Teaching kids to shoot?

[Kurts86]

Out of curiosity, is learning with iron sights actually value added for a first experience or is it just the idea that’s how it’s been taught for 150 years? It seems like a low powered scope or a red dot eliminates the variable of considering an extra point of alignment. You can always go back and teach that skill later.

Outside of wing shooting and muzzleloaders in CO I’m shooting with a red dot or a scope so why introduce an extra level of complexity for a beginner.

I just got back from Cub Scout camp and between horrible stock ergonomics and iron sights there were plenty of frustrated kids. I came away with the philosophy that adjustable stocks and red dots will be the way forward for my kids to initially learn how to shoot.

 

[Nine Banger]

I just got back from Cub Scout camp and between horrible stock ergonomics and iron sights there were plenty of frustrated kids.

Working on it.

 

[Nine Banger]

Out of curiosity, is learning with iron sights actually value added for a first experience or is it just the idea that’s how it’s been taught for 150 years? It seems like a low powered scope or a red dot eliminates the variable of considering an extra point of alignment. You can always go back and teach that skill later.

I have fixed 6xs on my boys 223 rifles and when I started them out I printed a screenshot of the reticle out on an 8x11.5" piece of paper to make damn sure we were on the same page of what I expected of them.

When they started shooting pistols with irons I made a cardboard set of irons to show them how to line them up. If I'm shooting iron sighted pistols with newbs I'll make the same demonstration by drawing it in the dirt with my toes.

 

[smellslikesteelcase]

Out of curiosity, is learning with iron sights actually value added for a first experience or is it just the idea that’s how it’s been taught for 150 years? It seems like a low powered scope or a red dot eliminates the variable of considering an extra point of alignment. You can always go back and teach that skill later.

Outside of wing shooting and muzzleloaders in CO I’m shooting with a red dot or a scope so why introduce an extra level of complexity for a beginner.

I just got back from Cub Scout camp and between horrible stock ergonomics and iron sights there were plenty of frustrated kids. I came away with the philosophy that adjustable stocks and red dots will be the way forward for my kids to initially learn how to shoot.

I start kids with iron sights because it allows them to focus on their breathing, natural point of aim, trigger control and follow through with less perceivable movement of the target against the sights. Having to rely on two aiming points being aligned will ensure that they are holding the gun properly.

Before starting a kid on iron sights, it’s important to make sure they have a gun that fits and they understand the sight picture and target alignment with the sights they’re using.

Start them with Olympic style aperture front and rear sights on round paper bullseyes. The idea of aligning the circle inside of the circle inside of the circle is easy enough for third graders to understand and execute on.

 

[digger]

Make it fun. Oh did I mention have fun

 

[HiMtnHntr]

Started my kids with 22’s at the sticky targets that show impact then big game silhouette targets, graduated to 7mm-08 with reduced recoil. Finally shooting magnum rifle by age 12. All 3 have taken multiple deer/elk/antelope. Very few misses and one out of the 3 has never missed anything.

 

[BH107]

I started mine on a bolt action 22lr with open sights young.. Once my son was old enough to hunt we we went with a nicer bolt action 22lr with a scope similar to what he would be hunting with. He shot hundreds our rounds that summer in all positions, including in the field. Once I got him behind his 6.5CM it was automatic and he didn't even realize or think about that it was a larger rifle. We even went out and shot out to 400yds on steel with him getting first round impacts at several distances, then he knew he could make the shots. At 11 he shot his first mule deer at 200yds without a bit of hesitation and last years it was 325yds with the same confidence.

 

[SloppyJ]

@Nine Banger has given you the perfect advice. I started mine off on a BB gun, then a single shot rascal 22lr, and then a tikka .223. He is turning 9 and we are about to see how he can handle a 22cm. He can hammer with the 223 surprisingly well and it's been super effective for us over the past few years with 77tmks.

I go over prone, standing, and shooting off of a tripod with each gun then we move up when he can manage all of those things. It's hard when they're young because of weight and rifle control, that needs to be your number one item to send home.

Good luck, it's super fun to watch them get excited when they do well and watching them work out to distance is an even better feeling. Sometimes you gotta throw some stuff in there to humble them a bit too or they think they're better than they are.

 

[eric1115]

Thanks everyone, Some good stuff. If for some reason the 6creed seems a bit much I'll look into getting a 223 soon then later. I like the idea of letting her shoot different things, Maybe go buy a few melons, water jugs etc to let her blast up so she has fun.

This is excellent. Kids get pushed around by "mild" recoil way more than we realize. The thread linked earlier has a ton of good info from a lot of different people. I'd definitely give it a read if you haven't yet.

