Views on toy guns for little kids?

[JT1JT1]

Do you let your kids play with toy guns?

I currently do not and only intend to allow them to do so after they learn and demonstrate safe gun-handling skills with either a .22, or possibly, air soft/bb/pellet thing.

My thinking is I want them to first learn that guns are tools that must be used responsibly and that unsafe handling is not without consequences. Playing with toys with which they can ignore the basic rules at will seems counterproductive to this goal. (I once had a kid pull and point a toy gun at me in a McDonald's. Pissed me off, as all I saw was a black gun in my peripheral vision, but his parents didn't seem to think it an issue, even if we were only a short distance from where a massacre in McDonald's occurred.)

That said, I had plenty of toy guns as a kid and I later progressed to bb / .22 without incident. And with Christmas is coming up and I know what the 5 year old wants...

 

[HGUNHNTR]

I doesn't matter if you let them or not kids will make a gun out of anything, a stick, their hand, etc, I remember wearing out the pockets of several pairs of jeans before the age of 5 by way of concealing a cap gun.

 

[v3r71g0]

I forbid my kids to play with any kind of gun that does not resemble a 1911, sig, glock, or HK.

 

[MacGuyver77]

I currently do not and only intend to allow them to do so after they learn and demonstrate safe gun-handling skills with either a .22, or possibly, air soft/bb/pellet thing.

My thinking is I want them to first learn that guns are tools that must be used responsibly and that unsafe handling is not without consequences.

I agree. I was taught as a child to respect and treat toy guns like the real thing. I would get me hide tanned if I ever used it unsafely. Now super soakers, nerf guns and anything that didn't really look like a gun was fair play.

 

[darksidemxer]

i agree i was taught to respect and never touch the real thing with out some adult handling it for me. I DID have toy guns, i did go shoot the real thing and to be honest at the young age of 5 going out with grandpa shooting his M1 taught me to keep clear of it. they bought me a bb gun and let me keep it in my room at 7 to see if i would be responsible * C02 powered, they never told me they didnt give me the tanks lol* and then at 10 i got my first 20gauge after showing i knew that guns where not toys to be brought out and played with.

 

[leadaddict]

Kids are going to shoot at each other with play guns whether you let them have 'toy' guns or not. As pointed out above, sticks, hands, or bananas will be used for guns. I'm of the opinion that it is more important to teach the difference between toys and real guns, fantasy and reality. I do use the toy guns to teach safe gun handling as well, but we also play army and 'shoot' at each other with them. HIT THE DECK!!!!!!!!

 

[rich636]

This is a good topic, and something I've thought about myself. Like the second poster said, I remember using anything for a gun: stick, baseball bat, legos. Being a child of the 70's/80's we also had cap guns that could pass for the real thing at a glance. I had a great Python and mini-Uzi look-a-like. We used to run the streets playing army or whatever. A lot of us did, no problems.

I don't know if every generation says this, but it feels like times have changed. Right now, if a child ran down the street ducking behind bushes firing a cap gun, he'd probably be remanded to psychotherapy. I'm sure the parent would get stink eye from the other parents, at least where I live now. Here (Chapel Hill) some group even had a toy drive to collect and destroy violent toys (army men, toy tanks, water guns), it was radio broadcast and everything.

I don't know, I was safe as ever when it came to real guns/ bb guns. In the end I guess you have to deal with it on a case by case nature. If I turn out (against my best efforts) to have a turd of a kid who seems aggresive or doesn't listen...there is no way I'll foster gun anything (toys or real). I was a very easy going kid so I think my parents gave me more leash.

 

[Just One Shot]

Let them be kids.

It doesn't matter if you allow them to have toy guns at a young age.

When they get old enough and mature enough to actually have a bb gun, pellet rifle or a .22 then you can teach them to be responsible gun owners / handlers.

If they aren't mature enough to actually own one of these then you are wasting your time and the only thing you're doing is preventing them from having fun.

 

[HKUSP45C]

Personally, I think toy guns can be a very useful instructive tool. It isn't as if by the time a child is old enough to understand the ramifications of pointin a dangerous object at someone else they will be to immature to tell the difference between the two.

Let's give kids and our parenting skills the credit they deserve.

I had toy guns when I was a kid, first BB gun at 6, first real rifle (.30 Carbine) at 8 and never, ever did anything "untoward" with my "dangerous" guns. I still played with toy guns long after I had the real thing AND I knew the difference.

We used to shoot those guns they had in the early 80's with the disks at each other all the time. It never occurred to me to point my bb gun or rifle at anyone, that would have been dangerous. Would have caught myself a healthy butt whoopin' from my old man, too. Which, come to think of it, was the impetus for me NOT to do a lot of things.

 

[Rodeo4joe]

I agree with what seems to be the majority here. I have my two and a half year old and he has no toy guns as I am a stickler for the gun safty factor and love guns. I have never had a toy gun in our home. But he still finds them. I dont know if it is something from day care or his daddy's addiction to action movies and the versus channel. One thing that I have started however is that whenever he starts playing with his made up pretend guns he will get somewhat rowdy but he has definatly learned that "We dont shoot people" at first this was kinda hard to teach him. but now he has gotten to the point that he only aims at the stuffed animals or the animals on TV. But dont worry he still gets to have fun. If only I could get him to shoot BARNEY.

 

[CajunBass]

Back when I was a kid we all played with toy guns. When we got old enough we had real guns. We KNEW the difference. About the only training I remember getting was "This ain't a toy."

My kids played with toy guns. They had real guns. They knew the difference too. (They got a little more training.)

We "shot" each other with toy guns, not with real ones. My kids did the same.

I doubt kids today are any dummer.

