Enduring Wisdom (Positive Action for Christ)

Positive Action for Christ publishes an elementary Bible curriculum for preschool through grade 6, built as eight single-year courses that each pair a student manual with a teacher's manual. It is a teacher-led Bible spine rather than a devotional or storybook approach.

Last updated: 2026-10-03 · Every Homeschool Editorial Team

At a glance

Method	Traditional / teacher-directed / workbook-anchored
Worldview	Christian-evangelical; the publisher's charter doctrine includes a premillennial return of Christ and believer's baptism
Grades	K4 through grade 6 for the elementary courses; middle school, high school, and church materials are also published (School Curriculum page)
Formats	Print student manuals; teacher's manuals in print or as downloadable PDFs (Grade 1 product page)
Cost tier	Standard
Parent intensity	3
ESA-common	Not verified
Accredited	No (Bible curriculum publisher, not a school program)
Established	Positive Action incorporated in July 1972
Website	positiveaction.org

Our scoreboard (1-5)

Criterion	Score	One-line reason
Academic rigor	4	Cathy Duffy notes six levels of thinking built into lessons, from recall through evaluation
Ease of teaching	3	The teaching comes from the teacher's manual and the course is not independent study, but little lesson preparation is needed
Content quality	4	Bible reading, read-aloud stories, discussion, character trait activities, and Scripture memory in each course
Flexibility	3	One subject, usable beside any core curriculum; three-, four-, and five-day schedules are provided
Value for money	4	$20.95 student manual and $54.95 print or $32.95 digital teacher's manual per grade
Worldview scope	2	Written from the publisher's stated evangelical doctrinal positions
Visual/design	3	Full-color student manuals with a classroom layout
Support resources	3	Scope and sequence booklet, free digital resource packets, and teacher's manuals with schedules and answer keys

Who the publisher is

Positive Action for Christ describes itself as a nonprofit organization that publishes Bible curriculum for churches, traditional schools, and home schools. Its About page states that Pastor Frank Hamrick began writing Bible studies for his youth group in the 1960s, formed the first ProTeen Bible club at Falls Road Baptist Church in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, in 1969, and that Positive Action incorporated in July 1972. The same page states that the ministry moved in 2005 to a renovated school building in Whitakers, North Carolina, where it writes, designs, prints, and ships its materials.

The publisher's Philosophy & Doctrine page states that its exegesis avoids many denominational differences, such as the finer points of ecclesiology or baptism, and that all of its materials adhere, where applicable, to doctrinal positions set out in its 1972 charter. Those positions include the divine inspiration and authority of Scripture, the premillennial coming of Christ, scriptural believer's baptism as a prerequisite to church membership, and the eternal security of the saved. Cathy Duffy's review describes the curriculum as non-denominational and written for the classroom but adaptable to homeschool, and lists it among her Top Picks.

The elementary courses are listed on the publisher's School Curriculum page by grade: Exploring God's Love (K4), Learning About God (K5), Enjoying God's Gifts (grade 1), Finding God's Promises (grade 2), Growing with God (grade 3), Building Life Castles (grade 4), Possessing the Land (grade 5), and Winning the Race (grade 6). Middle-grades titles on the same page include Route 66 (grades 6-9) and Wise Up (grades 6-8).

The core pedagogy

Each elementary course has 35 lessons, which each teacher's manual describes as one for each week in an average school year. The manual outlines schedules for three-, four-, and five-day-a-week classes. According to Cathy Duffy, each lesson combines Bible reading, illustrative stories, discussion questions, character trait activities, hymns and choruses, Scripture memory, and seatwork, and the bulk of each lesson is in the teacher's manual while the student workbook has activity pages that reinforce it.

The publisher's Elementary Scope & Sequence summarizes each year. Grade 1 explores God's grace as revealed in Creation, Old Testament figures, and the work of Christ. Grade 2 follows Israel from Egypt to the promised land. Grade 3 examines the tools God used to sustain figures such as Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, Joseph, Ruth, and Daniel. Grade 4 begins with the life of Christ and continues with the journeys of Paul. Grade 5 surveys the structure, themes, and figures of the Old Testament, and grade 6 reviews doctrines from all of Scripture with emphasis on New Testament life principles.

