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Curious, has anyone taught their children to shoot?

I started each of my daughters out on BB guns when they were about 6, shooting pop cans (not gonna lie, there were some beer cans in there too.). They had to listen to the 4 Firearms Safety Rules discussion before each session. If they violated any of the safety rules, the BB guns went away until the next time. It seemed to show them that the rules were not flexible and neither was Dad.

Within a month of starting, each one could recite the safety rules by heart. They still got the speech on all of the rules though. One time a neighbor kid came over with his nerf guns and wanted to play with one of the girls. The daughter he came to over play with had no patience for his lack of attention to the safety rules. When he failed to listen, she about knocked him on his butt before I stepped in. I was a proud Papa!

What are your experiences?
 
I started 5 ish. Strong enough to hold the rifle. Safety discussion first. Then area identification, safe to shoot.
The wife was not real happy but she was not happy with the number of firearms. I did lock up all of the ammo so that was not an issue. I went straight into .22's. The Ruger 10-22 was not the easiest for the youngest to work.
I refused all discussions/whining about the short guns, the answer was always no and the longer they whined it became hell no. Then it became no ice cream for you.
 
I have no kids, but my brother started his two when the son was about nine, and the daughter about six. He started the daughter that early because how can you allow the son to shoot, but not the daughter when the both of them are at the range with dad at the same time? The son took right to guns; no problem there. The daughter was afraid the recoil was going to make the .22LR pistol jump right out of her hands. She eventually got over that fear, and now likes to shoot as much as does the son.
 
Our two oldest sons worked for the same Sheriffs' dept. Both scored expert at every qual. One day the Sheriff asked the oldest who taught them to shoot like that? His reply was that Dad put a gun in their hands as soon as they could hold one up. The truth is they were shooting from a bench before they could hold one up. DR
 
I started showing and explaining what a Gun was and what it did when my daughter was about 3-4.
She would come with us to shoot in the back country. Made sure to keep showing her what a firearm would so to all kinds of fruit and vegetables. She never touched my firearms, the curiosity was gone. She was about 5-6 when she first pulled the trigger on a firearm. She was next to me when I'd disassemble & clean them. She started disassembling and cleaning them her self. Happy to say she respects & has a passion for firearms as I do. She's also become a pretty good shot.
So I do recommend to start them young. Teach them safety, and get rid of the curiosity so they don't want to pick up or play with a firearm.
 
Teach them safety and get rid of the curiosity so they don't want to pick up or play with a firearm.
Works the same with alcohol, too. Our family moved to Italy in June 1969. Italians have wine with lunch and dinner. We started drinking wine not very long after we got there. I was 11½ years old. By the time I was 18, alcohol held no mystery nor attraction for me. I drink only craft beer today, although I just very recently mixed-up 300cc of Negroni which is the only spirit alcohol I drink. I was last pukin' drunk in November 1984. Being a trucker tempers the idea that I need a drink for no real reason at all.

Per playing with a firearm: If that moron Alec Baldwin didn't hate guns so much and had taken at least one gun safety course, that young lady he shot would still be alive. I'm no one to say, but I doubt his movie will do very well at the box office. That movie will be forever known as the one involving an untimely death of an innocent person because one person was an idiot. May God rest her soul.
 
I have three sons. Our family tradition was to get each of them a 22 rimfire rifle on their eighth birthday. It was a CZ bolt action rifle, with a single shot magazine, and their name engraved on the stock.

They shot thousands of rounds with those rifles! Of course over the years they got married and as they had kids the tradition continued.

My three sons now have a total of eight kids and yep! each of my grandkids have CZ 22 rifle, given to them at age eight by their granddad. They all shoot really well. Some hunt. Some shoot competitively. All are "Pro-Gun!"

Eventually all eight kids will eventually get to vote - pro Second Amendment!

Start them young!
Great for parent to child bonding!
 
