Teach your children well

Gabby as a nannyNew shooters, who are moms of young kids, often ask, “How do I keep a gun in my home so that my kids can’t get hurt.” I usually have to give two responses. First I say, “If you carry concealed at all times, including in your home, your kids will never be in the presence of your gun without your supervision. This will keep you AND your children safe, plus it offers an added bonus. Your kids will see your gun on you, and you will be able to educate them on gun safety.” This is usually met with the look that says, yeah but I’m not gonna do that, so, what else you got?

As a sales person, I would then look toward the biometric safes, though my heart wasn’t totally in this recommendation. Yes, a safe will keep your guns out of the hands of anyone does not have the key, but they may also keep your guns out of your hands exactly when you need them. I feel very strongly that the best way to keep a gun in a house with a child is through education.

As soon as their kids are mobile, parents will be unable to watch them 24/7. Therefor, instilling an automatic and proper response to dangerous situations is vital. Even those parents who do not own a gun, might want to consider teaching these rules, as they never know what their kids might find on a play-date or in some else’s home. The rules are simple: If I find a gun, I do not touch it, I walk away from it and I go tell an adult. Reciting these rules to them, every time your child is in the presence of a firearm will reinforce the concept.

As they grow up, the question becomes, when to teach a child how to handle the firearm. A very smart competitive shooter and mom, once told me, children should only be taught to handle a firearm when they can properly apply the fundamentals. But having been a nanny many times over and never a mom, I am yet to make such decisions for a child. So I pose the question to y’all: when and how should a child be taught about guns?