When and what with teach kids to shoot?

P

Para Bellum

New member
my 3.5 year old wants to learn how to shoot. :confused:
So I wonder what would be the right age to teach her and
what would be a suitable "gun"

I surely would never use a firearm for that purpose. An airgun maybe. But which one? CO2, BB....?

I have no clue about these "guns"...
 
at 3 and 5, I would say a water pistol. Unless your children are more mature than mine were at that age! :eek:
 
A Cristmas story

Red Ryder :cool: . Best first gun I ever had & I never put anyones eye out like my mom worried I would. I still have that gun.....although I think I wore it out cuz it just won't drop a grizz on the first shot anymore :D
 
I started working with my son on actual shooting around eleven, which is probably a lot later than many do.

Do you think she is ready to deal with any type of firearm responsibly? That is the question that only you and those who know her can answer.

I certainly have shown my children firearms (unloaded of course) since they were as young as your daughter is, to take the "forbidden fruit" factor away...but my gut feeling is that five may be too young?
 
Okay, now I understand. Above still stands; only you and those others who know her well can make the best determination if she is ready or not, but I would wait.
 
When you decide the time is right, based upon her age at the time, whichever of good air rifle or .22 bolt action is appropriate. If you are using the .22, I would give one round at a time, whether it is a repeater or not.
 
There are significant brain developments as the child ages, what they can understand etc .7 or 8 would be more appropriate,3 or 4 is too young .Start out with a 22 single shot rifle.
 
Where I grew up, you almost had to know how to use a gun. Everyone, and I do mean EVERYONE, in my area knew the basics of the pistol, the rifle, and the shotgun.

To start my Dad gave me a brand spanking new Daisy, lever action, BB gun when I was 3. We spent 4-5 weekends making sure I knew how to handle it. Then he spent a few more weekends only letting me play with it when I was with him. Then he let me play with it whenever I wanted.

Around age 4, he was letting me use a single shot .22 rifle that we had. As skill progressed, we went up to an old 16 shot, tube loaded, semi-automatic .22 rifle. At age 5, he gave me an Colt 9 shot .22 revolver, with a slightly bent barrel.

I still have all 3 to this day.

Of course, in the part of the country that I lived in, and I do mean country, this was not unusual. The nearest gas station was 30 minutes away. To go to the nearest movie was a 2.5 hour drive. The nearest hospital was just under 2 hours.

The primary reason that we learned how to handle firearms was to handle local varmints, such as wild dogs, wildcats, and snakes, as well as to hunt food. I took my first deer with a .22, because I didn't know you weren't supposed to be able to do that. :) I ate more squirrel than the Goddess intended any man to, because that's all we had to eat.

Of course, we were so backwards that I still remember openning fire on a group of kids with some rat shot, because they shot at me with a pellet rifle. I still remember that their parents were only upset because I scorched their clothes.

Now, in current times, particularly if you live in the city, I don't think it's that vital to teach kids at that young an age. Unless you feel that they might come across a pack of wild dogs (which will put you in the hospital real quick...and that's personal experience talking), or need to hunt for food, I honestly can't say that I agree with it.

On the other hand, though, I took my God Children shooting for the first time at age 5, with that same single shot, bolt action, 22.
 
I second the B.B. Gun

I can't honestly remember when I got my first B.B. Gun. I think it was when I was around five years old. It was just a pump gun that wasnt very strong at all. Later on when I was older, I got a CO2 gun and some stronger BB guns, then my first .22 when I was 10-12 or so.

I know they have alot of those "soft" guns now, it could be cool to practice shooting with those soft guns or dart guns you can even use inside. That would be really fun with a toddler I think. 3.5 years old seems a little too young for a .22 though, but hey Im not a parent and I was a little devilchild... LOL
 
teaching a child

I don't think that age is as much a factor as maturity. And, you don't have to use a pellet gun, bb gun or simunitions.

I received permission from my brother-in-law to teach his 11 year old to shoot. It happened to be a Glock 17 in 9mm.

Here is what we did, past the lectures on safety that wash over people.

First, after making sure it was safe (and we have to put that in or some one with itchy fingers would be typing already), I showed him how to take out the magazine and put it in. He did that.

Then, I showed him how to take the magazine out and lock the slide back and look inside for a round. Then I put the slide down and put the magazine in. Then he did what I had just done.

And thus it went. He learned how to insert and take out the magazine, go to slide lock, look for a round, load a magazine and on and on.

Once, he had things like that down, I showed him proper framing, sitting. Then we practiced framing with an unloaded gun. Then, after a half hour of money see/monkey do, he was able to fire one round that he had loaded into a magazine, inserted the magazine, and then made safe.

The idea is to do monkey see/monkey do.

The same week, we did a complete takedown of Garands and reassembly so that one could be shipped to his home for when his dad could take him out.

The essence is to demonstrate and have the child repeat the same movements flawlessly. Lectures are meaningless.

Two days with the 11 year old on the Glock cost me 1000 rounds of reloads.
 
Yup, 3.5 is way too young, but take her with you so she gets used to being around the noise and atmosphere. Provided you lock up your firearms at home in a safe, etc, I don't see the harm in you holding a single shot rifle for her while she squeezes the trigger. :D

I started with a Daisy lever action BB gun at about 6-7. Got so proficient with the thing I could rapid fire ALA The Rifleman.
 
3.5 years old is rather too young indeed. The child is barely aware really at that age of higher concepts like right and wrong, complex questioning and so on. I would wait a few years.
 
I second JRKlaus' comments.

But you might let her help you with cleaning them, explaining the different parts and how they work. Take her to the range so she can watch you (make sure she is supervised carefully and wont run out on the field). But it is a very individual thing. My son started shooting at about 6.

Of course you could let her touch off .357 magnum and she will never, ever, touch another gun again.
 
My son is 10 and has a birthday coming up in September....he'll be getting a CZ 452 Scout .22 bolt action. :D In the meantime, he's been shooting a Crossman pump bb gun in the back yard ( we do have a suitable back yard for this), and his first shooting experience was at about 7 with the cub scouts with a Daisy red ryder. At 3 or 4 years old though, perhaps a water pistol or even a rubber band gun....I still have a few of these in my arsenal LOL. I still use my "1911" water pistol a couple times a week to get the boy out of bed in the morning on school days :cool:
 
The first gun I ever remember firing is my grandfather's garand, when I was around 8 or 9. Needless to say, at that age the recoil was probably too much to really learn on. It took me a while to get over the flinch I developed. If I could do it over again, it would be a .22 first. Once you learn/teach how to shoot accurately and safely then you can move up to the larger calibers.
 
Age 8, on average, is the youngest age for a firearm. If you have an EXCEPTIONALLY MATURE 7 year old, then maybe.....Start them with bb guns at about age 6, teaching them all the safety rules and making them respect the bb gun the same as you will a firearm.

EXPECT that at age 6 or so with the bb gun that you will have to discipline them many times. Do not expect perfect behavior with guns at that age. But it is a good age to start the process. By age 8 you should have smoothed out the problems and they should be ready for the next step.

At age 8 move them up to a .22 single shot bolt action rifle. Work up from there as they mature.
 
mmm

I thihnk I would wait till about age 7 but I would definitly make the kicker be the maturity of thew kid. my dad pretty much taught me when I was 14 but I would also see how much desire the child has. also some kids are more 'with it' than others so..... :) :) :) :)
 
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