10yr Old Shooting 1st time. Irons or Optic?

[Chuck Dye]

WNC Seabee,

If your range is outdoors, consider freezing some ice targets. I freeze an inch or more of water in 16 ounce deli tubs, sometimes adding a bit of food coloring. A cooler full will last for a few hours. Most will leave big enough chunks for follow-up shots (beware the wounded ice puck-they're DANGEROUS!) Best of all: NO clean up!

If you know a cooperative caterer, ask to borrow any of their molds that tickle your, or your kid's, fancy.

 

[RobG5538]

I debated this when I first took my 7 and 10 y.o. out. Knowing kids as I do, I felt they needed to have somewhat "instant success" to make their first time enjoyable. I brought out a scoped .22 bolt action and let them have at it. Both were on target pretty quick and both were instantly hooked. Maybe they would have with irons, maybe not. I think another part of it is "doing what Dad does" and that is shooting with an optic.

 

[ColinthePilot]

Congrats on the range trip! Sounds like you both had a great time.

I took my [then] girlfriend out for her first shooting experience a few months ago. I decided to let her use the scope to build her confidence and keep it easy. Its not that hard to put crosshairs on the target, whereas irons do require some instruction. She enjoyed herself, shot pretty well (3" groups at 25yds) and took the target home to put on her parents' fridge (she's 21yo ). We broke up a while after but recently I heard through the grapevine that she went shooting again, with someone else. Looks like I got one hooked anyway.

 

[vicdotcom]

Kids have fun just shooting for the FIRST TIME. For the most part, if its their first time shooting, they aren't going to care if its scoped or not.

They just want to shoot! And let them Shoot!

After the first time, then you can worry about scopes or not and you can let them decide.

 

[vicdotcom]

There is absolutely no reason to insist that a shooter must learn the use of iron sights first other than clinging to the tradition that evolved to do it that way when optical sights were much less common and much less durable.

Gotta disagree with this. Cost is one reason and a very valid reason to learn iron sights first.

Cost was the main reason why I learned on iron sights first. I saved for a .22 and ammo when I was a kid. A scope would have cost me as much as the rifle lol.

There are many out there that cant afford the extra couple of hundred bucks a decent optics would cost. So there is a good reason for many to learn irons first which is "We dont own/can't afford a scope".

 

[A/C Guy]

I can't believe all these naysayers! Iron sights is the way to go. I recently taught my boys and they had no trouble with iron sights. They first asked about using a scope and I told them after they scored 10 out of 10 hits on the 3" target at 25 yards, then they could graduate to the scope.

Iron sights with both eyes open and they were hitting 8 out of ten in under 150 shots. Teach them the right way and make it fun. We also used clay pigeons and golf balls. Golf balls were a lot of fun as they were trying to see who could drive it farthest. We also printed some wild animal targets (elephants, rhinos, elk, sheep,etc) off the computer to add more variety.

 

[Creature]

We are talking about a 10 year old kid's first trip to the range here; not training some sooper-sekrit sniper.
On this trip to the range the following things are important:
1. Safety.
2. Success.
3. Fun.

Oh, for Pete's sake.

If you cant teach a kid using irons sight without having fun doing it, then I would have to say that your doing wrong. When my dad taught me (using iron sights only), I remember it being more fun than anything else I had ever done before! And it still is to this day.

Instant gratification isnt all its cracked up to be...and can be a life-long shooter's worst enemy. Kids will bore quickly unless they have something to "shoot for", pardon the pun.

