Getting Youth involved

[giese]

Merry Christmas All

I wanted to get advice on starting youth in shooting including competative.

My son is 6 now and really enjoys time with me and the BB Gun or .22lr. While he is not the most athletic kid in his crew ( a bit of a late bloomer) his education level goes beyond his age and I think shooting with the combination of concentration/knowledge and physical skill would be great for him. My daughter(4) just wants to do what everybody else in the family is and she would love to shoot.

I have never done any competative shooting but am not to proud to take my low skill level and get in to a match or two. Where does one begin? Include youth firearms recomendations, pratice stratigies, etc.

We are not looking to go to the olympics we are just a little homeschool family trying to stay active with our kids and teach them responsibiily, sportsmanship, and integrity though outlets other than the common pyhsical sports.

Giese

 

[Sam1911]

Hi!

Are there any shooting or Sportsmen's clubs in your area? Many times they offer youth training and even youth leagues. NRA has course curricula for all such things and can be a great help. Your son is probably old enough to start the basics, though your daughter probably won't "get" the fundamentals beyond pulling the trigger, for a few years yet.

My 5 year old daughter is VERY interested (liked pulling the trigger on various .22s and my 7.62 AK -- while I held it -- as early as 3 years, now does the same thing with the 1911!) but she doesn't get the concept of sights and aiming, so its all just an exercise in getting her used to the noise and motion and keeping her interest alive until she's old enough to develop some basic skills.

Kids develop different skills like this a vastly different points in life. I figure we should make a big deal about the parts they do well and not stress the skills they aren't building until they start to bud on their own.

Also, do not be surprised if they develop the finer points more quickly under another adult's tutelage than under your supervision. I think that's just a fact of life with kids.

I'm sure the youth programs can start by 6 years, but most of the more adult shooting disciplines (IDPA, Cowboy(SASS), etc.) will require that the kids be 12 or so before they compete.

Good Luck!

-Sam

 

[Steve N]

Check into youth programs thru the CMP, 4-H and NRA. They have information that will help you out. If cost is a concern, and you don't have a range to shoot powder firearms close by, you could consider air rifles and pistols. Those can be shot in your basement, or maybe a large room in your house.

3-Position (known as 3-P) is a very popular tournament format for kids. CMP and 4-H have programs available. It can be shot with air guns.

There are monthly postal matches offered on-line where your kids can compete, while not having to travel. There are several on-line forums that offer them, just do a search.

Good luck and have fun.

 

[Professor Gun]

I have two sons now ages 15 and 13; I started them shooting around 5. I think the key is to make it fun. For the first couple of years, everything was the basic safety rules and we worked on fundamentals a little but not much. They thoroughly enjoyed making loud bangs and putting holes in large pieces of cardboard 20 feet away (with balloons attached). If one violated a safety rule he had to go sit for 10 minutes while his brother got to shoot-this had a huge impact.

As they got older and the safety rules became more ingrained we moved to working on technique and accuracy more.

They began shooting in IDPA, USPSA, and Three Gun matches when they were 12 and again at that time we emphasized safety first, accuracy second, speed a distant third. All that mattered was that each match they were able to improve over their previous score by a second or a few seconds with the same or better accuracy.

My sons are among the safest shooters I have seen (better than most adults) and are more accurate with rifle and pistol than a lot of adults. It is a pleasure to go to the range with them.

 

[bluestarlizzard]

give the 3-position .22 a try. it was fun. it was also the only thing i have ever seen that got rowdy adolesnces (and remember the majority were boys) quiet, constructive and focused for hours on end. *chuckle*

 

[chris in va]

The first (and last) time I took a kid to the range with all the included safety talks and instruction, he pointed my unloaded HiPoint carbine at me and yelled BANG BANG.

 

[Bitmap]

I haven't taken my to any competition, just shooting at home and hunting. I started letting them handle guns in the house at about 3 years old. The three oldest all started shooting .22s at 4. The oldest killed his first deer and turkeys at 6. My second son killed his first turkey at 6 and I'm taking him again next week to try again for his first deer or pig. My 4 year old wants to know why he can't go hunting yet.

