02-12-2010, 08:04 PM
02-12-2010, 08:27 PM
I have no children so that's not an issue for me, but if I did I'd be seriously following the advice found here: http://corneredcat.com/TOC.aspx#Kids
CorneredCat.com is run by a female firearms instructor who has children. Most of the site is about firearms from a woman's perspective but the section on kids and guns is applicable to anyone who has both.
Info on the sites author: http://corneredcat.com/Misc/author.aspx
CorneredCat.com is run by a female firearms instructor who has children. Most of the site is about firearms from a woman's perspective but the section on kids and guns is applicable to anyone who has both.
Info on the sites author: http://corneredcat.com/Misc/author.aspx
02-12-2010, 09:02 PM
Thanks. I grew up hunting and my Father was in law enforcement. Now a Father myself, besides my carry piece, my kids dont get any exposure to firearms, ans Im looking to teach them.
02-12-2010, 10:12 PM
Another good place to start would be the NRA Eddie Eagle program. "If you find a gun: Stop, Don't touch, Leave the area, Tell an adult."
One absolutely fantastic article on corneredcat.com is "Disarming kids curiousity." Cliffs Notes version: teach them not to touch any gun without permission, tell them they may only touch guns when explicitly given permission (which you know is going to result in them asking to touch the unloaded and confirmed safe firearm you're holding), then tell them "Just because I'm holding a gun doesn't mean its safe for you to hold it, but this time it is" and allow them to handle the firearm after being shown how to do so safely. They get to satisfy their curiosity about the gun and learn that "not without permission" isn't just another way of saying "No" making them less likely to try to get it when you're not looking because they've been shown that if its safe you'll let them hold it.
One absolutely fantastic article on corneredcat.com is "Disarming kids curiousity." Cliffs Notes version: teach them not to touch any gun without permission, tell them they may only touch guns when explicitly given permission (which you know is going to result in them asking to touch the unloaded and confirmed safe firearm you're holding), then tell them "Just because I'm holding a gun doesn't mean its safe for you to hold it, but this time it is" and allow them to handle the firearm after being shown how to do so safely. They get to satisfy their curiosity about the gun and learn that "not without permission" isn't just another way of saying "No" making them less likely to try to get it when you're not looking because they've been shown that if its safe you'll let them hold it.
02-12-2010, 10:27 PM
Good info. Hope more people reply to this thread for there input, or their experience on the subject.
02-12-2010, 10:35 PM
I've used the Eddie Eagle four-point approach for my kids (7-yr-old daughter, 4-yr-old son).
So far, so good. They both seem to get it.
But parental responsibility goes beyond words...it's also about actions. My handgun is stowed away each night in a special location out of their reach, even if they use a chair. When they get older and more responsible, I'll adjust accordingly.
So far, so good. They both seem to get it.
But parental responsibility goes beyond words...it's also about actions. My handgun is stowed away each night in a special location out of their reach, even if they use a chair. When they get older and more responsible, I'll adjust accordingly.
02-15-2010, 09:32 AM
I have two girls, ages 7 and 10. They have been taught from an early age what they are and to leave them alone. They have both shot my .22lr rifle. As was brought up earlier, curiosity is the biggest problem with kids. Satisfy that curiosity and you will take a big step towards their respecting firearms, IMHO. It has been a few years now and neither have any interest in them, except to shoot them with me. Boys may be different. I have a friend who brings his son over and we taught him to shoot. He seems to have a respect for firearms as well and looks forward to coming over and enjoying his new pastime.
02-17-2010, 09:09 AM
(02-15-2010 09:32 AM)shooter357 Wrote: [ -> ]I have two girls, ages 7 and 10. They have been taught from an early age what they are and to leave them alone. They have both shot my .22lr rifle. As was brought up earlier, curiosity is the biggest problem with kids. Satisfy that curiosity and you will take a big step towards their respecting firearms, IMHO. It has been a few years now and neither have any interest in them, except to shoot them with me. Boys may be different. I have a friend who brings his son over and we taught him to shoot. He seems to have a respect for firearms as well and looks forward to coming over and enjoying his new pastime.
