The surprising way Elton John is raising his two sons: ‘We want them to be their own people’

Elton John has seen the highs and lows of what life has to offer over his 77 years, so it’s no surprise that he wants his sons to be as well-rounded and down-to-earth as possible.

The best way to do that, Elton concluded, was to stop home-schooling them and send them off to socialize with kids their own age, as his husband revealed to Time on Wednesday after the singer was named the magazine’s Icon of the Year. 

“We deliberately didn’t home-school our children because we want them to be their own people and to define life as they want to be defined,” David Furnish, who has been Elton’s partner since 1993, told the magazine. 

The couple married in 2014 and first welcomed Zachary in 2010 via surrogate, followed by Elijah in 2013, born via the same surrogate. 

Although they did home-school their boys during the COVID-19 lockdowns, Elton and David wanted Zachary and Elijah to attend school just like ordinary children.   

During the pandemic, the pair realized how important outside interaction is for their young children, prompting them to be placed in an official school.

The couple are hands-on parents and previously revealed the strict dinnertime rule in their home on the Ruthie’s Table 4 podcast. 

“Meals are sacred. So, no phones at the table. No television on in the background,” David told the host. 

“It’s all about conversation. It’s all about connection. It’s where we catch up because we all have busy lives, and we hear about each other’s days.”

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He continued: “And during lockdown, where we were with the boys three meals a day, when we just talked all the time about what was going on in the world and told funny stories, or learned about his history, or my history. And the food is part of that which brings you together.”

Despite their incredibly famous father, Zachary and Elijah are being raised as down-to-earth as possible, the “Tiny Dancer” singer revealed to The Guardian in 2016. 

“They are spoilt in the way they live and how they’re living, but they’re not spoilt when it comes to the rules they have to live by,” Elton explained. 

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“They get £3 pocket money, but £1 is for charity, £1 is for saving and £1 is for spending, they get three coins and put them in separate jars.”

He continued: “And they have to work for it – help in the kitchen, help in the garden. They’ve got to learn the value of doing something and earning something for themselves.”

According to Elton, the family doesn’t dine at five-star restaurants every night. “Saturdays when I’m home, we go to Pizza Hut with them, we go to Waterstones, we go to the cinema. I’ve never been a recluse, I’ve never hidden away. I’m on the school run.”

© Michael Tran

As for if he could see his sons following in his famous footsteps, Elton revealed that he would be hesitant for them.

“I’ve lived an incredible life, but it’s been a hell of a life, and it’s been a slog,” he told Time. “I wouldn’t want that amount of pressure on them.”