Safety Rules for Guns around Children

It is very natural for anyone, including a child, to be curious about something they have been told is off-limits. And just as natural once something is explained it loses its mystery, thus losing its appeal. Talking to a child about guns is like anything else you would discuss with them, the conversation needs to be on their level.

When explaining anything to a child, especially something as important as gun safety, it is important to address the topic in a way that they understand. The first step is to talk to them about being safe. As your child’s parent you cannot control the world, as much as you would like to. He or she is going to be exposed to things you don’t feel they are ready for, so you have a choice, let the world teach them which sometimes ends in tragedy, or you can teach and hopefully prepare them so they know how to react and stay safe.

Think of it this way, we teach our children not to go with strangers, we teach our children about being safe online and we talk about what to do if there is a fire in our home, so why not teach them about what do if they ever find a gun?

Rules for Kids if they ever find a Gun

1. Stop – If your child ever finds a gun the first rule is for them to stop whatever he or she is doing.
2. Don’t Touch – The next rule is to teach your child NOT to touch a gun if they ever find one. They do not know if it is loaded or not, they do not know if the safety is on or not, so the safest course of action is to leave it alone.
3. Leave – The third rule is leave immediately. Even if when they see the gun it is someone else’s hands, they are to leave the area immediately.
4. Tell a Trusted Adult – The final rule is for that child to find and tell a trusted adult right away. This is especially important if when the child saw the gun it was in the hands of another person.

It is also important to discuss the difference between a real gun and a play gun. The guns they see in video games look very much like real guns but only kill the characters on the screen. The play gun that they bought at the store makes noise but doesn’t hurt anyone. A real gun can seriously injure or kill someone. Let your children know, if they are not sure about a gun, whether it is a real gun or a toy gun they should assume it is real and follow the rules listed above.

Children are naturally afraid of the unknown and it has been proven again and again children panic when they are scared. Gun accidents are more likely to happen because a child doesn’t know what it is and/or doesn’t know what to do with it. So, take the unknown piece out of the equation, lessening the chances of a horrible accident.