Signature mechanics: (1) Teacher-led lessons. Cathy Duffy states that the curriculum is not independent study and requires teacher or parent involvement. (2) Character trait activities. The teacher's manuals list character trait activities in each course, and the publisher's scope and sequence lists the Bible text, target truths, and Scripture memory verse for each lesson. (3) Optional music. Each teacher's manual includes an optional monthly schedule for introducing new hymns.

A day in the life

The Grade 1 teacher's manual describes a fourth edition (2023) in which each weekly lesson is organized into three sessions, with read-aloud stories, coloring sheets, Scripture memory, and character trait activities alongside the student manual's exercises. The publisher does not state a daily time requirement on its product pages, and this review does not estimate one.

What they do exceptionally well

Teacher support. Each teacher's manual includes content and learning objectives, target truths, scheduling options, weekly quizzes with an answer key for most lessons (grade 6 manual), and facsimiles of the student pages with answers filled in. Cathy Duffy states that little lesson preparation is required because the manuals are so well designed.

Consistency across levels. The lesson format carries from year to year, and Cathy Duffy notes that character traits and Scripture verses are reviewed every few years in greater depth.

Free digital extras. The Grade 1 product page lists a free downloadable packet that includes Bible story pictures, student manual facsimiles and answer slides, study artwork, music recordings, and coloring sheets.

What they do poorly

Not independent study. The teaching comes primarily from the teacher's manual, so a parent or teacher must lead each lesson, per Cathy Duffy. Families seeking a Bible program a child completes alone will not find it here.

Doctrinal positions are built in. The materials adhere, where applicable, to the publisher's charter doctrinal positions, which include premillennialism and believer's baptism. Families from traditions that read those questions differently should preview a course before ordering.

Digital student manuals are meant for classrooms. The Grade 6 product page states that digital student manuals are not licensed to be printed or displayed, require a separate license for each student for each year, and that the publisher generally recommends its print versions.

Who it fits / who it doesn't

• Pick the Positive Action elementary courses if: you want a structured, teacher-led Bible course for each grade from K4 through grade 6; you are willing to lead each lesson from the teacher's manual; you want character trait activities and Scripture memory built into a weekly plan; the publisher's doctrinal positions fit your family's.

• Skip them if: you want a Bible program your child can do alone while you teach another subject; you want a course that does not take positions on premillennialism or baptism; you want a trade-book or storybook approach rather than a classroom-style course.

Cost honest assessment

As of October 2026, the publisher's product pages list each elementary course's student manual at $20.95 ($18.95 each when buying five or more) and its teacher's manual at $54.95 in print or $32.95 as a digital PDF. One student using the print teacher's manual in one grade therefore costs $75.90 before shipping, or $53.90 with the digital teacher's manual. Student manuals are workbooks designed to be written in, so each additional student needs their own copy, while the teacher's manual is bought once per grade.

Free children's ministry materials, such as those collected at Ministry-to-Children, cost less but do not come as a grade-by-grade course with a teacher's manual.

ESA eligibility notes

Whether any state ESA marketplace lists Positive Action titles was not confirmed for this review. Because the materials are explicitly religious, families in states that restrict religious curriculum purchases should check with their program administrator before ordering.

Alternatives

• BJU Press Bible, a family would choose BJU Press Bible over Positive Action to buy Bible within a broader BJU Press homeschool subject package.
• Grapevine Studies, a family would choose Grapevine over Positive Action for a method that combines chronological lessons, timelines and stick figures in which, per the publisher's FAQ, the Master Teacher book guides all levels simultaneously.
• Apologia What We Believe, a family would choose Apologia over Positive Action for a doctrinal series organized by theological theme rather than biblical chronology.