 

[Joe Demko]

In today's world, shooting has to compete against a host of electronic forms of recreation and entertainment that DO give instant gratification and that DON'T have a lot of safety rules that must be followed. We can acknowledge that and see our sports grow, or we can wallow in the past and grumble about "these kids today" as our sports decline.
Consider this: Cowboy Action Shooting is one of the more popular shooting sports. It features about as much dress-up as it does shooting and the events do involve action. It is, in short, entertaining. Traditional bullseye pistol, on thethe other hand, has fewer practitioners each year. Many gun clubs don't even maintain a real bullseye range anymore due to lack of member interest. Bullseye pistol, especially with iron sights, is a true marksmanship test. Entertaining to watch? Not so much. Entertaining to do? Apparently not as much as CAS, IDPA, IPSC and other shooting sports.
You get a kid interested in something and he'll delve deeper on his own. You convince him it's boring first time out, good luck ever getting him interested.
Even if I'm wrong, what is harmed by use of a dot on the 1st outing? As the OP said, marksmanship isn't learned in one trip.

 

[woof]

Kids should absolutely start out with iron sights simply because it builds discipline. If you want an undisciplined shooter around, or you have nothing to teach him, go ahead and give him a 10/22 with a 30 rd mag and let him go wild.

 

[Seenterman]

Left eye dominant, right handed

Poor kid's right-handed but left-eye dominant, don't know how to fix that.

I have that problem too,I was made to shoot using my left eye. I was told that would be more natural than using my stong hand / weak eye side, and now I can shoot equally good either side, took a little while to get the left hand conditioned (not wobbly). Cant hurt to be an ambadextrious im my opinion. Comes in handy when I cant fire left handed, because most semi auto rifles arnt left hand friendly.

 

[.380awsome]

the exact same gun i started with,marlin 60

 

[GunDoctor]

+1 for Irons

 

[Water-Man]

The correct way. IRONS!

 

[Joe Demko]

How many of you work with kids? I do. Lots of them. Teaching techniques have had to change in response to the environment in which kids today grow up. That is a fact. You go ahead, though, and just keep harumphing "irons." After you get bored with doing that, here is today's assignment:
1. Go to WalMart and compare the number of kids you see around the electronics section to the number you see looking at the gun stuff.
2. Look in your local phonebook and compare the number of electronics stores to the number of gun stores.
Due to the laws, lack of places to shoot, and so forth, shooting already has high "entry barriers" for kids. Established shooters should be thinking of the future of the sport, not clinging to old ways that are simply entrenched rather than demonstrably better.
Irons build discipline? Horse puckey. The coach instills discipline and the student practices it. What is hooked to the gun is no part of the equation.
Here's a bonus assignment: Clearly and concisely explain why you think that shooting must first be learned with iron sights. Don't just assert that it is so. Back your opinion up with something.

 

[taliv]

Irons build discipline? Horse puckey.

+1

that's as ridiculous as saying "driving cars without power steering or power brakes builds discipline"

where did i put that dang buggy whip anyway?

 

[anythingshiny]

funny enough i took my 9yo son to the local indoor range for his first live fire this weekend.

bb guns at home in the back yard, safety has been drilled in from day one..prob one of the few 4th graders who can recite the 4 rules.

anyway let him shoot my grandfathers 10-22 with an old bushnell 3x on it.
96 rounds in the 10...four in the noggin...he thought he was being sneaky by going all commando on me.

he really wanted to shoot the HK CT but was happy to stay with the .22 when he heard the report from the 45~!


we had a ball, he was very safe, good trigger control and followed all the rules.

im a proud pappa.

 

[Tarvis]

Make it challenging, fun and rewarding. For example, once they break 3 targets in a row, they get to use the optic. Learning to shoot irons is a skill that is worth learning.

 

[HB]

I think you need to learn irons first, but you could always take both. My younger cousin liked my open sighted winchester 190 but my little brother liked my H&R with a scope. I would also provide a good selection of targets, like a few paper ones, some spinners, and a can or two at different ranges. Do a quick safety briefing, show them how the guns work, and let the shoot without too much interruption. I would start them off a rest also, and work into prone, kneel, stand. The biggest turn off to guns for some people are strict rules.

HB

 

[taliv]

my 10 yo daughter shot a her first non-rimfire this weekend. she got her first 22lr at 5 yo, but yesterday she fired a compact 1911 with full-power SD ammo, and a full-sized sig 9mm.

 

[JTW Jr.]

