What age do you think it is appropriate to teach a child to shoot?

[JesseR]

I take my oldest son, 5, out with me to the range. He spends most of the time shooting his cap gun, but he likes to shoot a magazine or so from his AR-22 pistol. I have to help him old the gun due to weight and the fact I don't completely trust him, but he is learning what he can and more importantly can not do with a fire arm.

He still can't understand why he doesn't get any "holes" from his cap gun...

 

[Lance Jensen]

Thank you all for your input! My son definately wants to learn to shoot. Every time I get my gear out to make a trip to the range he asks if he gets to go "this time". I guess I'll have to keep working on the little lady. I was 10 before I was allowed to shoot my 22 without assistance, but I was taught the basics and safety starting arround 3.

You ought to see if your wife would be interested in one of our Ladies Only classes. That might help... I've seen lots of wives change their attitudes towards firearms after receiving professional training. Even making it a family event!

 

[GUN DOG]

If they want to & are taught saftey first & show they know it start them.Each kid is unto their own but this is my story,
My son was 5 when I got him his henry bolt single shot, hi vise sights stainless, but a tupperware stock. I let him shoot agulia colibris at cans 10 yrs or so. He was shooting a 20 ga at 8 & a 30-30 single shot H&R. He was always into firearms & I took him with me huntinting whenever I could. He wanted to hunt deer at 8 so he got his hunters safty just before the season started. He will be 13 in march & has been shooting a 7-08 & 12 ga now for 2 years, he also has 6 dear & a mess of doves under his belt. Just this year we got to do some duck hunting & he got his limit. He also joined the 4H shooting sports last fall. Get them involved & they will stay involved

 

[Fyrtwuck]

I started mine about 8 years old. I took it a step farther. When they wanted to go shooting, I'd take them to the reloading bench and let them reload their own ammo. Whatever they wanted to shoot, they had to load.

 

[bettingpython]

I started my son when he was 4, he is now 10 goes to shoot a couple of times a year but unlike lots of other kids he doesn't have that obssessive fascination with guns that gets em into trouble.

 

[angsniper]

I have 2 girls and a boy. They all started shooting at age 4. 2 of them hunt and the 3rd just likes shooting. The hunters have taken small game, turkeys, deer and rams. They are 15 and 10 now.

 

[acpjosh]

Not at all. I've had kids as young as 3 sit in my lap and fire a .22 with me controlling the firearm. We have pictures of my neighbors kid shooting my M11 9mm on semi when he was 5. They always get a kick out of stuff like that.

5 is that perfect age to start them. The gun safety requirements and seriousness of the situation instill a sense of responsibility and maturity that makes them yearn for more. We treat it as a learning situation and they have to be able to recite the 4 basic rules of gun safety before they're allowed to control the firearm without assistance.

+1. My son will be five in march, but he has been shooting a red ryder for almost a year. He can pick up a gun, hold it in a safe manner, and try his hardest to check for a clear chamber. He shoots my marlin 60 alot, has shot a .410 w/assistance as well as sit on my lap and pull the trigger on an AR. Kill the curiosity at a young age, and burn the basic rules of gun safety in their head.

 

[minihawk1]

gotta teach them young

 

[rw1341]

I started teaching my son at a little past three years old. We started with basic gun rules first, then went plinking.

 

[TheLastDaze]

What age is appropriate? That's hard to say, I think every kid is different. My son has shot a little bit last year at 5yr old, so did my girl last year she was 7.

they shot my ruger mk II, my son actually shot my g26 (with me attending)..

the thing is they really didn't want to do it until they seen mom shoot.

with that said he really just likes to shoot his bb gun, i think guns may scare the little guys... but everyone's different..