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The home-schooled children being taught to fire GUNS: Father-of-four invents his own curriculum - covering Cryptocurrency, the Black Panthers, and how to handle an UZI
- Derrick Grace, from Florida, teaches daughter Derrica, six, how to use guns
- Father-of-four launched own curriculum after pulling son out of first grade
- He says he teaches children about guns as violence happens anywhere in world
Six-year-old Derrica Grace has never been to school, but she can discuss Cryptocurrency, explain the history of the Blank Panther movement - and show you how to shoot an Uzi machine gun.
It's all thanks to her father, Derrick Grace II – who has developed his own homeschooling curriculum after making the decision to pull his son out of first grade in 2016.
The father-of-four, from Tampa, Florida, says that he's not a fan of the school system - and believes they 'dilute the mental progression' of children.
However, he has attracted controversy online after posting a series of videos online showing his daughter Derrica and son Derrick Grace III loading guns and reciting facts learned from their homeschool experience.
It's all thanks to her father, Derrick Grace II – who has developed his own homeschooling curriculum after making the decision to pull his son out of first grade in 2016.
The father-of-four, from Tampa, Florida, says that he's not a fan of the school system - and believes they 'dilute the mental progression' of children.
However, he has attracted controversy online after posting a series of videos online showing his daughter Derrica and son Derrick Grace III loading guns and reciting facts learned from their homeschool experience.
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Describing his attitude towards homeschooling, Derrick, 28, said: 'To me school is a day care. It's a place where the adults take the babies while they worry about adult life.
'I'm not a huge fan of the school system state-wide, or on a national level. I think they do a whole lot to dilute the mental progression of our children. So I think it's absolutely that we take it into our hands.' He continued: [My] curriculum includes guns because violence can take place anywhere in the world at any given moment. 'I'm a firm believer that if you have guns in your house, an educated mind is far greater than a wondering mind.' Both Derrick Jr, nine, and Derrica, six, are fully-versed in loading magazines into Glocks, Mac 11s, and even an Uzi, fully extending their arms, and pulling the triggers. Although the children usually practice with empty magazines, they have accompanied their father to shooting ranges to experience the recoil that comes with actually firing rounds. |
Since taking his children's schooling into his own hands, Derrick has had an obvious effect on their development.
Derrica, who also enjoys gymnastics and has a 'lucky bullet' displayed in her room, said: 'If somebody was trying to kill me or if somebody is trying to kill my father, or my mom, or my sisters, anybody that's my family members, [I would] shoot them. If somebody broke into my house I'd shoot them.'
The siblings make use of their father's small arsenal of five guns, which at one time comprised 12 firearms and now includes a Glock 30 nicknamed 'Big Black' and an AK47 affectionately known to its owner as 'Brown Sugar'.
Derrica, who also enjoys gymnastics and has a 'lucky bullet' displayed in her room, said: 'If somebody was trying to kill me or if somebody is trying to kill my father, or my mom, or my sisters, anybody that's my family members, [I would] shoot them. If somebody broke into my house I'd shoot them.'
The siblings make use of their father's small arsenal of five guns, which at one time comprised 12 firearms and now includes a Glock 30 nicknamed 'Big Black' and an AK47 affectionately known to its owner as 'Brown Sugar'.
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For Derrick, this is all an important part of his curriculum and bringing his children up in a way that shuns much of society's traditions and customs, so as to gain what he says is a more individualistic perspective on life. He now spreads a message of self-sufficiency, and has built a business around his 'Unlearn and Relearn' curriculum, which is available for others to purchase, alongside a range of books containing guidance for adults. 'It's built on four elements: self-love, self-education, self-awareness, and self-reliance. I think those are key to live a mentally free and fruitful life,' he explained. It's not just guns that are on the curriculum, however, as proved when asking Derrica to recite facts. Questioned what intellectual property is, she responded confidently with: 'They can take your possessions, but they can't take your mind.' |
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After losing his job as a 911 dispatcher in 2012, due to taking time off on a holiday and allegedly mishandling a 911 call, he decided to try to make a more positive impact and became a mentor to young people.
He has since spoken at numerous schools and juvenile corrections facilities throughout Hillsborough County in Tampa, and now shares his knowledge with a much larger demographic, travelling the US with Derrick III and Derrica, as well as his two one-year-old daughters.
Of course, homeschooling helps him to make his own schedule, which in turn allows him to bring his children on stage at events around the country and showcase the results of his own brand of education.
Homeschooled children in the United States account for a very small number of overall students, with just 3.3 percent of students between 5 and 17 being taught at home for the year 2015-16, according to data released by the Department of Education last September.
But while a 2012 report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) showed parents were homeschooling mainly out of concern for their children's safety or to help them avoid temptations such as drugs, Derrick's decision to keep his children out of school comes from his personal philosophy of self-actualisation.
'My biggest aim is I want them to be self sufficient,' he explained. 'I think it's 100 percent unfair to raise our kids to be dependent on us until 16, and then force them to be dependent on strangers until they're 70.'
