What age do you feel firearms training is appropriate?

Firearms training in my opinion starts with education! From the time a child has the ability to understand, and at least somewhat comprehend the words you are saying, you should start that education as long as you have weapons in your house. Prevention is the key point I am getting at here.

As far as hands on training goes, that would depend on the maturity level of the individual child at hand. I started shooting at 7 years old.

She, from the beginning, has impressed me with her maturity and skill when we are on the range.

It's not about a magic number, it's about the maturity level, cognitive development and manual dexterity of the student.

I don't think there is a set age. Every kid is different and will be able to handle that kind of responsiblity at different ages.

My oldest is 5 and we started teaching him gun safety at 3. My youngest is 3 and he is learning gun safety. I believe if you have a gun in your house, you need to remove the curiosity and replace it with knowledge. Both my husband and I are veterans.

I remember reading one theory about how if you have guns in your home you should introduce your children to the from the time they are able to comprehend. Not necessarily shooting, but seeing how they come apart and are cleaned, and going through all the really "boring" details. This way they're demystified, rather than being super secret (and thus instantly more attractive).
Obviously, they need to stay safely inaccessible. But if your kids know they can ask you to see the guns any time, there's not the need to sneak around.


I do have guns, but don't have kids. But, it is an idea that makes sense to me.

Obviously every parent has to make that decision for themselves and their child. My daughter is 9 and I have not started quite yet. But I think when she's 10 we will have her down at the range shooting at least a .22 to begin with. We'll work up to the .40 S&W when I feel she has enough strength to handle it. I think awareness was raised a lot after the firearms instructor death a few weeks ago. I don't see me having my daughter out with an automatic machine gun like that at such an early age, but that's just my opinion. I would think the minimum age for something like that should be 13, but everyone will have a different view on that I'm sure.

when kids realize what is a gun. :)

I started shooting around eight years old with one of my father's 20 gauge shotguns. As the years of gone by I've found myself loving firearms more and more. A good friend of mine bought his son an AR styled .22 Long Rifle a few months back, which he had the opportunity to shoot while I was home on leave. I feel so long as the child shows an interest in firearms at a young age such as 8 or so, there's nothing wrong with teaching them the basics of firearms safety maintenance and marksmanship.

I subscribe to the same multi-level approach that my dad took with me growing up...your milage may vary, but this is what I did with my boys...keeping in mind that my boys are at different levels (because they are different ages) and they may progress at different levels

First rule from day one, to present day:
No one touches a firearm without me being present, and before we start, they must recite my gun safety rules.

At the age of 4-5, I introduced my boys to firearms... Mainly teaching them about what they are, what they can do, and what the safety rules are for. I make weapons available to look at and hold (supervised) as long as all the safety rules are followed. It has been my experience, that if there is no mystery or taboo surrounding it, there is less chance of them attempting to seek it out on thier own.

Once the safety rules were second nature, around 6 or so, we introduced airsoft and BB guns...again, treating them as if the were the real deal, and started working on the fundamentals of actually shooting a firearm and operating it in a safe manner. If a safety rule is broken at any point, the shooting is done for that day. They will stay at this level until I am convinced they are ready to move on.

At around age 8 my oldest graduated to shooting my old Ruger 10/22, first learning to shoot iron sights, and then moving up to shooting with a scope. It was also at this level that he began to be responsible for cleaning the weapon after a shoot.

This year he turned 10 and he has become very proficient with the 10/22, so I have gradually let him try different, more powerful weapons. Each time we move to a different weapon, prior to shooting, he learns how the weapon works, how to load/unload/clear malfunctions...etc.

This Christmas (when he will be 11) I will be buying him his very own rifle, which he will still not have unsupervised access to, but will be his to shoot and maintain.

He will stay at this point until I feel he has matured enough to take a weapon out on his own and not violate any rules.

Myself, when I was 15, I routinely took that very same 10/22 out shooting by myself, but this is really all dependant on the maturity level of the child.

Again, this was the approach my dad took with me and what has worked for me with my boys. Not everyone will do things the same way and that is OK.

Keep in mind, there are a LOT of other minor rules and things that go into this approach, but this is long enough and it would go on forever if I were to go any deeper.

Apologies for the novel...