9 year old girls first time shooting

Moorvogi said:

We currently live in laurel but our farm is in Westminster. I maintain a range badge at AGC. I want her to decide she wants more. I'm ready to support her, but I want it to be her choice not mine. Right now, she's happy with hitting targets. She does want to run the camera thru a spotting scope though so she can record when the groundhogs do backflips after been feed via 300 win mag... "One side is fine but the other side.. 'the insides are on the outside!'"

I have an appleseed gong set for .22 I have several firearms for her to learn or grow into if she chooses.

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When she is ready I know both Monumental and Arlington AGC clubs have junior programs.

Very cool. My daughter is only a month old, and while I want her to stay young(ish... The nightly crying isn't fun...) forever, I'm looking forward to moments like this.

willtill said:

Would love to see this published in the Capital Gazette.

...be like the sound of the 4th of July fireworks, with all of the liberal heads imploding over it.

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It'd represent the same thing as the 4th as well...

Blacksmith101 said:

When she is ready I know both Monumental and Arlington AGC clubs have junior programs.

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Thanks. I might consider it but for now, she's not strong enough told hold the firearm for a consistently safe shot so we shoot prone. I have faith in her trigger control but it's not worth the risk.

The firearm we have for 'youth' is a Cricket, synthetic stock. She can run the bolt but isn't quit strong enough to cock it herself. Cocking requires a separate second action.

I have a 10/22 but i dont want her to get use to the ability to just fling lead down range until she hits her target. HHHAHAH it's sad and amuzing to see people at AGC do a 30 round mag dump w/ a fast tactical mag change to do another mag dump at their target and miss the torso 3/4 of the shots at 25 yards. That's an expensive noise maker, not a marksmen.

Really respect your approach to teaching her fundamentals and trigger control -that you are developing a marksman rather than a shooter

If she would like to do an Appleseed (seems like you have done a few or are an instructor!) and you want something in between the Cricket and a 10/22, I have a CZ Scout that is a good in-between loaner - youth stock, bolt action, single shot or mag fed, easily fitted with a bipod.

We definitely keep youth shooters down until they demonstrate the strength for other positions (particularly standing), but have good luck with the fundamentals from a bipod using a single shot bolt or a 10/22. Within the last year, we had one young girl score multiple 250s from a bipod with a 10/22 and just a month or two ago a young boy at his second Appleseed scored in the 220s from a bipod before moving to a sling in the seated and prone positions.

Then, of course, you have 10 year-old Shannon Moriarty who is the youngest high-power competitor in the country who got her start at Appleseed as well:

Good story on her at the CMP website

KYFHO said:

Really respect your approach to teaching her fundamentals and trigger control -that you are developing a marksman rather than a shooter

If she would like to do an Appleseed (seems like you have done a few or are an instructor!) [/URL]

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I "knew how to shoot" then i went to appleseed and was humbled. I loved it so much i've been back 2 more times one of them was a modified known distance shoot.

I refer people to appleseed a lot, new and "veteran" shooters. Every "shooter" needs a lesson in humility and humbling of an appleseed event.

I will be sending her to appleseed at some point. for now, we're shooting a gong set i have rated for 22lr. it's the black portion of the AQT as a gong set. Post at 25y and go to town. it also has morgan's shingle on the gong set.

i want her to want to shoot. i dont want it to be my thing that she does to "make me happy" etc etc. I've shared w/ her how much support you all are giving on this thread and.. she's glowing w/ shock. She wants to go shooting again "soon". We will be working on posture and 6 steps to taking a shot. She's already demonstrated knowledge and understanding of follow thru and trigger jerking. next is anticpating the "kick". which is nothing in a .22lr but she did MUCH better with CCI QUIET rounds than normal winchester white box. she still hit the gong but she "liked" the quiet ones more and the recovery time wasn't as bad (yes earphones). preventing the flinch will result in a better cheek weld and trigger pull.

i'm REALLY looking forward to shooting with her, but willing to accept if it's just a phase that passes.

I am sure she already knows what an awesome and supportive Dad she has. Much admiration for how you are handling this.

Wish I had the land for the AS gong set you have. Would sound like wind chimes all the time...

