When and what with teach kids to shoot?

[Para Bellum]

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"...

[Jkwas]

at 3 and 5, I would say a water pistol. Unless your children are more mature than mine were at that age! :eek:

[Bowtier]

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

[jrklaus]

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?

[Para Bellum]

she's 3.5 (three and a half).

[jrklaus]

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.

[Para Bellum]

Ok. If she is/will be ready: What would you use for first practice?

[jrklaus]

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.

[mete]

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.

[Wynterbourne]

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.

[mantis7]

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

[News Shooter]

One of those S & W .50 calibres? I think with two hands she ought to be abe to handle it OK ;)

[bdc]

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.

[chris in va]

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.

[Limeyfellow]

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.

[The Rabbi]

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.

[Tylden]

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:

[Ftom14cat]

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.

[butch50]

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.

[big daddy 9mm]

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..... :) :) :) :)

[delta58]

I started hunting with my dad when I was 8. But I don't think they are ever too toung to learn about guns, not shooting mind you but I allowed my kids to see and touch mine while I cleaned them and when I shot sometimes. I think this removes some of the curiosity. My youngest is now 15 and they know a firearm for what it is, a valuable tool that can be very dangerous if misused. I started mine on bb's and then went to .22's & 20 ga's.

[USP45usp]

I don't see the harm in you holding a single shot rifle for her while she squeezes the trigger.

I would like to add that a good pellet rifle or .22 with light loads would be best for this.

Also, aren't they in the "sing along stage" at 3.5? This way you and she can sing the rules of gun safety.

Having her there while cleaning is a good idea but I would try to find some cleaning materials that aren't as toxic as Hoppe's, etc.. (I don't know of any right now but some of the others may). If it gets on her hands you have to ensure that nothing goes into her mouth (hands, fingers, etc..) and that she washes up right away.

Invest in the Eddie Eagle video ASAP and play that for her just as you would any of her other childhood videos that she has.

I think that right now, she is just wanting to do what daddy is doing (this could be with anything). Daughters seem to cling to their fathers while sons seem to cling to their mothers at this age.

If she seems to retain the interest as she grows older, then around maybe 5 or 7 buy her a .22 of her own and then make a father/daughter "art" bonding thing by painting and decorating the stock of the rifle (the 10/22 seems to be the one to get) so that it's personalized for her and that she knows that it's hers.

Wayne

[Nio]

...and since she was 3 1/2 she begged me to teach her to shoot, but her mother was of the "you'll shoot yer eye out" crowd....

So, two weeks ago I took her to the store and bought a Daisy Red Ryder BB gun. I got mine when I was 4, and I didn't shoot my eye out...

When we took it out of the box, I was absolutely horrified. It is the cheapest POS I have ever seen. It's mostly plastic - even the cocking lever. It's a real shame. :( My Daisy (37 years old) is all metal, and still shoots just fine even if the spring is a little weak these days. I REALLY wish I could find something that was decent for her, but everything I've looked at since is all junk. :mad:

Not to discourage her, I taught her how to walk around with it pointed at the sky, and she was very happy to march around with it. We shot some paper targets, some balloons, and she was totally thrilled. Then I let her shoot my AirSoft guns, which she did a little better with. The Red Rider is a little large for her - of course, so are the airsoft guns.

I don't think it's ever really too early to start teaching them about guns.

Nio

[jrklaus]

Nio, do Benjamin or Sheridan still make air rifles? They used to be pretty high quality.

[claude783]

At this age, a single shot pellet gun would suffice. A suitable target can be set up in the garage, living room, and basic marksmanship can be taught.

For fun, my son (year ago) would set up his toy army men and have battles. He would use the pellet rifle and I used my pellet pistole. Would set up 10 men apiece and the first one to clean out the other won!

I also purchased a reseting pellet target, and we would shoot it.

At age 5, I got him a .22 and we went out into the desert. I took a couple of cans of tomato juice, loaded his .22 with cci stingers and let him "blast" the cans. The explosion and flash of red give him a visual impact of what a gun can do. Then to further educate him, took the 30-06 and shot a pumpkin. Had pieces of the pumpkin flying 30 feet in every direction. He still remembers that pumpkin to this day.

At 9-10 I got him pump action .22. I'd have to go to the gun safe and see if it is a rossi or tarus...to lazy right now, but Tarus makes a sweet little pump action in SS. Didn't have that option when I got my son's many a year ago.

I like the pump action .22 as you have a visual on the hammer. It also lets the kids shoot a little faster, but not in the auto range. Finally, a nice .22 in a pinch could be used defensive...Did I let him have access to the weapons, NOPE, kept them under lock-n-key in a gun safe, also had the home defense "handgun" eyebolted to the closet with a padalock through the top strap!

A bb gun with molding clay could be used in the living room. Little figures can be set up and the child can learn gun safety, proper form, at that age.

For a first gun, there is now the "small" pump action 22 by Tarus. I consider it the same as a single shot only you can tell if the gun is cocked by the hammer either being pulled back, or down.

