see God’s truth in every square inch of creation. Thank you for sharing such a rigorous and inspiring blueprint for educators who want to cultivate both the minds and the souls of the next generation!
Jean, thank you for your thoughtful encouragement. You captured something that took me years to understand as an educator, that teaching Christianly is much more than adding faith content to a lesson. It is helping students learn to see God’s presence, purposes, and truth within every area of learning.
One of the questions that has been driving my work recently is: How do we know if we’re actually doing this well? Not because faith formation can be reduced to a metric, but because I think many of us rely on good intentions without ever looking for evidence of how students are engaging with faith and learning.
I’d love to show you some examples from my own fifth-grade classroom. Over the past few years, I’ve been collecting evidence of student faith engagement and reflection, and it has completely changed the way I think about teaching Christianly. If you’re interested, you can see some of what I do here: https://myfaithjourney.com/kent
Thanks again for taking the time to read and engage with the post. Your encouragement means a great deal.