As someone who has two boys, ages 15 and 11. And I have taught them since they were 5. They have an interest in firearms but know not to touch them without me. My 15yr old knows how to get in my safe, I did this for a reason, when my wife and I are not home I want to make sure they can stay safe, but back to point, he knows not to go into the safe unless someone tries to break into the house. I have taught both of them the 4 points of safe gun handling, and anytime we go to the range I make sure they remember and still follow safety first.
05-02-2010, 11:12 AM
Right or wrong, my approach has always been "remove all mystery and you'll remove all temptation to experiment". When I was a kid, we had all our long guns on a wooden gun rack on the wall. My Dad taught me to shoot and always said "any time you want to look at the guns or learn anything, just tell me and we'll look together, but YOU NEVER EVER TOUCH THEM OTHERWISE!" And so that's how it went. If I wanted to handle the them at all, I just said the word and he stopped whatever it was he was doing and I looked with his supervision. I never dreamed of touching them without his permission and without him being right beside me. I've done the same with my children and it has paid off just the same way. My youngest son is now 9. First with me hovering over him to help him handle it and lately on his own with my close supervision, he's been shooting my handguns (9mm, .357 mag & .45) since he was 6. I could let any of them lay on the dining room table, on the sofa, on his dresser in his room, or anywhere and he absolutely would never touch it. The reason I know is because I have tested him. I have unloaded a handgun, checked it thrice to be absolutely certain it is unloaded and left it lying just about anywhere in the house. It's only ever there until he encounters it in his daily travels and the second he sees it, he comes and finds me and says "Dad, do you know you left your pistol in the bathroom?" We talk about it often, I quiz him often, and I'm very confident that he'll do the right thing always, because he knows the only shame involved is breaking the #1 rule of touching it without my immediate supervision. When he shoots, we practice muzzle control, booger hook off the bang switch, etc, but number one is always NEVER TOUCH unless Dad is right there and told me to touch. We shoot pretty often up at camp or at a friends farm, but occasionally he'll just say "Dad, can I see your gun?" I typically drop everything, show him, he thanks me and we move on. I'm not hiding anything and he's got nothing to be curious about.
As far as the remove the mystery part, Dad always said mystery is the reason many preachers kids are so bad as teenagers and sometimes beyond. Everything is a mystery, they're never exposed to anything. When I was a little kid, my Dad and his buddies had poker night once a month, rotating to everyone's homes. If I had all my ducks in a row and was doing well in school, behaving, etc, I was permitted to stay up a half hour past my bedtime to sit by the table and watch them play. I watched them drink beer (well, it was Schlitz), smoke countless cigarettes and heard some incredibly foul language. I respected them all. They were adults who took great care of their families but knew how to take a night off each month and have a good time. I never had a need to go out as a teenager and get all hogged up or smoke a carton of cigarettes. I was exposed to things and knew what it was all about. But it seemed like most of the preachers kids and others who were sheltered went crazy as soon as they could be trusted to leave the house for a few hours without supervision. Dad always attributed it to the sheltered lifestyle and the mystery. They just couldn't wait to see what all the stuff they weren't even permitted to hear of was all about. I'm not saying the old man was right about everything, but I'm practicing the same and it's working for me and my children.
As far as the remove the mystery part, Dad always said mystery is the reason many preachers kids are so bad as teenagers and sometimes beyond. Everything is a mystery, they're never exposed to anything. When I was a little kid, my Dad and his buddies had poker night once a month, rotating to everyone's homes. If I had all my ducks in a row and was doing well in school, behaving, etc, I was permitted to stay up a half hour past my bedtime to sit by the table and watch them play. I watched them drink beer (well, it was Schlitz), smoke countless cigarettes and heard some incredibly foul language. I respected them all. They were adults who took great care of their families but knew how to take a night off each month and have a good time. I never had a need to go out as a teenager and get all hogged up or smoke a carton of cigarettes. I was exposed to things and knew what it was all about. But it seemed like most of the preachers kids and others who were sheltered went crazy as soon as they could be trusted to leave the house for a few hours without supervision. Dad always attributed it to the sheltered lifestyle and the mystery. They just couldn't wait to see what all the stuff they weren't even permitted to hear of was all about. I'm not saying the old man was right about everything, but I'm practicing the same and it's working for me and my children.