I've learned a couple of things along the way.

Keep it fun. Reactive targets are great. Take a few sealed soda cans to shoot. Balloons, crackers, cookies, Newbold targets, clay birds, etc. If you shoot at a place where you can dig around in the backstop to look for bullets give that a try - one of my sons loves doing that.

Get them to try different kinds of sights. Red dot sights are great because they let kids shoot adult size rifles be eliminating the eye relief problems of regular scopes.

Shooting the sealed cans or even old soda or water bottles that have been refilled will make a big impression on most kids as far as the destructive abilities of firearms.

Kids will have some great days where they can't seem to miss and they will have terrible days where they can't seem to hit anything. If they are having one of the bad days give them easier targets.

Watch them close for proper form. My second son loves to try and lay his head over the stock to use the wrong eye with a rifle. Not an eye dominance issue. He does the same shooting from either shoulder. I added a raised cheek rest and solved the problem.

Boy scouts and 4H might be a good idea. I haven't looked into them. However, I wouldn't do those just to get to the shooting aspects.

I've found it helps to have the kids grandpa around to help. When they are really young it helps to have a second adult to watch them and to help out. Sometimes a second perspective can help on shooting form. This is only true if Grandpa is an experienced shooter and my dad is. I wouldn't want my wife's stepfather around when guns are in use.

Keep it fun and keep it safe.

 

[Sam1911]

One thing that occurred to me today would apply here and also to teaching wives or pretty much any new shooter:

There is ONE teacher at a time. If a buddy of yours who is a trained shooter, or your club's youth instructor -- or whomever -- is going to sit down with your kids and teach them some shooting fundamentals, STAY OUT OF THE CONVERSATION. If you trust this person with your kid and a firearm, then let go and let them work.

A kid (or any new shooter who deserves to be on the line) will listen carefully to what one authority figure/teacher is telling them to do, and will focus and try to implement those instructions to the best of their ability. The results may not be immediately pretty, as some of these concepts are complicated. Resist the urge to jump in with further advice, explanations or, especially, criticism while the new shooter and instructor are trying to work together.

The kid is trying to internalize and personalize the postures and functions he/she's being instructed to perform. That's a hard enough job without having to sort out what might seem like contradictory instructions. On a more subtle level, the shooter is learning to trust the instructor and the instructor is concentrating on both communicating clearly and hearing/seeing the information that the shooter is sending back about what he/she is doing and feeling. Another voice throwing out a bunch of out-of-synch directions just robs them of their ability to communicate in this way.

A good teacher will probably focus on one small part of the skill set at a time. It can be excruciating to resist the urge to holler out what else the kid's doing wrong, but if the teacher is satisfied that his/her steps are being understood and followed, let them work it the way they feel it should go.

Sometimes, even just having Dad (and/or "the gang") as an audience may be more stressful and distracting than is beneficial. Especially if you are the type that has a lot of respect and appreciation for your own skills -- and have a hard time not sharing your insights -- consider having something else to be doing while "Junior" or "Sis" is receiving instruction. Go shoot a round of skeet or plink on the pistol range or something to get you out of their hair for 1/2 hour.

Just some thoughts -- but I've seen this done well and poorly many times. I've been a culprit, too.

Good luck!

-Sam

 

[Jorg Nysgerrig]

Reactive targets are great.

I'm just really quoting this for emphasis. A box of clay targets or a spinning metal target will keep a kid's attention a lot longer than shooting into a piece of paper.

 

[bluestarlizzard]

