Quote:
Originally Posted by eman
IMHO firearm safety should be taught in school as book work from the first grade and by 6th grade they should be shooting a bb gun.
by high school they should least have the option of taking an elective
to learn and shoot long guns and pistols.
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You make some great points, with which I agree. But I will add that parents (and grandparents) can start children out shooting much earlier.
Every parent needs to decide when their children are capable of safely handling and absorbing firearms training. Here is the author of the article with her first deer. She explains:
I have been shooting since I was a little girl. You could say that I have been preparing for most of my life. I shot my first deer at age 5.
At age 6, I was moving through the NRA small-bore rifle qualifications. When asked how long I have been shooting, answering vaguely with “about a decade” raises some eyebrows. My dad started me shooting in our backyard (we had a lot of space 
) when I was very young. The motivation started as “Everyone should know how to handle a rifle, and use it.” I am lucky enough to live in a free country, but that freedom comes with a price, as the many members of the American armed forces know well. Shooting is a recreational sport for me, one that I enjoy, but the skills gained can mean the difference in living or dying. America’s founders thought it so important, the “right to keep and bear arms” was the Second Amendment to the Constitution! I want to have the skills to exercise my rights, “bear arms”, not just keep them. from
https://willtoprepare.wordpress.com/...ll-to-prepare/
One seldom acquires a very high level or proficiency in sporting disciplines unless practice opportunities are provided by the parents at a young age. Starting at 12 is certainly better than starting at 18, but just like golf, tennis, gymnastics, etc., the ultimate level of achievement in shooting sports will be higher if practice begins earlier.
Most states do not even have a minimum hunting age for children directly supervised by a parent, and ages range from 10-16 for hunting without supervision. Having the hunter education course is the near universal requirement. I think my own children were allowed to hunt by themselves (with me a short distance away) by their early teens. But when I was right there, my wife and I were comfortable with them hunting and shooting at much younger ages, beginning with well supported positions.