Teaching Kids to Shoot

[zelmo1]

How do you guys teach kids to shoot? What do you use for aim points? I was taught with a .22 on a target, then rats at the dump. Went right to an Iver Johnson 12 ga, OUCH. I was 8. I started my kids with a pellet gun at 6 , then .22 then a 20 ga. On a turkey I teach them to shoot the wattles. What are some of your methods?

[Bowguy]

A little bit depends on kid but you need to grow em in a sense. I'd start out w .22 rimfire. It's quiet and doesn't kick. Than perhaps a little bigger gun once ready. Sometimes an AR15, sometimes a real light shotgun load. I'm no .410 fan. It's an expert round but if it was strictly at cans or something on the ground perhaps a valid step.
Once I wanted to introduce noise, a 22-250 fits the bill. Doesn't kick but they roar.
Wingshooting I'd go to .28 ga light reloads.
Down the road a .20 ga, .243, etc but only at the child's pace.
Remember felt recoil is dependent on many things. Gauge or caliber, weight of load n gun. Action type, stance of shooter, drop of stock in gun. Weigh all those factors when picking a gun. Make sure they can physically handle it too length of pull and weight wise.
Double hearing protectors inner and outer help lesson noise. And DO NOT fill magazine. Each time they shoot the gun needs to be empty. I'd stay away from exposed hammer guns too. Say a shot doesn't happen now an 8 year old has a loaded and hot gun to slowly lower a hammer on w unpracticed fingers.
Learn how to coach and if shooting pistols learn where to stand (strong side) and how to stop an unsafe maneuver by grabbing a wrist or pressing into elbow.
Talk about commands and how he needs to respond. If a bee bites him w a loaded gun there is procedure he needs to follow to keep everyone safe.
Check eye dominance too. Anyone tells you to have him close one eye if he's gotta dif dominant eye and hand does not know what they are saying. The kid is brand new give him his best shot at this
Any questions you can pm me and I'll give you my number if you want more ideas.
Good luck n have fun

[Happy]

Typically I start them with a bb gun around 4 and at 5 and 6 a .22. Then we move up to a .223 and by 12-13 they are shooting a .243 and a 20 gauge. Now my 15 year old boy is shooting my 12 gauge with 3.5" shells and loves it. Course he is 5'9" and 215 lbs. Just dont push it to fast and let them get comfortable with recoil. Ear protection is a must.

[davisd9]

We started with a BB gun but it has a horrible trigger and makes it difficult with accuracy. Tried two different ones. We shot a 410 a few times before the spring and will continue working with that. We will be introducing a 22 here soon. My son is 5.


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[howl]

Use a quiet gun, having zero recoil and teach always using a rested aim. I prefer to start with iron sights because they don't add weight to the gun and teach hitting by hold rather than by zooming in on a hair. It is important to practice getting on a rest in hunting conditions.

22lr for rifle and 22lr adapters for shotguns are good. BB guns are fun.

I find spending money on good targets holds interest and educates faster. Shooting shotgun shells, clays, or cans is fun, but paper shows how far off your hold you're hitting. That is important feedback to help them bear down and concentrate.

Another thing is letting them have input on aim points. Shooting at animal targets will show them what they can hit and what they can't. I prefer to teach shooting everything in the neck. It's a hard shot though on game other than turkeys. If they can do it, they have confidence in it. If they don't they might want to aim elsewhere. Practice on realistic animal targets clears that up. My kids won't shoot a deer in the neck, because they saw how often they missed the bone on the lifesize targets we use.

[silvestris]

Thumbs up on eye hearing protection and the dominat eye.  I know both from experience, "say what".

[Marc]

Glad someone brought up the dominant eye issue...  I shoot right-handed off my non-dominant eye, and checked my own kids' dominance before having them shoot anything.

Hearing protection should go without saying...

I think a BB-gun is a great way to start.  It teaches safety and some basic concepts of pointing and shooting a gun...

Being a bird hunter, my kids have their BB-gun with me duck or dove hunting...  They stand up to shoot with me, and have to remember to keep the gun pointed in a safe direction, and they learn to mount a gun and take off the safety (as well as getting chided for forgetting to put it back on).

Being primarily a wing-shooter, my kids will likely start with a .410 at the local clay range as soon as they are strong enough to safely mount and swing a gun... 

[Dtrkyman]

Air guns and .22

I have taught archery a lot, one thing that helped with kids was using a blank target with a small aiming point, 1 inch or less dot, helped them focus I believe.

Would think it would translate to firearms!


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[Ctrize]

Once you have them hitting their spot get them plinking something to show what a bullet does down range.Putting holes in paper does not get the point across.

[bear hunter]

my girl is right handed but her left eye is dominant. How should she shoot?

[davisd9]

my girl is right handed but her left eye is dominant. How should she shoot?

Left handed

[Bowguy]

my girl is right handed but her left eye is dominant. How should she shoot?

Always w dominant eye, as Don said, lefty

[zelmo1]

Your hands follow your eyes. Always go with dominant eye. My wife switched a few years ago, now she hunts because she is more comfortable and confident.

[Happy]

As others have said use the dominate side.  I am bassakwards and I can tell you that with open sights or shooting a bow it takes a lot more work.

[Marc]

my girl is right handed but her left eye is dominant. How should she shoot?

As a shotgun shooter who has struggled with this issue my whole life, I would recommend having her shoot left-handed.

However, as an eye doctor, make sure she has a full eye examination, and that the dominance is checked after she has been properly corrected with glasses.

Often times kids can be far-sighted (which can sneak under the radar), and after being corrected the dominance is not what we thought.  Also good for all kids to have an eye examination, and I personally believe that every child should be in some kind of blue-filter lens for technology anyhow.