I think you should let the kid decide , which is what I did with my 2nd son.
My oldest son (15) isn't much into going to the gun range anymore , he is more into archery ( recurve - his choice ), which is fine. We shoot archery on the side of the house ( 20 yards).

My middle son (8), I let him decide what he wanted to shoot. I took a Colt Semi-auto pistol with a red-dot , a Marlin 700 22 rifle with irons , a Ruger 10/22 with Tasco 2.5 -10x scope , a Savage 22 Bolt gun with Mueller APV scope and a S&W J-frame in 22.

At first he wanted the 10/22 , so I modded it to fit him with a shorter stock. After a few months , he switched to the bolt gun (Savage GVXP ) and now loves that the most. And changes back and forth between shooting my Savage , and my dads 77/22 with a can or dad's Marlin 17HMR. However during a 3 hour range trip , he will shoot em all , including my dad's FA Vector Uzi with a 22LR conversion.

Arguing that the a kid should start on iron's is like saying that have to start on a bolt action , or on a revolver. There is no set rule.

Whatever you do , make it enjoyable , dont be a range nazi , dont "bark" orders at them , dont be dissapointed if they mess up , dont get pissed if they dont shoot well. Let them enjoy it. The point is to teach them safety & keep their interest. Not every kid wants to be a sharpshooter , some may just being at the range with dad ( or mom ) and sharing in something you enjoy.

It was only after a few months of shooting ( twice a month ) , that we were both laying prone , shooting our 22 rifle at the little spinner ( chicken ) at 50 yards. Lil whipper snapper hit it 5 times in a row , and said " beat that ". From there it was on , we went 5 strings of both of us not missing , somehow on the 6th string I must have pulled my last shot , and he won...hehe...funny how that happens.

Now each time we are at the range , there is some fun challenge , that he comes up with , it could be the steel targets , clays , poker chips or paper.
He brings a target home from the range each time to show his brothers and his mom , as well as anyone else who visits us.

He is wanting to shoot the AR , so I am swapping out an entry stock for the full A2 stock on my A2, which should make it fit him fine for the bench.
Now while watching movies , its enjoyable to hear him criticize the shows regarding firearm safety and do's and don'ts.

 

[cpttango30]

Glad to see you had fun.

I still think Irons are the way to go.

As far as competing against video games and the such. That is easy to solve. DON'T BUY THEM. I have a playstation 2 it is so dusty it looks gray why because I don't alow my kids to sit and play it all stinking day. We play it everyonce in a while as a family and thats it. This is comming from a kid of the 80's I had it all Atari nentindo, Saga, playstations computers all of it. I would spend more time out trying to build a custom 12hp wagon so I could drive it to school as a kid.

 

[Joe Demko]

I still think Irons are the way to go

For what reason?

 

[Jason_G]

Irons.

Get them to shoot irons when they're young. They'll have plenty of time to shoot with glass once their eyes get old
Optics are for when you can't see what you're shooting at, either because of distance or eyesight.

Enjoy the irons while you can.

Jason

 

[JTW Jr.]

Optics are for when you can't see what you're shooting at, either because of distance or eyesight.

it also depends on the size of your target as well. a 1" target at 50 yards , most cant even see without a scope.

Scope , Irons , rifle , handgun , whatever , don't get hung up on those , what really matters is to get the kids out there shooting !

 

[3pairs12]

I started my daughter out on a pellet gun at age 6 with iron sites. Big targets at fairly close range she took a good amount of interest. After about a month of constant pumping a quickly moved her to the 22 bolt action first. About the same range 10-15yds and little smaller target pie pan size. That seamed to work well as a starting point for us. This year will be her first time in the woods with a centerfire rifle looking for deer. She is now 10 going on 15. She has the .243 that my dad taught me on the catch is she gets to keep it. It was a loaner when I learned meaning it would always be dads. At the time I started on shooting I didn't have anything small with optics. So I just wanted her to learn safety and handling. I am sure she would have had as much fun had I did. Get them started young and they keep doing it through out life. I did.