>>Boy scouts and 4H might be a good idea. I haven't looked into them. However, I wouldn't do those just to get to the shooting aspects.<<

while boyscouts does have a lot of other things going on, 4H is run a little diffrent. 4H usually has several diffrent intrest focuses sepporated into diffrent groupings. big 4H events get all the little clubs together, but the rest of the time they fly solo. during my time in 4H i belonged to both the Adventure Club (outdoor, Backpacking, Rockclimbing and Canoeing type stuff) and the shooting club. their was also, in charlottsville, a Hoof and Woof club (that had lost the Woof portion, but retained the name) focused on Horsemanship and Dog handling. out in the surronding counties the agracultulral asspect was also avialible. the 4H shooting camps ( i went to the holiday lake camp in VA) is a week of shooting. from 9 to 11:30 all kids our on their ranges (which included Advanced 3-P, Begginer/Intermediate 3-P, Advanced Shotgun/begginer shotgun, archery, and air rifle) after lunch campers were back on the range until about 3:30. in the late afternoons camp activities varied from hunter saftey courses, outdoor survival courses, birdcalling, reloading seminars and goofy type competitions like the Redneck Olympics (which had a name change my third year, 'cause someone desided that Redneck wasn't appropreate) which had teams competing in stuff like egg races and clay catching, or senica run, a timed race along a wooded trail with stops to test skills in axe throwing, knife throwing, archery and blackpowder shooting, as well as a canoeing section across the lake. after dinner award ceramoneys (complete with bonfire and s'mores) or playing with the projection vidio hunting game, and the pool was usually open for swimming.
i never went to the main 4H camp sessions, but a friend of mine did and said the shooting was usually limited to the air rifles in the pavilion.

 

[btg3]

My son and daughter were also homeschooled.
Starting BB/pellet plinking in the backyard at age 5.
Each won the youth shoot at the City Rec Dept and were awarded BB guns.
Also won pellet shoots sponsored by my employer and were award $50 gift certificates.
As teens their interests were elsewhere, but now my son just got a 9mm and CWP. He plans to join me at IDPA.
My daughter also wants CWP but is underage, but has said she'd like to try IDPA.

Great suggestions in the above posts. Sounds like you've got a place to shoot, but when the weather is bad, indoor BB/pellet shooting can be fun and safe with a proper trap (easy to make and a good homeschool project).

 

[Bitmap]

To Sam1911: I guess every kid and grandparent is different. I haven't had any of the problems you've described with my 3 oldest. I don't expect any with the 4th. I don't think Grandpas are normally an audience or a cause of stress. If you don't work well with Grandpa (as I don't with my wife's stepfather) then keep them away.

 

[aguyindallas]

I would look around/ask around. You will find a lot of places that shoot IDPA. Skill ranges from total novice to total expert and all levels are always welcomed. Go out one day with your son and watch a match. Then, shoot a couple yourself to get more familiar (with him watching). Then, get him involved if you think he is mentally mature enough. Most clubs will welcome ANYBODY introducing youth to shooting and help anyway they can.

At the very least, get out to the range and be competitive together with some long range rifle shots. Thats just good fun. If he is the intellectual type of kid, he will enjoy learning all about precision rifle shooting and I bet you guys can learn something together.

I am in the same boat as you are right now. This year, I have gotten more involved in hunting and I take my son as often as I can.

 

[Sam1911]

To Sam1911: I guess every kid and grandparent is different. I haven't had any of the problems you've described with my 3 oldest. I don't expect any with the 4th. I don't think Grandpas are normally an audience or a cause of stress. If you don't work well with Grandpa (as I don't with my wife's stepfather) then keep them away.

That is great! A Grandpa, especially, can be quite an asset and if you do work well together then your kids will benefit. (Not just in shooting instruction, either, I might add.)

My post was directed more towards folks who get some outside training from youth instructors or another adult who isn't an integral part of the family. If you and Grandpa are both of the nurturing, mutually supportive type who coach gently and cooperatively, then you will probably be successful and low stress. I think such situations are regrettably rare, but very good for you and the kids if you are so fortunate!

Some folks are more hierarchical and perhaps a bit more excitable. If your style tends more towards drill instructor ... or a college basketball coach at the final four ... then do your kids a favor and give the instructor space to work.

I think pressure and confusion/frustration/shame do more to kill a kid's interest in shooting than recoil or muzzle blast. If they don't manage to hit ANYTHING their first time out, they still need to feel like they were successful. A good instructor will be able to give praise in the small things and see just where to apply pressure to improve the shooter's technique without breaking down their confidence. If they think they're good at it, they'll want to do it again. Success breeds success. Contradictory messages, and sometimes just too much information, can foul that up.

-Sam