Why it's important to teach kids to shoot.

[Chief Joseph]

Don't think my son is ready yet, but by the time he's 12 I believe he will be.

http://www.news9.com/story/19858704/12-year-old-girl-shoots-intruder-during-home-invasion

[espresso]

Great story.

My daughter is 11 and has shot my .22 pistol and I think about 12 I'll see if she wants to start learning on my revolver and CW9.

You just never know......

[muggsy]

My dad was a gunsmith and started me shooting at the age of five using a cut down .22 single shot bolt action rifle. We shot .22 shorts at targets in the coal bin in our basement. By the age of twelve I was my dad's favorite hunting companion. I'd say that you should be able to start your son at 10 if you supervise the action and start him with a .22 single shot.

[Bawanna]

Every kid and every parent is different. I know kids at 35 that I would not want to see handling a gun.

I know others that are ready at 5 or even less.

Mine started very young. Like Muggsy said, all with single shot 22's. Chipmunks in my case.

Didn't push, didn't force at all. Kept it all as fun as I could without compromising safety. I tried to stay alone, out in the woods and such and away from public ranges with other people and mostly range masters with attitudes. Didn't want them to develop a deep seated hatred for range masters like myself.

So far youngest of 3 is 18 they have all turned out normble, more normble than me probably. Youngest isn't as into shooting as the oldest but he rides along occasionally, goes to a gun show once in a while. The oldest is like me, never misses one but he has much better self control even though he usually has plenty of money, a condition I'm not at all familiar with.

[Longitude Zero]

I started shooting on my fifth birthday. So did my son. My entire family was/is into the shooting sports. Our motto was "You cannot kid proof a gun so you must gun proof the kid." By teaching kids the proper way to shoot and handle firearms you take the mystery out of the equation. I still have the signle shot 22 rifle that I learned on and my son also learned on.

[MO_Soldier]

My daughter just shot my Marlin .22 the other day. She is just 2. Of course I actually held it and pulled the trigger.

[Bawanna]

I started shooting on my fifth birthday. So did my son. My entire family was/is into the shooting sports. Our motto was "You cannot kid proof a gun so you must gun proof the kid." By teaching kids the proper way to shoot and handle firearms you take the mystery out of the equation. I still have the signle shot 22 rifle that I learned on and my son also learned on.

That was our motto as well. When they know the workings, take away the novelty you don't have to worry about them over at their friends house who have a different philosophy and want to check out their dads guns when he ain't home. Same as booze or cigarettes. Take away the novelty and it's no longer a big mystery.

I never had to worry about it. I used to love friends over visiting who didn't have kids and ours were 5 to 7 or so. A gun laying on the coffee table. They'd be all concerned and I'd tell em, I'll leave it there till you leave and I can assure you the kids will not touch it or even give it notice.
They'd eat snacks off the same table and never give notice to the gun. I remember clearly even asking my son to hand it to me. He handled it like a pro, aimed it at the floor and carefully brought it over. Made me right proud.

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n538/hopke5/DrawBen2.jpg Oldest a long time ago.

[RainMan_JH]

This subject is close to my heart as my daughter started shooting about 5 months ago (she is 10) and like me has become addicted. I took her out the first time with my Savage MKII bolt loading one shot at a time for safety. She is a natural and way better than me. She has received many comments about her quality trigger control and attention to safety. Now she "owns" her very own gun, a Marlin 60, which she loves. I was not raised with guns and was not even allowed to have a toy gun as a child. My parents are fully supportive of gun rights and have no issues with them it just was never their thing.

In my mind every child is different and the parent will know when their little one is ready. Case in point my daughter wants to go sporting clay and trap shooting with me something fierce, but I know do to her stature that it would just beat her up and take all the fun out of it. Even tho she bugs me about it she knows I will not allow her to shoot in that arena just yet.

In my opinion ingrain in to your children safety 1st fun 2nd and they will listen. My daughter has caught me forgetting to put the safety back on while reloading a mag and she has no problem reminding me that I did not do something that I taught her. Beyond all of that some of my fondest memories with my father were going out together and doing "stuff". I hope my daughter looks back on these times with the same kind of fondness that I have.

Just my .02.

[jlottmc]

Mine has her rifle, and as soon as I figure out the be still and listen part she'll be ready to go with me. I do need to find a private range where I can use some reactive targets with her. The ranges around here don't allow outside instruction.

[freebird]

Local newspaper reports that she used a 40 cal Glock.

[TD2K]

yup, that's how we roll in eastern OK.

so proud of her.

[Bawanna]

Mine has her rifle, and as soon as I figure out the be still and listen part she'll be ready to go with me. I do need to find a private range where I can use some reactive targets with her. The ranges around here don't allow outside instruction.


This sounds like a gender issue with no correlation to age to me. I wish you good luck.

[jlottmc]

I'm starting to worry about her. She shows signs of hyper-activity. Thing is she listens and behaves for everyone but my wife and I. She'll get there. She is pretty excited to know that she has the stuff to go fishing or shooting.

[swampman]

I started shooting before I was born:)

[knkali]

I dont think it is as important to show kids how to shoot just for SD situations. Instead, it more important that shooting sports teaches responsibility and self control and that there are consequences for your actions... be it a dead animal or a broken window or ?? Finally, shooting sports develop a sense of community not only within the sport or family that shoots together, but a sense that others share your space in a bigger picture frame--knowing that other work live and play around us and we are not the center of the universe.(knowing what is in front of or behind the target).

[Starbug]

I'm starting to worry about her. She shows signs of hyper-activity. Thing is she listens and behaves for everyone but my wife and I. She'll get there. She is pretty excited to know that she has the stuff to go fishing or shooting.

I am AHDH, and untreated (none of the drugs worked for me). As a kid, I would NOT have been ready to handle guns safely: I had no patience or focus, couldn't sit still, and no sense of caution or danger. Your kid may be the same. If given one of the various ADD/ADHD drugs, things may improve enough to be able to safely introduce her to shooting at a fairly young age. Or perhaps not. All kids are different. I didn't develop enough self control to be safe with guns until close to 20, so if left untreated (or even with treatment) for ADHD your daughter may have to wait until a much later age before being allowed to start shooting, as I did. We just mature a hell of a lot later than our peers.

If the above is the case, maybe get her a cap gun to start learning and practicing safety with, or a .22 that shoots blanks or snap caps. That way she can make all the bone-headed mistakes us ADHD people make (we do/react first without thinking, especially as kids) and have all her lack of focus problems, all without posing a safety issue to herself and others.

You mention that she tends to do better at listening and focusing when its not you or her mom doing the teaching. If so, perhaps a youth gun instruction class is a good idea, but wait until she's 13 (I don't know how young they allow) before letting her go, so she has time to mature a little more.

I hope some of that was helpful...

[7shot]

I started my son at age 10 with a Walter 22, mother wouldn't allow any sooner. He hates the indoor range but when we get a chance to shoot outdoors at my buddies he has a blast. He's shot my K9 once, about 4 or 5 rounds, and gave it back. I've asked him if he wants to shoot my AR 223 but has declined. We'll wait another year and then give it a go again.

[jlottmc]

I am AHDH, and untreated (none of the drugs worked for me). As a kid, I would NOT have been ready to handle guns safely: I had no patience or focus, couldn't sit still, and no sense of caution or danger. Your kid may be the same. If given one of the various ADD/ADHD drugs, things may improve enough to be able to safely introduce her to shooting at a fairly young age. Or perhaps not. All kids are different. I didn't develop enough self control to be safe with guns until close to 20, so if left untreated (or even with treatment) for ADHD your daughter may have to wait until a much later age before being allowed to start shooting, as I did. We just mature a hell of a lot later than our peers.

If the above is the case, maybe get her a cap gun to start learning and practicing safety with, or a .22 that shoots blanks or snap caps. That way she can make all the bone-headed mistakes us ADHD people make (we do/react first without thinking, especially as kids) and have all her lack of focus problems, all without posing a safety issue to herself and others.

You mention that she tends to do better at listening and focusing when its not you or her mom doing the teaching. If so, perhaps a youth gun instruction class is a good idea, but wait until she's 13 (I don't know how young they allow) before letting her go, so she has time to mature a little more.

I hope some of that was helpful...


Thanks for that. I find that my daughter can focus and pay attention when she wants to, but I just don't know with her. The other part of the equation is that the wife and I despise the current "every kid is ADD/ADHD so drug them all into a zombie like state" that is so prevalent today. I think we will keep our eyes and ears open and see how things progress. Thanks again.

[Tinman507]

She's 2? And a little hyper? Give it some time before doing anything. 2 year olds are so eager to see and do everything they have the attention span of a puppy. Don't over react. Enjoy these years and channel that energy. She'll be asking for the car keys before you can blink.

[Bawanna]

Exactly what Tinman said and you and your wife are spot on. Don't let anyone prescribe zombie drugs in place of parental discipline.

Job security for shrinks and pharmaseutical companies has no place in the typical American family. Even single parent families although they are more difficult usually.

[Starbug]

Jlottmc, I missed the part where you said she's 2 (saw reference to that in Tinman's post). If that's the case, don't worry about it. I've never met a 2 year old with any sort of attention span, and they all run around lots and get into everything. She's perfectly normal. They can and do focus on things when they want to, but not like a 12 year old kid does. Just have fun with her as she is. :-)


Re: ADD/ADHD drugs... I grew up without the drugs and I turned out fine, which only proves it's fully possible for any ADD/ADHD child to be raised without them too. For some parents, it's the right choice to use the drugs, and for other parents the drugs are the wrong choice. I think every situation is different, and it also depends on just how high of a dose you are even giving these kids. They should not be dosed into a zombie state, that's just wrong. I was a huge handful without the drugs and had the attention span of a knat, but was still manageable for my mom even though I put her through some level of hell. But the neighbor boy next door to me was so highly ADHD that he was completely unable to cope without his Ritalin; he was prone to constant meltdowns that had him either in fits of rage or inconsolable tears, and he was completely unable to sit still for more than 30 seconds (even for tv or video games). He was like this before they ever started looking into help for his behavior (he was 10 when they finally got him on Ritalin). The Ritalin calmed him just enough that he was still hyper, but not so over stimulated that he had constant meltdowns over everything and nothing at all.

My opinion is that the drugs have their place and use, but should never be over-prescribed in dosage amount, or given to perfectly normal kids because the parents want to be lazy. All kids are very energetic, and people need to realize this and not label every kid as ADD/ADHD just because they like to run around a lot or can't sit still for as long as an adult can. There is a huge difference between normal kids and ones that really are ADD/ADHD. And there are many ways to cope with such kids without using drugs.

[jlottmc]

No, my little one will be 5 in December. I am trying to avoid the zombie drugs like the plague that they are. My concern is that she can focus when she wants to, but doesn't want to with her mom and I. We also take the time to teach her, and to do it right. We'll figure it out but the fact that she can focus when she wants to leads me to believe that it's not ADD/ADHD. She may just be a spirited child. Sorry for the confusion.

[jdlott74]

She's also not like any 5 year old we know of...What 5 year old knows what a cumulus cloud is and a comm trail...She's VERY smart...