The Rooted and Grounded Bible based study curriculum consists of a spiral bound Teacher's Guide, a soft cover Student Workbook, and a folded and stapled booklet of Tests and Answer Keys. The Teacher's Guide includes 256 pages with an additional 49 green pages of Appendix material containing extensive memory verse listings, all in a large spiral bound format. The Student Workbook includes 256 pages in a soft glossy cover format with space for students to fill in blanks, necessary course material, and blank "Reflections" pages for journaling and/or note taking. The Tests and Answer Keys booklet includes 40 pages with a folded binding secured with staples containing eight unit tests, followed by the answer keys. Designed for upper level high school grades, college, or adult work, the course will take one full year to complete. The course consists of 27 lessons, 8 unit tests, 27 Profiles of Unreached People Groups, and scripture memorization. The Teacher's Guide has Scripture Memory Verses in the Appendix and a calendar plan for memorization. The full verses are left out of the Student Guide offering an opportunity for them to utilize their Bible and build familiarity with its format. Regular school supplies are all that are called for to successfully utilize this course, although rarely a household item may be called for to implement an object lesson or demonstration. The course includes a thorough covering of discipleship material including the Doctrine of sanctification, Jesus as our example, servanthood, faithfulness, forgiveness, God's power, prayer, faith, becoming a good soldier for God, and more. The focus is consistently on scripture without a leaning toward any particular Protestant denomination. Each lesson includes a two page Unreached People profile that includes a map reference and a bit of history noting recent information to aid in the student's understanding.

The Teacher's Guide pages follow the Student Text and have additional Teacher's notes in shaded boxes throughout the curriculum. A Sample Lesson Plan is outlined with a possible plan for each day. The Daily Plan is set up as such, a plan, and the instructions continue with the plan on a "day 1," "day 2," "day 3" basis, but it is to be used as an outline only. The Unreached Peoples portion often includes geographical points and historical information that sets a good frame of reference for students to understand more about each particular group. A pencil drawn rendering of a person from the particular people group is included and offers some personalization to each group as a student can imagine a real person from the group. The Student Workbook and Teacher's Guide include references as to when to take the unit tests, but the physical test is in the test booklet. The scripture memory verses are listed completely in the Teacher's Guide in both New International Version and King James Version and a calendar plan for memorization is included in the Appendix. Beginning with information about the authors and an Introduction to the study, both books include the same information with the Teacher's Guide containing additional notes specific to the teacher. According to the program, testing has two purposes: student motivation toward review and to insure that what the teacher thinks is being taught, is actually being retained. The Student Instructions are to read from scripture, then answer questions through each lesson. The Student Workbooks are consumable and will serve as both a record of the coursework and available reference in the future as the student continues their walk with God. Written by homeschool veterans, the program is ideally used by parent and student together and will be adaptable for any homeschool teaching style. Considering the use of the Student Workbook, those most comfortable with textbooks will enjoy the program, but the inclusion of the Unreached Peoples portion of the study leaves real possibility for unit study students to enjoy the coursework and enhance it seamlessly.

Rooted and Grounded is a wonderful combination of Bible study with missions education ideal for older students. Although recommended for older high school students and young adults, many younger homeschool students may be ready for the subject matter if they are maturing in their faith as Christians. We enjoyed the coursework in our homeschool and look forward to continuing the program. Consistently, the instruction is for the parent to offer guidance according to the specific needs of their child rather than stringently following the Teacher's Guide. The Teacher's Guide offers helpful ideas about Memory verses, review work, writing opportunities, and writing standards and is encouraging toward parent teachers. The focus on scripture and the blatant absence of memory verses from the Student Workbook is appreciated by our family as we have learned the necessity of finding scripture truly does help our children become much more comfortable with their Bibles. The coursework itself is a good study of scripture and flows much like a well written essay. Beginning with praise toward God and a doctrinal base, the course continues with the importance of walking as Jesus walked, moves through Godly attributes, prayer, and Christ-like character, and then concludes with emphasis on living our lives as expressions of Christ's life. The scripture memory is thorough and allows for additional memory work if desired, consistent review for retention and an incredibly well gathered range of scripture verses.

I do wish the plan for each lesson was not marked by "day 1" and "day 2" as we prefer to work further at times, and occasionally work in smaller portions, but having the framework also allowed us to easily mark where we were at any given point in the course. I would have preferred only a week by week break-out of each lesson, but the evident flexibility in homeschooling allowed for adjustments regardless. This is one time we really appreciated the existence of a consumable workbook. Rarely are we pleased with consumables, but considering the reference possibilities of the subject matter, the consumable Student Workbook is an excellent investment you will want to make for each child. It is possible to work the program with students answering in notebooks alongside a shared workbook, but the missed advantage during years in the future would be too great a loss; buy the workbooks! Time should be allotted for students new to Bible reference work to find the various scripture verses, but as this is an older student program, verse tracking should be more of a refresher part of the course rather than a skill just being learned. This is a decidedly Bible based course and does not call for much additional reference material, but the inclusion of the missions information will be a missed opportunity if, as parents, we don't do a little additional research on each included group. As a broad program with 27 lessons, it is understandable that the course does not delve deeply into each group, but an outline for further research would have been much appreciated. More information regarding missions is available on the website, www.deeperroots.com, as the authors are seasoned missionaries who continue to be active in mission work. The website also includes free PDF versions of portions of their curriculum offerings.