Water bottle with vinegar/baking soda makes a fun reactive target, and steel targets are super satisfying as well. Definitely worth doing some paper target work as well, as it really drives home the concept of always having room to improve. A 12" target at 100 has its place, but it's easy to feel like 10/10 on that steel is perfect, no room for getting better than that!

 

[kcm2]

I give them a 22 rifle at 4. Teach them how to be safe by telling them they can't fire it until I'm sure they are safe. So, they carry the rifle in the woods without ammo for months until they are 100% safe with their muzzle control. Then the fun begins.

 

[kcm2]

I have a friend who is originally from the Boston area. Her nephew, a couple of years ago, was wanting to join the Royal Navy as he was a British citizen. He was visiting his aunt in Colorado, so she asked me if I'd take him to the range to teach him to shoot. He literally had never handled a firearm. So, a month before, I sent him Col. Cooper's rules for gun safety, told him to memorize them, and that any adult at the range was right and he was wrong if there was a dispute.

Fast forward to range day. He shot a 22 Ruger pistol with a red dot sight, an AR, a 9mm Glock, and a 6mm Creedmoor. The fellows at a table east of me had some high tech military sniper gear and couple of full auto toys. We talked, I told them what I was doing and they said, bring him over. One fellow was a retired Israeli soldier with some serious history, the others were military, too. They let him shoot all their cool stuff. He had a great day.

Fast forward to his basic training for the Royal Navy. He was the best shot in his class and was given an award for gun safety. Now, he's being fast tracked for officer training. One of the best things I did that year.

 

[BVGAB]

I started mine on a bolt action 22lr with open sights young.. Once my son was old enough to hunt we we went with a nicer bolt action 22lr with a scope similar to what he would be hunting with. He shot hundreds our rounds that summer in all positions, including in the field. Once I got him behind his 6.5CM it was automatic and he didn't even realize or think about that it was a larger rifle. We even went out and shot out to 400yds on steel with him getting first round impacts at several distances, then he knew he could make the shots. At 11 he shot his first mule deer at 200yds without a bit of hesitation and last years it was 325yds with the same confidence.

I've gone this route (more or less) with my 2 oldest boys. One thing that seemed to help was having them watch quite a lot early on. Once we stepped up to the 6.5CM, I even had them put their hand between the stock and my shoulder to feel the recoil. Noise reduction has been critical for us. Suppressed and/or high quality hearing protection at the range and in the field has been very important for their success.

 

[TheDoublR]

Basics are easily taught with an open sighted .22. Shooting an open sighted gun is plain not taught anymore plus it will allow you to spot errors in their shooting form easily.

Then you can move to something a bit bigger with a scope. After that if you choose to hunt deer with the kids, I would recommend not using a .223. My first son had a large thick bodied Nebraska 5x5 come out and lets just say we believe the shot went low. The only things worse than missing is hitting the deer, tracking and never finding it. Something to keep in mind when it comes to caliber selection.

100% agree. Open sights 22. Then a scoped 22. Then ar then 243

 

[satchamo]

While it’s just turkeys, to prepare my son, I never let him fire a shotgun outside of hunting. We dry fire practiced in the house off the same tripod he was gonna be on and did that over and over. I then took the same red dot and put it on an air rifle just so he could shoot a bit to get the reaction of actually hitting a target.

He’s killed 2 birds with a 410 and hasn’t shot it any other time.

He’s gonna start deer this year and I’ll be doing a similar approach with using a 22 with the same scope and stock (t1x) then bumping him to the 350 legend when we hunt. Granted I keep shots very close so that’s not really a factor.

I would focus on getting the same or as close to the same sight picture on a gun with little to no recoil or sound and then use dry firing to prepare them on the trigger on the hunting gun.

 

[Drenalin]

My daughter shot her first deer last year with a suppressed AR. But on normal range days, my kids (7 an 10) are shooting air rifles - with ear muffs - to try and help them focus solely on one shot at a time, with as little influence as possible from noise or recoil.

 

[kkp005]

I started my girl off with a scoped and suppressed 22 at 5. We shot off a Tripod at balloons and beer cans filled up with water to make it fun. At that age shooting paper is boringggg.. when she was 7 we stepped up to a tikka 223 in a chasis with an AR stock to make the LOP short enough. She shot her first deer at 7 and has been banging 10” steel plates on demand at 500 yds since she was 8.
To me a good clamping tripod, rifle with minimal recoil and a suppressor are the foundation for making it enjoyable