[almark]

Nio... be careful with the balloons. I caught a ricochet in the ear when I was seven because the BBs were actually bouncing off the balloons. We were using underinflated balloons at a pretty good distance though.

[Duxman]

These stories bring a tear to my eye. :o

My first pellet gun was a .177 single shot pump gun. No name brand it was a local asian manufacturer. Got it when I was 10 years old. Had tons of fun shooting birds and occasional rats. Not to mention targets galore.

Now all I need is to have kids to teach them the finer points of gun safety and marksmanship. :D Future shooter.

[fastforty]

I'd have to agree, 3-1/2 is pretty young- about the best you can do is hold a .22 rifle & let her pull the trigger (& that might not be a good idea, it may give her the idea that it is safe to shoot a gun that she may come in contact with at a later time).

I think I might have told this here once before, but for those who missed it:

We adopted our daughter at 6 years of age, after she had spent her entire life constantly suffering various forms of abuse & neglect. The professionals involved with her case told us that she was severely delayed socially, emotionally and academically. They told us not to expect much from her, that we had better be prepared to parent a very young child for the rest of our lives. They went on to tell us that she had no "cause & effect" thinking, & most likely never would. Yes, she had a lot of problems, but they were environmental in nature. dd is 10 now, and those same professionals stand in silent awe when we take her to meetings and other functions. She is the most mature & responsible 10 year old that any of them have known.

I got dd her first rifle, a little youth sized Chipmonk when she turned 8. She already knew how serious I take handling firearms, so she went out of her way to memorize (and understand) the Basic Firearms Safety Rules. After that, I gave her about 15 minutes worth of instruction on grip, stance, sight picture and trigger control & we headed out back to the range. I demonstrated the loading/firing/unloading technique & set up a pepsi can 20-30 feet away. I stayed very close by and gave her her first round of Aguila Super Colibri, a primer powered, powderless .22 round that is nearly silent (dd has an audio sensitivity problem). She carefully loaded, aimed, and fired. She missed the small target by a foot or more & I was disappointed for her (I guess someone had to be, lol). She took another round, loaded, aimed more carefully & set that can sailing! :) She then proceded to pelt that poor can 1/2 way across the barnyard, jacking shells in&out of the little single shot rifle like an old pro :) She got 9 hits out of her first 10 shots (including that first miss). She was soooooo jazzed, & wanted to carry the rifle back to the house. She did so with extreme care & responsibility. 8 years old seemed like the perfect time for her.

Teaching a child to shoot using a firearm that is scaled to fit them is a big plus. Picture your adult self, never having fired a shot in your life, trying to learn to shoot with a 8 foot long, 22 pound rifle with a length of pull equal to 1-1/2 times your arm's legth.

dd's first can:
http://tinypic.com/a0ucfk.jpg

[Rangefinder]

There's a lot of opinions surrounding this whole issue, and I want to point out that none of them are entirely right or wrong---it's a personal/individual judgement call all the way. But for my 2-cents...

I grew up with firearms. I do have to point out that I grew up in Montana, very much in the country--back yard was thousands of achres of forest and the nearest neighbor was a 1/4 mile away. Anyway... I had my first scope-black-eye and bruised shoulder from my dad's .270 when I was 5 when he was sighting in for hunting season. Why? Because I could handle my "Coast-to-Coast" bolt-action single shot .22 like a champ and wanted to prove I could handle something bigger. My dad's comment--"Ok hotshot, knock yourself out." So I did, literally. Point being, the do's and DON'Ts of firearms were ingrained in me as far back as I can remember. And that translated straight across to my own son. He began going shooting with me at three, shot his first weapon at four (with help), and shot completely solo with supervision at five. He's nine now and helps me handload, start to finish--I load his and he loads mine (with me watching very closely--lets not get crazy). But he shoots everything I own, including my 7mm Mag (which I'll add is his favorite, and I usually have to hold back a box of shells for myself if I want to shoot it). Admittedly, my 7mm IS the Remington Sendero and nearly as smooth a recoil as my 6mm, unlike the 7mm hunting rifle I grew up with that had a mule-kick. He's a damned good shot, and about the most responsible young shooter I can honestly say I've seen, all bias point of view aside.

All things considered, I'd say there really is no textbook ideal age to introduce shooting to your kids. It just comes down to and individual judgement call.

[dave_in_delaware]

In my opinion, my kids are too young for guns. I have 2 girls and a boy (5,4,2) and I can't even imagine them with a gun, even a BB gun. My 5 year old is rather mature for her age, and *might* be able to handle the responsibility (closely supervised of course), but I don't think she's ready for that (I know I'm not either ;) ). My 4 year old is still in the "I'll ignore what you said to test you and see if I get punished" stage, so that's a definite "no" with her. My son, well, I won't even pretend that a 2 year old should be firing any kind of gun. I was maybe 16 before I even had a BB gun. My Mom and grandparents raised me, and they weren't "into" guns (they were neither pro nor anti gun), so I never worried about guns, either. We just didn't talk about it. Guns weren't an issue at all, with my family or the area we lived in. Out of sight, out of mind I guess. My grandfather even owned a shotgun (now mine), but it lived in the closet (from his hunting days). My Ex-wife, on the other hand, is totally against guns (even play guns), especially in the house (she's one of those "if someone broke in they could use it on you" people, especially with kids around).