Started my daughter at about 6 or 7 on a Walther PP in .32 auto using plastic German training ammo. She had to cycle the slide for each shot and liked it. As she got older, I let he try anything I was shooting, and she got pretty good. At 13, she shot her first deer with a CARBON AR-15 during youth hunt day in WV. Youth hunt day was a Friday, and she was scheduled to dance with the Cincinnati Ballet for three days at a State Park near my farm. She wanted to hunt, so we hunted early she killed a doe (required) and got to the dance camp before noon. When the Ballet people found out why she was late, they were NOT HAPPY and even more upset when I and a few others laughed at them.

Alicia 1st deer.jpg
 
Started my daughter at about 6 or 7 on a Walther PP in .32 auto using plastic German training ammo. She had to cycle the slide for each shot and liked it. As she got older, I let he try anything I was shooting, and she got pretty good. At 13, she shot her first deer with a CARBON AR-15 during youth hunt day in WV. Youth hunt day was a Friday, and she was scheduled to dance with the Cincinnati Ballet for three days at a State Park near my farm. She wanted to hunt, so we hunted early she killed a doe (required) and got to the dance camp before noon. When the Ballet people found out why she was late, they were NOT HAPPY and even more upset when I and a few others laughed at them.

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Around 6 or 7 for my three girls. I bought a cheap BB pistol for all the safety and when they knew to rules then .22 rifles. All three back when they were young I would trust more than a lot of adults. That was years ago. Now it's 5 grandsons I take out once a month in the cool months and can they burn through the ammunition
 
Don't have children but when I was a child, my dad bought me to the range in early middle school and got me started early on gun safety and drilling. I felt it helped me a lot from a young age to not be dumb around firearms as an adult.

Also fond memories first time shooting was a USP9 Tactical.
 
My wife and I argued over this very topic for quite a while, but my philosophy of "never to young to learn to shoot" prevailed…. although she complained about it the entire time.
















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I think it's definitely a bit of a caveat... like maybe giving a preschooler a firearm, and they may be a little too young to comprehend the proper safety. However, definitely, training by the time of elementary school and engrain into them the fundamentals of firearms and more importantly how to operate and store safety and treat them with respect is pretty justified.

Maybe a high-powered .22 pellet rifle might be a good compromise? It teaches most of the fundamentals of gun safety and marksmanship and folks tend to be more comfortable allowing kids to train with them.
 
Great picture at the bottom of your post, Stomp! Chucky Bullschumer and Dianne "Dingbat" Feinswine each had massive myocardial infarctions upon seeing that image.
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I can dream, can't I?
 
Over 30 years ago about 5 years old. They're 34-39 now and still shooting. And now my grandkids started at 2 years with the little Heritage Rough Rider 3.5 Birds Head Grip Revolver, Aguila Colibri, and some 22LR...
 
Had a nice post about 95% written about how young I was when I fired my first shot, then hit a "mystery key" that deleted all of it. This is not the first time this has happened; I've lost previous posts in this space as well as multiple emails of little to no importance to the human race. It's really annoying and bordering on infuriating. Never had this problem until my ancient keyboard quit functioning. Replaced it with one of unknown origin and now I get this krapp. I'm so exasperated, I feel like going to Arby's and getting the 2 for $7 deal-- one Spicy Roast Beef and one French Dip. Dam-ned tasty!
 
Had a nice post about 95% written about how young I was when I fired my first shot, then hit a "mystery key" that deleted all of it. This is not the first time this has happened; I've lost previous posts in this space as well as multiple emails of little to no importance to the human race. It's really annoying and bordering on infuriating. Never had this problem until my ancient keyboard quit functioning. Replaced it with one of unknown origin and now I get this krapp. I'm so exasperated, I feel like going to Arby's and getting the 2 for $7 deal-- one Spicy Roast Beef and one French Dip. Dam-ned tasty!
I have a keyboard just like yours. It can put out 30 P's a second.
 
Great picture at the bottom of your post, Stomp! Chucky Bullschumer and Dianne "Dingbat" Feinswine each had massive myocardial infarctions upon seeing that image.
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I can dream, can't I?


Well actually, since hunger is an AMAZING motivator I told all six of my kids (when they could actually walk and talk) if you don't'/can't shoot, you don't eat.

I'll be damned if all six of the little fat bastiges didn't rise to the occasion!







LOL, not really.
 

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