And if the CCI Quiets aren't quiet enough, there are further steps

That's what its all about!! Great job, Dad!

Moorvogi said:

Thanks. I might consider it but for now, she's not strong enough told hold the firearm for a consistently safe shot so we shoot prone. I have faith in her trigger control but it's not worth the risk.

The firearm we have for 'youth' is a Cricket, synthetic stock. She can run the bolt but isn't quit strong enough to cock it herself. Cocking requires a separate second action.

I have a 10/22 but i dont want her to get use to the ability to just fling lead down range until she hits her target. HHHAHAH it's sad and amuzing to see people at AGC do a 30 round mag dump w/ a fast tactical mag change to do another mag dump at their target and miss the torso 3/4 of the shots at 25 yards. That's an expensive noise maker, not a marksmen.

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There are junior shooting programs for BB guns, air rifles as well as .22's. We start (air rifle program) them shooting from a rest and will add other positions as their strength and abilities allow. Go and talk to some junior program instructors we have probably been teaching kids for longer than some MDS members have been alive. Look around and you can probably find a program that you and she will be comfortable with which will give her the chance to shoot with other kids.

No matter if it is a program or home school here is a great resource with lots of information for junior and other new shooters:

The CMP Coaches Resources page
http://thecmp.org/training-tech/coaching-resources/

Especially the series by Gary Anderson (Google him if you don't know who he is)
http://thecmp.org/communications/gary_otm/

we have electronic earphones for her so she can hear me talk but no harm of the rifle. a suppressor IS on the list i had been thinking about a 30 cal but w/ her shooting, i'm leaning more toward a 22 first.

Nice! I started both my boys at 8 and they’ve been doing great. My daughter has a year to go before she hits the magic 8 and gets to learn also. I had a Cricket. For about 2 months and then my wife made me get rid of it because she didn’t want us to own “kid sized guns”.

Don’t ask.

Anyway, they’ve been learning on my 10/22 since. I got Rugers modular stock for it so I can swap between the youth and adult LOP modules as well as a low module in youth so they can use the irons and pull the scope off.

Both boys have ADHD and the oldest really bad. But they are ridiculously serious and good listeners whenever I take them out. They like when I take out the ground hog plastic spinner (limited on what I am aloud to use on my range. Mornings during the week are good when there is no one around and we can setup on the 50yd covered pistol range).

With irons my oldest is about to get 90% in to 2” at 25 and 5” at 50. Middle is 60% in 2” and 6” at 50. Still working on it. With a scope my middle one is better than my older one. Older one gets fliers occasionally still with a usual 2” group size at 50. My middle one tears a 1” hole at 50 when the 10/22 is wearing a scope

lazarus said:

Nice! I started both my boys at 8 and they’ve been doing great. My daughter has a year to go before she hits the magic 8 and gets to learn also. I had a Cricket. For about 2 months and then my wife made me get rid of it because she didn’t want us to own “kid sized guns”.

Don’t ask.

Anyway, they’ve been learning on my 10/22 since. I got Rugers modular stock for it so I can swap between the youth and adult LOP modules as well as a low module in youth so they can use the irons and pull the scope off.

Both boys have ADHD and the oldest really bad. But they are ridiculously serious and good listeners whenever I take them out. They like when I take out the ground hog plastic spinner (limited on what I am aloud to use on my range. Mornings during the week are good when there is no one around and we can setup on the 50yd covered pistol range).

With irons my oldest is about to get 90% in to 2” at 25 and 5” at 50. Middle is 60% in 2” and 6” at 50. Still working on it. With a scope my middle one is better than my older one. Older one gets fliers occasionally still with a usual 2” group size at 50. My middle one tears a 1” hole at 50 when the 10/22 is wearing a scope

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niCE! appleseed is the way to go, i make no money from saying that but i'll say it again.

As for not wanting a 'kid sized gun', i hear ya. we refuse to have a bb/pellet gun in the house as too many households see them as toys or non lethal items. all of my kids have seen the distructive power of a 300winmag, 308, 223, 22. i have a pellet gun now but.. all of my kids know muzzle/trigger control.

in addition to the anatomy of a pew (brass, primer, powder, bullet and 2 lbs of pressure)...

What a great Dad - thanks for sharing!