Rooted and Grounded is an excellent Bible based curriculum ideal for more mature students in every homeschool. Any type of learner will gain knowledge from the program as our Bible is the heart of our education as Christians, regardless of learning style. The journaling and discussion portions of the course allow for parents to more fully understand their children, offering an opportunity for discipleship at a much deeper level at a very important age. This course will offer a good year of Bible study for high school students and adults and is adaptable for younger students who are solid in their faith and walk with God, and ready to grow deeper. The Teacher's Guide is well designed with notes on referenced pages rather than listings on separate hard to follow plans. Parents/teachers are able to follow along - viewing exactly what their student will be completing. The separate test booklet allows for closure to the various units and a sense of completion as students work through the course and gain knowledge progressively. The one year span designed for older ages leaves all of the planning in the hands of the parents to decide exactly when any child is ready to delve further into scripture, be it higher middle school grades, freshman year of high school, or early college years. As veteran homeschool parents and missionaries, the authors bring a wealth of knowledge and a rarely found viewpoint of mission work that our homeschools need to be teaching to our children. The regular exposure to unreached people groups offers a glimpse into parts of our world rarely exposed in traditional schooling environments. Finally, the encouragement toward journaling and memorization is ageless and timeless, as it is appropriate for every age group and in the case of scripture memory, it is timeless as it will last for eternity! Rooted and Grounded offers you an opportunity to be an important part of the discipleship of your children very directly, as you lead them through a study of the Word of God.

-Product review by: Donna Campos, Senior Product Reviewer, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, June 2008.

Editor Note: The following reviews are of older versions, but still give a good overview of the program.

Deeper Roots Publications has put out some excellent, excellent products for Sunday school and home school use. This is another one of those. Rooted and Grounded is a Bible study guide designed for upper level high school students and those into college and adulthood. This is a serious topical Bible study that will, as Gregg Harris stated, challenge and equip students for a life that is God-focused, yielded, obedient, and fruitful. Topics covered are relationship with God, Christian living, and certain areas of theology such as prayer, forgiveness, etc.

The objectives are clearly stated and the course is extremely comprehensive. It is designed to be done in a school year, but would likely take longer, as you get into God's Word and start to dig! In addition to the main topics of the lessons, this study also has a very strong mission focus, with a specific People Group and area discussed in each lesson. The country introduced is accompanied by beautiful pencil drawings that are absolutely gorgeous, in my opinion! The lessons themselves are clearly laid out day by day, as they are with all the Deeper Roots study guides I have reviewed. The teacher preparation is minimal here, but you may want to take the time to study with your son or daughter.

This book is that good! It was written to go beyond the typical Sunday School stories and lessons and to go deeper than most lessons go. There are review questions after each week of lessons, and there is an optional test booklet available to test after each unit. You can see that this is an academically sound study as well as Biblically sound. There are writing assignments, essay questions, loads of Bible verses to memorize, and students are encouraged to look up every Bible reference given to them. The teacher's manual is handy in that it lists all the Bible verses mentioned in the student's manual and there are a LOT! There are also extensive teacher's notes that help explain questions and discuss Bible passages.

I can't say enough about Deeper Roots, their mission, and their Bible Studies! I have used the Junior High level studies with my son, and I am anxious to do this one with him as well. I learn as much, if not more, than he does about the amazing and awesome God we serve! You won't be disappointed with this study in the least; I guarantee that.

Here is another Rooted and Grounded review:

Are you looking for a Bible curriculum that will challenge your junior high student? Are you looking for something that you can work on together or something that he/she can work on alone? All these things are found in the Deeper Roots Bible Curriculum. There are several different volumes that I will review below. All of these courses are non-denominational and very Scripturally based. The focus is on Scripture itself and there is not much introduction or personal bias of any kind. The point is for the student to discover God's Word for him/herself, and, in doing so, come away a richer, deeper person.

Again, another quality Bible study, this time geared for a senior high through adult level audience, Rooted and Grounded does just what the title implies. It is a unique, topical Bible curriculum that will challenge any who take the course. The book is written in the same format as the two prior volumes, but this one is a one-year course in one book. There is also a teacher's guide with answers and suggested activities for each lesson. The authors have gone beyond the norm in this study as these lessons will really cause the student to think and focus on what they are learning and reading. There are also significant Scripture passages to memorize that will help the student stay rooted and grounded. There is, again, the focus on the unreached people groups of the world with a two page prayer focus dedicated to a people group accompanied by the same beautiful artwork found in the junior high versions.

There are tests available in a separate test booklet, if that appeals to you. The tests are to be given about every fourth lesson. Personally, I don't think I'll use them, as this is such a personal study. Unless you need the tests to give grades and credit for Bible class, I think you will be able to discern whether your student is learning the subject matter just by how he/she is responding to the lessons. There are comprehension and analysis questions involved here. I particularly like the journaling spaces and ideas and thoughts for journaling. This is a very good idea as students at this age are often full of questions and thoughts, but need somewhere to write them down. There are also writing opportunities given, which are indeed challenging and thought provoking.

This book does it all - Bible study, memorization, evangelism, and journaling. It is a very thorough, yet very easy to follow, course that can only benefit anybody who commits the time to complete it! The cost, while not prohibitive, is not as inexpensive as another little devotional book you may find. That is the point; this is not a little book! This is a very comprehensive yearlong Bible curriculum that is well put together and very nicely published. If you check out the website at www.DeeperRoots.com, you will see many other products that are equally beneficial. There are many products with a missionary emphasis that look outstanding! I personally am excited to be able to use these courses all the way through my children's junior high and high school years. I feel like I have hit upon a gold mine, only this is gold that I definitely want to share with all of you! You will definitely be missing out if you don't at least take a look at these courses and see for yourself how wonderful they are!

-Product review by: Holly Cameron, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC