Teaching children to handle firearms.

S

Seronac

New member
I took my sons, ages 8 and 6, out shooting on Monday, the day before Independence Day, and they scared me more than once.

On Sunday night we had a session on handling the guns, on gun safety, and on following the rules. Well, more than once, they pointed the guns in unsafe directions and the 6-year-old fired a .22 rifle inches from his brother's leg!

I'm SO thankful that no one was hurt. But I'm at my wit's end trying to figure out what to do here, and what I could have done better. So I'll list my questions and ask the advice of those on this forum. (In addition to firearms advice, I expect I'll get some parenting advice, too. And that's OK. :) )

1. Did I goof? Should I take a firearms safety refresher course? Should I send my kids, too? Am I expecting too much from them?

2. Is 6 too young to be handling a .22 rifle? Should they stick to a BB gun? How soon can children understand about firearms and the respect and care required in handling them?

3. What else can/should I do? Should I try a different technique? Should I take them out shooting one at a time, at least until they demonstrate safe firearm handling? Any other advice, comments, etc?

Thanks in advance.
 
I have to deal with 2 at the same time as well. Twin boys now 8. To be honest, we started with the BB gun route in the garage. Drilling the lessons over and over. The kicker in this training... Working in the garage, if one of them made even the SLIGHTEST mistake in safety... He was banished for the rest of the session.... and his brother got to keep shooting. Oh MAN did that have an impact on the one who had been unsafe. We still continue the BB gun sessions even after moving up to the .22s on the range to work both on trigger control and safety. Repetition being the goal... over and over and over... driving the 4 rules into their brains.


Personally, I only let them SHARE a gun for many many sessions. Once they were safe, then we moved to having more than one gun on the line. Still haven't handled more than the one gun. But we continue to work towards that goal.

We have also worked gun safety into our day in / day out routine. I normally shoot several times a week. The guns are always going in and out of the safe. Anytime they want to see one of them, there is no hesitation on my part..... as long as they answer my gun safety rules question I ask before handing an empty gun over to be examined. A one time safety lesson is just not enough. It is now part of their mindset. Just try and hand my boys a gun that is NOT open for inspection. They will NOT accept it UNTIL you prove to them it is empty. Then they check it themselves. This is the FIRST thing I do when I get a new gun. I show each of them how to verify to themselves that this type of gun is unloaded.

Not trying to come down on you here at all. We just keep a mindset of gun safety ALL the time.. not just on the range. It has been very successful for my boys and with the children of a number of my friends.

Good luck.

Bubba

[This message has been edited by Bubba (edited July 05, 2000).]
 
I'm no expert but I'd say that maturity level has more to do appropriateness than age. I have a 10yr old who's been shooting responsibly for over 4yrs while my 7yr old isn't allowed to shoot spitwads. There is no room for mistakes so I'd have to make a truthful evaluation if they're ready and if so, take them one at a time so they get your undivided attention (which is special in itself). You might also consider having someone else instruct as many children seem to ignore their parent's but will take another adult seriously. You might also want to demonstrate how much damage a bullet can do by shooting a melon, filled milk jug, etc and explaining the similar effect on a human. Good luck.
 
My time will come soon :) I am in no way an expert, but I am wondering that maybe it would be better to take each child at separate times? I think the one on one thing may accomplish more. The six year old probably needs more help than the eight year old. Also, when kids are together they tend to goof off a bit. My daughter is going to be six in October but to be honest I don't think she is ready to learn how to shoot yet. I think I want to make sure she knows just the rules first. When she can show me proper handling and that she knows the rules, then we can hit the range.

Best of luck to you, kids are very unpredictable :)

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I agree wholeheartedly with Bubba and blunder, and do pretty much the same things. I'm big into working with my kids on this stuff...it's where I have most of my fun! Here's my take:

"more than once, they pointed the guns in unsafe directions and the 6-year-old fired a
.22 rifle inches from his brother's leg!"

If they were both handling loaded rifles at the same time, that, IMO, is a bad idea. Kids that young are very unpredictable and each needs and deserves your complete attention when shooting. I teach mine on the same Ruger 10/22 I was given as a boy, but I only load the magazines with 1 round at a time, and they only handle a loaded rifle at the bench. The one not shooting sits next to or behind me.

Did I goof?" Maybe. Not enough info to say (depending on #1), though, in my opinion, it sounds like it.

"Should I take a firearms safety refresher course?" If you're in doubt or concerned about your own limitations, then...it probably would be a good idea!

"Should I send my kids, too?" Depends on the course. I think it's better for the Dad to get solid, then teach the kids himself. Just my preference.

"Am I expecting too much from them?"

That depends on your kids and you. I started teaching my oldest at the age of 6 on a .22. He's 8 now, and does pretty well, and demonstrates pretty good safety habits with his BB gun at home.

I have to add that I've always been very "strict" or "firm" with them, and from the time they're around 4 they've always been expected to live up to a standard of behavior and personal responsibility reasonable for their respective ages.

In addition, every time we take out the guns, or see guns being used in a movie, we always discuss the "Four Rules," and I ask questions like..."Ok, which rule did that animated chicken violate?" You might think that's strange, but it works for me. That's helped me to teach the older one the "rules" without making him just sit down and memorize them or something. I also let him "earn" a little more freedom with his BB gun if he can recite (in his own words, of course) and demonstrate the 4 rules whenever I ask him. He can..and surprisingly well.

Generally, what I try to do is "remove the mystery and instill respect," as a friend of mine puts it.



[This message has been edited by Franklin W. Dixon (edited July 05, 2000).]
 
When dealing with newbies, I try to limit the available guns to one per instructor. One kid can listen and watch while the instructor works with the other kid.

The other guns are in the trunk or (at least) in the (locked) gun case.

I can handle two kids, but for three kids I want a second instructor.

Personal taste, perhaps. As Uncle Art says, "FWIW".

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