These are MY opinions only as far as gun-safe ages for kids. I'd definitely wait at least a few years. I'm not sure when I'll get my kids into guns, especially w/ the way their Mommy is, but I do want to teach them about guns eventually. They DO already know that if they find one, don't EVER touch it, because they could accidentally hurt themselves or someone else, and to tell an adult about it. I'm thinking I'll take them to the range some day so they can see (and hear) for themselves, but when they're older, like say 12ish? At 18 though, they'll be able to decide for themselves.

[chemist308]

At 3.5 a water gun is the best bet.

In a year or year and a half when the coordination and understanding/listening is a bit better there is a toy called tin can alley. Shoots a light beam just under a tin can, where a sensor sits. Sensor detects the beam and knocks the can over--good for begining to learns sites. They go for about $20.

At age 7 a Red Ryder (Daisy) or Crossman 760 depending on reach. You may opt for the Daisy because the Crossman pump is harder to work at that age. Both of those go for about $30 at Wal Mart or Kmart. I just got mine 7 yr old started on the Crossman simply because it's a much better gun for the same money.

I didn't get my first real gun until I was 12 (legal hunting age in PA) but my dad had me shooting his 22 from age 10. But they also make 22 single shot rifles that would perfect for a kid 8 yrs old or so to hold. Just don't quite trust mine with that yet.

[MikeWrite]

My own daughter's progression has thus far gone like so:

Age 6 - Daisy Red Ryder
Age 8 - Crosman air pistol
Age 9 - Crickett .22 single shot
Age 12 - Ruger 10/22

She can hit 2" discs at 30 yards from field positions (never the bench) with boring regularity using the 10/22. Tennis balls are in serious danger at 50 yards. The 75 yard steel chicken at the gun club rings with rapid fire hits. Lately she has also tried my Browning Buckmark and the wife's KelTec P32 and CZ75. She did reasonably well with all. She has no desire to shoot my AR. Says it's too loud.

[Edward429451]

Hmm lotsa good advice here. Can't diagree with anyones perspective but my views vary somewhat from the norm it seems.

I'm of the mind that BB guns are not a good 1st choice (lemmee splain) and are in fact a step up from so called 'real' firearms for serious practice. My reasoning is that BB guns are not viewed as real guns and there's where the problem is started. Kids & adults alike see them as more of a toy than a firearm. The parents will walk away from a child in the backyard with a BB gun faster than if they had a real gun, and the kids pick up on this and not a real gun is implanted in their mind. Then when a real 22 comes their way, the parents again reinforce in the childs mind that its not a real gun by saying "Be careful this is a "real" gun" etc..Consequently, the child naturally will not give the BB gun the same respect in handling that a "real" gun requires and then the accidents/negligence whathaveyou will occur.

By making the childs first exposure a real 22, the foundation is laid for them to give BB guns the same respect and safety in handling that they in fact deserve. What parent would walk away from a child with a 22? None Darwinism notwithstanding. The parent will not be distracted, the child will pick up on this and there will be no confusion when a BB gun shows up. Foundation is firm in safety.

My kids were shooting 22 single shot rifles at age 3 with 110% supervision (read, full prone off a rest or offhand totally encapsulated by mom or dad and basically all they did was pull the trigger.) By age 5 they were shooting mini-14's full prone unassisted off a rest and Ruger Bearcat 22 pistol with CB shorts in it. BB guns did not get put in their hands until around age 6 or 7 (?) after safety was well ingrained in them and it was explained that they were not toys but specialty arms for serious practice in the backyard (mostly).

I have them on video shooting a 45 (they asked) at around age 5, again, 110% supervision. By age 13 or 14 they were keeping loaded handguns in their room :eek: and no tragidies ever occured. I was mighty proud to have them come to me with them and say hey put this up to be safe, I'm not sure of one of my friends when I go to the bathroom and leave him in there alone.
Around 6 or so they were playing squirtguns with their friends and I came walking by and noticed my boys practicing muzzle control for me (a non-combatent) by lowering the muzzle with fingers off the trigger! Whoa. :D

I had em reciting the 4 rules consistently by age 5, on demand. Below age 6, kids can soak up a lot of information. Don't underestimate their ability to learn correctly at a young age. Give them enough credit to be able to be trained. Train them as you would an adult, while being patient enough to (silently) give them some concessions for age as mistakes will be made. I demonstrated the destructive power by shooting shaken cans of soda and then telling them to "fix -it, make it better (while handing them the split can) "this is what would happen to your brother or mother if you shot them, this is real not TV"...and so forth.

Maturity is the key, patience from the parent is another key. Diligence. You may agree or disagree and YMMV. Not all kids will respond as well as mine did, be careful. The choice is yours and your responsibility, but this worked for me so thought I'd share. Good luck and be safe.