My son and his bride had four natural children but they wanted to help other children. To their four, they added nine for a total of thirteen. Four are of mixed race born of unwed teenagers. The other five are black Haitian children.

I am a product of the public school system as are my five children. I was surprised to learn that thirteen of our 32 grandchildren were being home schooled. It seemed strange to me. For one, a young mother needs some time to herself. Teaching all day does not fulfill that idea. My sons wife can not boot the kids out the door and sit back and watch television.

Moving to Idaho and being much closer to our son and his family I soon learned that my son and his wife do not trust the school system. The other day I heard my son say, to my surprise, that the current system was not designed to develop every child to his or her highest capabilities. Rather there is to be an elite class and workers.

My son and his wife also do not appreciate the negative influences in the public school system. My wife and I think that children should face those influences, being corrected if they error by teachers and parents. Be that as it may, home schooling is the best situation for my son and his wife here in Idaho.

My Haitian grandchildren cover ages from under eight to eighteen. They have had to overcome both physical and cultural problems. Raised on the streets of the Haitian capital, the older ones are street-smart and they can be secretive or self-protective.

Most of the children learn at a normal rate. Some dont. I dont think that all of the children would be successful in the public school system. The children adopted at a younger age would adjust rapidly to the public system.

All of the children, except the four youngest, play the piano, the violin, and some play the guitar and other instruments. The two oldest girls of natural birth are in the adult symphony. Three play in the youth symphony (two adopted). One granddaughter plays in both. Our oldest granddaughter here in Idaho is on a full scholarship in music at the local college.

The family together has formed a musical group that sings and plays here in Southern Idaho. They take donations for baby formula for an orphanage in Haiti. If you want to contribute to that cause please email me.

All of the older children (over eight) are good cooks, know how to clean house, and perform outdoor chores. Most all of them are doing well in home school as tested by the State of Idaho.

Our other grandchildren are all in public school systems. We have one autistic teenage son who was brought up in the public school system. Fortunately for him, his school system has an effective program for autistic children. It is not a segregated program. Autistic children attend the same classes as the other children, but special assistants keep things in order and educational.

My son and his wife are effective in educating their very gifted (adopted and natural) and not as gifted children. To do that, they use home schooling.

CopyrightJohn T. Jones, Ph.D. 2005