How to introduce your child to firearm safety
Teaching kids to shoot is as much about the firearm as it is about the responsibility that goes along with it. Firearms are a great way to spend time with the family and you can start teaching young children about firearm safety at an early age.
Firearm ownership dominate a lot of the national agenda these days, and it’s easy to see why. You can’t turn on the television or read a newspaper without at least one story about someone being injured or killed in a firearm related incident.
As your child gets older, they will be exposed to more firearm violence on television and video games. As an adult, you realize that these games are unrealistic, but a child does not. While it’s a good idea to limit their exposure to these types of movies and entertainment, you can’t always prevent them from seeing something they shouldn’t. Rather than ignore what they’ve seen, take it as an opportunity to discuss how firearms were used or abused and the ways that the movie violated the safety standards you’ve laid out for them.
Regardless of your stance on private firearm ownership, every child deserves the basic information to be safe around firearms. The absence of proper firearm safety education is probably the biggest cause of firearm related accidents. Even if you don’t keep a firearm at your home, your children are likely to have friends whose parents are firearm owners, which means at some point, your child may come across a firearm in an uncontrolled environment.
When to start teaching your child about firearm safety
As a general rule, you should begin teaching children about firearms when they first show awareness or interest in them. Every child is different, and you’ll need to factor in their personality as you decide on the best course of action. Teaching children about firearms can begin as soon as your child is old enough to understand what you’re saying. Teaching children how to shoot will come later.
Age group: 4 to 7 years – Firearm Safety
Around this time children start playing with toy guns. You can start teaching children that toy guns are not toys and must be handled with same respect as real firearms.
Teach them not to leave toy guns laying around. Have them lock it up in a cupboard that resembles a ” firearm safe”. This will teach them that real firearms must also be locked up in a SABS approved safe when not in use.
You must teach your child to always adhere to the following rules when they come across an unsupervised firearm:-
- Stop
- Don’t touch
- Call a grownup.
Age group: 7 to 10 years – Firearm Maintenance
At this age they can be introduce them to the parts of a firearms and educate them on firearm maintenance. This helps to familiarize them with the identifying the parts of the firearm, as well as proper handling when taking them apart and during reassembly. It is important to reinforce safety and the importance of proper use and handling at all times.
When you do this, you satisfy their curiosity over firearms in a safe, controlled environment. Then, if they come across one at their friends’ house, the mystery is gone, and they aren’t tempted to touch and play with it.
Age group: 10 to 14 years – Firearm Marksmanship
If your child is mature enough to do so, you can introduce your child to proper shooting form and the basics of marksmanship. One of the best ways to introduce these concepts is by using an Air Rifle. All the shooting fundamentals are present when shooting at a target that becomes the building blocks for responsible and safe firearm ownership in the future.
Age group: 14 to 16 years – Combined knowledge and skills
Depending on your child’s maturity and interest level, it will be time to teach them good marksmanship with a real pistol or hunting rifle. At this point, reviewing all of the information you’ve presented over the years will be especially important because they have a real firearm in their hands. Everything you’ve said up to this point will come together, and your child will be expected to combine their knowledge of safety, maintenance and skill all at once.
Many parents also find it helpful to show children pictures of bloody animals or demonstrate the force of a gunshot by taking their children to the range and showing them what targets look like after a round was fired. These visual aids are a great way to show children exactly what a firearm does and what will happen when the projectile hits the target.
The object here is not to terrify your child but to help them understand the purpose and power of a firearm. If you suspect that your child will be emotionally traumatised by photos or is easily terrified by loud noises, then it may be best to hold off on this step until they are more mature.
Age group: 16 to 21 years – Handle firearms on your own
There’s no magic age when an individual becomes mature enough to handle firearms alone. In South Africa a person can legally purchase and possess a firearm at 21. As a parent, your role as overseer and protector does not end before your child turns 21. As much as possible, continue to monitor your child’s progress and make sure they maintain safe standards as they grow.
How can we be of help?
Guns N’ Roses is an accredited firearm training provider that offers a two-hour rifle training course for children 10 to 16 years of age. The purpose of this course is to introduce new shooters to a rifle. At the end of the course, your child will know how to hold, carry and shoot a rifle safely. This course is also designed to discuss and reinforce firearm safety. During the course, children will receive instructional time as well as live fire time on the range. The class is designed to emphasize firearm awareness and safety above skill. What does this mean? It means that our goal is to provide a safe, educational environment where your child can satisfy their curiosity about firearms and learn how to handle one safely.
A parent should accompany children to this class. We believe that you can better help your child when you see what they see and hear the instruction they receive. We’re happy to teach your children about firearms, but there’s only so much we can teach them in two hours. As the parent, you must continue the discussion at home and help your child develop their skill and understanding of firearms.
Please contact us on info@gunsnroses.co.za for more information on how we can assist you on introducing your child to firearm safety.
Guns ‘N Roses Team