 

[highorder]

This is a good topic, and something I've thought about myself. Like the second poster said, I remember using anything for a gun: stick, baseball bat, legos. Being a child of the 70's/80's we also had cap guns that could pass for the real thing at a glance. I had a great Python and mini-Uzi look-a-like. We used to run the streets playing army or whatever. A lot of us did, no problems.

I don't know if every generation says this, but it feels like times have changed. Right now, if a child ran down the street ducking behind bushes firing a cap gun, he'd probably be remanded to psychotherapy.

I agree, it does seem like times have changed. When I was a kid, I had a great toy gun collection, as did most of the boys on my block. We ran around playing all manner of "shoot each other, and win by attrition" games. When I transitioned to the real thing, it was clear that they were not the toys, and I never had any desire to treat them as such. We kids had poor gun handling skills, and knew nothing of the four rules. We all grew up, and that changed. No damage was done to the learning process by our "gunplay"

Children need to be able to play, and they will act out their activities with whatever is available. My cousin had made a fine RPG from the top 36" of a pine tree, even mounted an old Weaver scope to the top.

 

[LoneCoon]

I never had toy guns as a kid. Now I own a belt fed Nerf Vulcan machine gun.

I don't know if there's a lesson to be learned her or not.

 

[skwab]

Times have definitely changed - I had a lever action cork gun made of metal and wood that looked real enough, and there was a brand of cap guns (I can't remember the name) that were full on replicas - and I had a 1911 that was all metal, you had to rack the slide to load the cap tray and each additional cap - the barrel was solid but other than that the dang thing looked like a full size working 1911 - don't see those anymore- would have the cops called if a kid was running around the neighborhood playing with that thing - back when I had it - no problem at all.

These days a kid can be put into juve for pointing a finger gun at someone - so you have to be more careful I think.

 

[scorpiostang]

I had tons of toy guns when I was a kid. First off I don't see why people are suggesting teaching saftey with toys. You wouldn't give a six year old lesson on proper car handling with matchbox cars and watch them to make sure they drove safely. Kids will Ono the differnce with explintation between toy and reality.
I dnt know what's in toy stores now but 10-15 years ago when I was playing with this stuff gi joes, toy guns, micro machines , etc. Would be found less and less. I will also never forget hearing other parents be afraid that there kids will got shot by the police for holding a toy gun (like the story in die hard)

 

[danweasel]

Sure, I let 'em play with toy guns.

Would you keep your kid from playing with toy power tools?

 

[kamagong]

I played with toy guns all the time as a child. I won't deny my kids that experience.

 

[pak29]

War-related toys of any sort, incluiding toy guns, were prohibited in my house as a child for religious reasons. I still feel self-conscious about the fact that I now own and am interested in firearms.

 

[ghoster]

poor ups guy looks like a porkiepine buy the time he gets to the door.

the 3,4, and 5 year olds are crack shots with their nerf tag darts.

the 8,10,11 year olds will play with them and have taught them many rules already and how to aim. they also have .22 and shoot with me and are getting very good at the sport.

the 17 and 18 year old girls can make you drool with their wiles or make you feel insecure with their 1 inch groups at 200 yd with the 223.

kids wiiillll play guns. your job is to teach rules as they get old enough to learn them.

 

[EHL]

If you're going to keep them away from toy guns because they represent things that can potentially harm or kill somebody, then I presume that you are also prohibiting them playing with power tools and matchbox toy cars or PowerWheels? I think it's a little too paranoid to disallow children from playing with these sorts of things. That's why we give them toys, so they won't hurt themselves. When they get older and more mature, then they can get the real thing.

 

[Kingcreek]

We played with toy guns all the time. the play part changed to serious when we got projectiles. slingshots, BB guns, bows and arrows, etc. at some point when the folks decided we were mature enough to know the difference. All hell would rain down on any offender but the worst punishment was loss of the favorite weapon. If we screwed up, the slingshot or BB gun was gone. I remeber when my cousin jokingly threatened his sister with a BB gun and it got smashed and thrown in a barrel in front of his tearful eyes. We had access to real firearms only with adult supervision.

 

[wrs840]

My wife, two grade-school-age kids, and I, have Nerf Gun wars in and around the house all the time. It's great fun, and I think they also learn some S&T skills while at it. The idea that it teaches poor safety habits seems a little far-fetched to me. We also range-shoot as a family enough that the kids know the difference between real and toy, no confusion at all.

ghoster, sounds like your UPS guy has a really good sense of humor... outstanding! ..but Eight kids? Impressive!

Les

 

[trol79]

I would, if i had children. In that way children could learn responsible way of handling with guns.

 

[MisterMike]

Let 'em play. I had an impressive arsenal as a kid, then got my first "real" gun when I got to an age where I could comprehend the dangers and handle it safely.

 

[rickomatic]

A couple of points to ponder. I played with toy guns all the time as a child. I was born in 1951, and grew up watching Davy Crockett, Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, Sky King, etc. then later shows like Combat. We played guns based on what we watched on TV. My kids didn't grow up watching cowboys and indians, or WWII TV shows. They got a lot of their play ideas from movies like Star Wars and cartoons like Transformers and the like. Subsequently, a lot of their toy guns and "gunplay" were based on those types of popular culture. My two girls never played with guns, and I don't really remember my son (now 26) playing that much with toy guns either. He had them, because those are the kinds of toys I bought him, because I suppose, I remembered the fun I had with them. Even though I am a "gun nut", his only interest nowadays with guns is hunting. I'm not sure what kids today base their play on (my 2 grandkids are only 5 and 2), but I'm sure with everything so PC, it's not guns that much.
I say if a kid is interested in playing with guns, see what that play is actually based on and instruct as needed. I wouldn't worry too much unless it's something he's seen, and is copy catting, that may not have been age appropriate in the first place.