I’m currently going to school to become a teacher and I work for the YMCA doing day camps. I’ve been playing with the idea of either trying to find a place that teaches kids proper firearm safety and marksmanship skills or maybe seeing what it would take to start something myself in association with some national organization such as the NRA, or BoyScouts. I live in Chattanooga TN and have done some preliminary research and couldn’t find anything and was curious to see what y’all had to say on the subject.
Appleseed has some VERY decent baseline instruction, if you’re looking to avoid utilizing political action committees with delusions of subject-matter expertise (i.e., the NRA).
My son and I did an appleseed shoot when he was 7. The folks were great, there were at least 4 other kids there under 10 years of age, not one issue with any of them. Highly recommended.
The boyscouts have a .22 and 20ga. program here in PA. I’m pretty sure it’s everywhere. (maybe not in commie-fornia) My son is in cubscouts so they are still stuck with the BB gun range. They don’t do pistols at all, no matter the age as far as I know.
www.odcmp.com- the civilian marksmanship program sponsors/supports many junior programs in air gun,22 and centerfire-they may have an affiliated junior club in your area which is a great way to get started. Also they have an emphasis on air gun use which is easier to “sell” to those who may not be staunchly por gun. all the fundamentals are the same and it is a great basis for further shooting later on. Air gun is also easier to work with re range requirement s and the like. Often a suitable and safe air gun range can be set up with portable backstops in any room about 40 feet long
My club (Rivanna Rifle and Pistol Club) offers a Youth Program twice a month to our community for free of charge. See if there are any clubs in your area who does the same.
I started shooting at 7. When I turned 8, I started with the local youth shooting program hosted here at Desert Sportsman Rifle & Pistol Club. It was affiliated with the NRA (NRA chartered range) and the Boy Scout troop I would soon join. We also had a CMP program (when I started it was still DCM). That got me started in smallbore and moved my interets up to hi-power service rifle, which I shot all through jr. high & high school. I cannot stress enough to people how important these programs are for today’s youth. I matured very quickly and even now my best friend is 10 years older than me. I learned paitence, discipline, and control at a very early age; skills that carry over to all aspects of life.
Youth programs need to be cultivated at all turns, regardless of political BS. As long as the kids are there learning, it’s all good.
Several of the national advocacy bodies, NRA, DU, NWF, etc have efforts in different markets specifically geared toward youth. Reach out to the reps in your area to see what is already offered, how you can get involved, or start one up.
Coaching the underserved market segments, ladies and youth, is my favorite instructional activity.
I started my daughter here last year:
http://www.odcmp.com/Competitions/EasternJrHPClinic.htm
You didn’t give the age group, there are many junior teams out there that cover sending kids to the above match. They have to be at least 13 to compete a Perry but Butner allows younger kids there for the USMC Clinic.
my daughter started shooting with me two years ago (@ 7yo), and she’s had fun earning NSSF Junior USA shooting patches.
be sure to check NRA and 4-H youth shooting sports too.
good luck!