Texas students will soon learn about Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, the parable of the Prodigal Son and other Bible stories in their elementary classrooms. State Board of Education members on Friday narrowly approved 8-7 the state-crafted instructional materials infused with Christianity.

The state’s board of education narrowly voted to allow schools to start using the reading and language arts curriculum next fall if they choose.

Officials in Texas have backed a controversial new public school curriculum that would incorporate Christian lessons from the Bible as early as kindergarten. Eight out of 15 state school board members voted Tuesday to keep the Bluebonnet Learning curriculum on a list of K-5 reading and English language arts materials that could be used for the 2025-26 school year.