Teaching Kids Gun Safety and Shooting

[PackinMama]

Any mothers here teaching or planning to teach your children about gun safety and how to shoot?

My son will be 4 in a couple months and right now I'm working on gun safety rules with him. Kind of just letting him get used to guns being around and explaining their dangers and uses, and how they should be handled safely. I'm hoping that by next spring/summer I can start him out with a bb gun, and move up from there.

I'm curious if any of you ladies will be the ones teaching your kids how to shoot.....or maybe some of you already have and can give me some good pointers.

[Guest db99wj]

I have a 9, 7, 5 and 1 year old...yep that's alot.....and the older two have been through a class at RangeUSA. Wish you were closer, however it is geared for kids that are 6 or so and older, depends on maturity level.

I think teaching basic gun safety and what not at that age is perfect, especially since you have guns in the house, taking away the "wow, a gun" factor and teaching the reality of them will go along way. All my kids, except for the baby of course, have shown natural facinations with guns, have played like they are shooting guns (I know that is wrong and kids should play cops and robbers, and play with toy soldiers and.....). So you need to take that facination and mold them into little respectable future gun owners.

[Guest looneeetunes]

yeah my kids are 2,5,8,14. the wow a gun factor is gone, they pay no attention to it. when they see it, its on my side, if it isnt it and others are in the safe. my fourteen year old has gun safety training, the rest are on a understood no touch rule. my five year old (boy) a month or so ago was in our yard with myself, when we happened upon a snake. now i am not sure what kind it was, but to him and myself they are all deadly coppermoccosins. my son immediately said dad you have got your gun there shoot him. it struck me as funny. i have always been worried we would be in a crowd and one of my younger kids would say yeah my dad or mom has a gun and its right there. and then a hush falls over the crowd. but he knows why i carry, and he knows it has to be a life threating time to pull it out. like this ruby back boapython

[PackinMama]

Yep, I agree that taking that "wow factor" out at an early age is probably one of the first and possibly most important things that gun owners can do with their kids. My little guy is so used to me having a gun under my shirt that he pays it no attention whatsoever. I explain to him regularly what it's for and why I carry it. I tell him that it's very dangerous and he should never touch it without my permission.....but then I tell him that as soon as he gets a little bigger I'll teach him how to shoot and show him what a gun can do....and I tell him that Mommy carries it so she can protect us from "bad people or animals that might try to hurt us." He seems to understand that reasoning and like I said, pays no attention to my gun. I had always been afraid that we'd be in public somewhere and he'd say something about my gun.....but it's so normal to him that he doesn't even think about it.

[TGO David]

My wife and I are taking my daughter to the range today, in fact.

[Guest MrsS]

My 5 year old has been shooting a BB gun & air pellet gun since he was 4. I & my husband both taught him gun safety & how to properly/safely use his BB & pellet gun.

We also take him to the outdoor gun range that we go to. He has his own earplugs & safety glasses. We feel that it is the best way for him to actually see a real gun in action & the kind of damage it can cause.

[PackinMama]

My wife and I are taking my daughter to the range today, in fact.

Cool Tungsten! Looks like it's going to be a beautiful day too.....you guys should have fun!! I can't wait until my little guy is old enough to take out shooting with me! I'll get him a bb gun first of course.....but I have a beautiful Browning lever action .22, engraved with the gold trigger, and set up with a nice little Burris scope all ready for him when the time comes!

[Angus]

No kids here, sorry to say. But growing up, we lived in the city, and the WOW factor was huge. If not for my bro-in-law, you guys would never know of me. He taught me gun safety at 13, sent me to a hunters education course, then let me shoot his .44.

Ahhhhh the day I lost my virginity, I will never forget it.

[PackinMama]

My 5 year old has been shooting a BB gun & air pellet gun since he was 4. I & my husband both taught him gun safety & how to properly/safely use his BB & pellet gun.

We also take him to the outdoor gun range that we go to. He has his own earplugs & safety glasses. We feel that it is the best way for him to actually see a real gun in action & the kind of damage it can cause.

That's awesome MrsS! I wish my husband would get involved with teaching our son about guns.....oh, wait a minute....he doesn't know anything about guns himself so I doubt he could teach our son anything! LOL Our deal is that I can teach our son about guns and shooting and my husband will teach him about working on cars and how to ride a dirtbike. I don't like the riding the dirtbike thing.....but hubby says if I get to teach him how to shoot, he gets to teach him how to ride a dirtbike. So it's either no shooting or letting my husband teach him to ride.....I choose the former

[Guest hustle]

My Dad was not a big hunter when I was little, but I remember him shooting crows and various varmints. Seeing what a gun could actually do to an animal was probably the most important lesson I ever learned. I gained my respect for gun safety because I saw what could be the consequences of my actions if I was irresponsible.

[TGO David]

Some of me and my daughter shooting my SBR today...

[Guest Phantom6]

These pictures must be staged during "Dry Practice" because surely you wouldn't let your daughter shoot without the proper equipment like *Eye Protection*. Most ranges won't let you on the line without 'em.

Edited October 11, 2008 by Phantom6

[TGO David]

We were just getting her used to the controls and the optics at that point. She hadn't begun to shoot and my wife wouldn't have been standing that near her.

[Guest Verbal Kint]

Always someone that has to pick apart photos on the internet, regardless of the billion ways they can be viewed without being there and knowing the entire situation. But hey, at least it wasn't the typical finger on the trigger comment.

Wonder what the pioneer families, and kids (or adults for that matter) growing up in the Civil War era, did for eye and ear protection? Not knocking making safety equipment part of your normal routine, but gimme a friggin' break already.

Anyway... good to see my niece learning to put lead on target. Saves me and Tungsten from having to beat the crap out of teenage boys. Well... not so many at least.

Edited October 11, 2008 by Verbal Kint

[TGO David]

She actually shoots wearing these...

Pink of course. But we make her ride in the car without a seat belt to make up for it.

[Oh Shoot]

...But we make her ride in the car without a seat belt to make up for it.

Ba Da BING !

- OS

[ukerduker]

Tungsten- Thats great to see kids learning about firearms safety.

I will be teaching my 7 yr old how to shoot his .22 rifle when I return. I think I'm more excited than he is. I love the thought of passing down these important skills to my boys. To get him excited, I bought him a range bag with all the required safety and cleaning items. Oh yes, he will be cleaning his own weapon. I also bought him a variety of paper varmint targets and steel spinner targets.

[Guest Phantom6]

She actually shoots wearing these...

Now that's style!

Originally Posted by Verbal Kint >

Wonder what the pioneer families, and kids (or adults for that matter) growing up in the Civil War era, did for eye and ear protection? Not knocking making safety equipment part of your normal routine, but gimme a friggin' break already.

They needlessly went deaf and blind in some cases but hey, most members of the human species have the capacity to learn so that's why eye and ear protection are deemed necessary safety equipment today. Feel free to go ahead and take all the breaks you feel you need though.

Safe shooting to all!

[TGO David]

Sorry, it just caught me the wrong way when I read it last night. I'm very cautious when teaching my kids to shoot. We just weren't shooting yet when the "glamor shots" were taken.

[PackinMama]

Nice pics Tungsten! My nephew from IL is here visiting and he came over to shoot today. We shot the AK, G23, & MK II and literally had a blast! This is my favorite nephew and I taught him how to shoot when he was about 15....he's 32 now. I only get to see him maybe once a year, so today was a good day for me. First we shot the guns, then we walked down to my pond and fished (I also taught him how to fish when he was a kid). It was nice.....and we both caught several nice channel cats too