While distrust of 'the system' plays a big role in Derrick's overall project, safety is still a big concern for the Tampa native – which is why he chooses to focus so heavily on gun education and making sure his children can defend themselves.
As with so many cities in the modern United States, Tampa has experienced its own issues with guns and gun violence in recent times.
Just last year, the city's Seminole Heights neighbourhood was rocked by the indiscriminate shootings of four separate residents who were seemingly targeted for nothing more than being out in public.
It took 51 days before the first arrest was made in the case, during which time, residents were advised not to leave their houses alone.
Derrick recalls the events well: 'The guy was just shooting random people for two months. Killed four people. By just popping out at night. No reason, no personality traits in common, no nothing. Just literally coming to the area and shooting at random people.
'It's a jungle outside. These people are at a place where have no moral compass, they're killing kids and all, they just don't care.'
Derrick said: 'For anybody that said [you shouldn't give kids guns] I would tell them just, look at America. I don't watch the news, but social media tells me enough of what's going on out here and it's just too many random acts of violence.
'People could literally be like, "I'm gonna get a Cuban sandwich" and never come back home because somebody was just like, "I'm gonna randomly shoot up this sandwich shop".
'People are doing the most weirdest things, they're shooting up Walmarts, they're shooting up movie theatres, eateries. You can literally just go grab a soda and get shot in America.'
He has since spoken at numerous schools and juvenile corrections facilities throughout Hillsborough County in Tampa, and now shares his knowledge with a much larger demographic, travelling the US with Derrick III and Derrica, as well as his two one-year-old daughters.
Of course, homeschooling helps him to make his own schedule, which in turn allows him to bring his children on stage at events around the country and showcase the results of his own brand of education.
Homeschooled children in the United States account for a very small number of overall students, with just 3.3 percent of students between 5 and 17 being taught at home for the year 2015-16, according to data released by the Department of Education last September.
But while a 2012 report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) showed parents were homeschooling mainly out of concern for their children's safety or to help them avoid temptations such as drugs, Derrick's decision to keep his children out of school comes from his personal philosophy of self-actualisation.
'My biggest aim is I want them to be self sufficient,' he explained. 'I think it's 100 percent unfair to raise our kids to be dependent on us until 16, and then force them to be dependent on strangers until they're 70.'
While distrust of 'the system' plays a big role in Derrick's overall project, safety is still a big concern for the Tampa native – which is why he chooses to focus so heavily on gun education and making sure his children can defend themselves.
As with so many cities in the modern United States, Tampa has experienced its own issues with guns and gun violence in recent times.
Just last year, the city's Seminole Heights neighbourhood was rocked by the indiscriminate shootings of four separate residents who were seemingly targeted for nothing more than being out in public.
It took 51 days before the first arrest was made in the case, during which time, residents were advised not to leave their houses alone.
Derrick recalls the events well: 'The guy was just shooting random people for two months. Killed four people. By just popping out at night. No reason, no personality traits in common, no nothing. Just literally coming to the area and shooting at random people.
'It's a jungle outside. These people are at a place where have no moral compass, they're killing kids and all, they just don't care.'
Derrick said: 'For anybody that said [you shouldn't give kids guns] I would tell them just, look at America. I don't watch the news, but social media tells me enough of what's going on out here and it's just too many random acts of violence.
'People could literally be like, "I'm gonna get a Cuban sandwich" and never come back home because somebody was just like, "I'm gonna randomly shoot up this sandwich shop".
'People are doing the most weirdest things, they're shooting up Walmarts, they're shooting up movie theatres, eateries. You can literally just go grab a soda and get shot in America.'
Use Loose-Leaf Paper for Today's Writing Wednesday assignment:
Citing Evidence: The Homeschooled Kids Who Shoot To Kill
Write two (2) paragraphs (5 sentences each) using textual evidence
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Paragraph 1: The positive aspects of home-home schooling.
Describe the decisions that Derrick Grace has made when it comes to educating his children. What kinds of things does his curriculum teach? What interesting and valuable things do his kids learn? Why are these things not taught in traditional school? Why are guns and gun safety part of Grace's curriculum? Is this a safe and appropriate thing for children to learn? What are some positive outcomes for the home-schooled children in Grace's home? What are some positive things about his curriculum? Why does Grace describe traditional school as "day-care"? What are some positive aspects of home-schooling in general? End your first paragraph with a summary of Derrick Grace's reasons for home-schooling his children.
Paragraph 2: Positive and negative aspects of home-home schooling.
Begin your second paragraph with a statement of whether or not you agree with Derrick Grace's main arguments. Would you rather be home-schooled than attend your current school? Why or why not? What is it about schools, or about society that led Grace to develop his own curriculum for his children? Are his children prepared to do well in college and society? What kinds of things are his children missing out on? What are some negative things about Grace's curriculum? Is home-schooling worth it? Is it more efficient and valuable than traditional school? Do you know anyone who was home-schooled and who regretted his or her experience? What are the positives and negatives associated with home-schooling?
