#ItsADaisy #CollectiveBias
My 11 year old daughter, Lira, is embracing her tween years even as I am holding tight to her childhood. This poses quite the dilemma as I am looking for cool Christmas presents for tweens that still remind me of the younger years. And then I remembered something from my own past.
Much too long ago, I stood on the back deck of our home with my Dad and little brother as we were given our first lesson on gun safety and how to use a Daisy BB Gun. After he went inside, I noticed small holes in the base of a tree and wondered if a BB gun would leave similar marks. So… I shot the tree. And the BB ricocheted off the tree and hit me on my leg. It was a sting I will never forget.
Considering a Daisy BB Gun for Lira seemed very appropriate for her age as long as she was adequately trained in gun safety and gun use. Thankfully, Daisy educates roughly one million of America’s youth a year through their Ten Lesson Shooting Curriculum about BB gun use and safety (found here).
When we visited Academy Sports to purchase Lira her Daisy BB Gun, we also bought a Red Ryder for my husband and I as well as safety glasses and Daisy BBs. We thought it would make for excellent family time if we had more than one BB gun.
Lira was super excited, but before she could hold the Daisy BB Gun, we wanted to walk her through the lessons on gun safety and use.
All of a sudden, her countenance changed. She seems to lose her confidence, and she no longer wanted to hold the gun.
While we persisted with the lesson, we did not force her to participate, but I think the fun was contagious because as she saw my husband and I enjoying ourselves, she became more involved little…
by little. And suddenly she was asking me for a turn.
As I reassured her that the gun was safe when used properly, I guided her back through the lessons we had discussed.
Never touch a gun without adult supervision.
Always know where your gun is pointing.
Never touch the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
Treat every gun as if it were loaded.
Know what is behind your target.
Soon, with gentle instruction and encouragement, Lira was aiming the Daisy BB Gun at the target and even shooting.
Her smile was contagious and as we emptied the ammunition from the guns and returned inside, she asked, “Can we shoot the BB guns again tomorrow?”
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Enter to win an Academy gift card for a Daisy BB Gun
This giveaway for a $100 Gift Card to Academy so that you can purchase a Daisy BB Gun of your own. Please note that the gift card will not arrive in time for Christmas. Open to US residents only.
Disclosure: Gift card provided by Academy through Collective Bias. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. US only. Giveaway ends on December 8, 2014 at 11:59 PM CST. Winner will be notified by email within 24 hours and have 48 hours to respond or forfeits the prize. Thank you. Good luck!
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I would give this to my boys
I will give it to my daughter ^_^
I would gift it to my friends son
I would give a Daisy BB gun to my niece who would love to have this as a gift this year.
My 10 year old would love this!
My kids would share it. (And I wouldn’t mind it myself.)
My brothers always got into so much trouble shooting things they weren’t suppose to with the BB guns when we were little. Always being mindful of the target is such an important gun safety tip! One We are really driling into our own boys when we go shooting BB guns. #client
I would give one to my daddy!
I would give it to my son. He loves everything about hunting and want to start soon. Our mentor program here in Wisconsin would be a great place to teach these basics. He also take Air Rifle for 4-H and having his own gun would come in handy.
My tween daughter would love this!!
I would give this to my niece, she’d love it.
It would be for my 3 girls, but my husband would be just as excited about them having it! 😉
My 12 year old daughter would LOVE to have a Daisy BB gun! 🙂 What fun to share something that requires responsibility, but is also a lot of fun!
I would love to give this to my youngest son. 🙂
I think that one of our daughters would like to have a BB gun.
I would give the gun to my boys.
I would give this to my son.
My daughter.
I would give it to my niece
The boys would use it. I fondly remember shooting with my papa’s left-handed Daisy pistol. I am not left handed!
My son just turned nine, so this would be for him.
My daughter would LOVE a BB gun this year. Her brother got one last year and loves it.
I would love to give this to my son!
If she really likes shooting bb guns check with your local 4-H about their SAFE program. It’s a wonderful program where you shoot bb’s competitively while learning gun safety. You shoot on a local level at different matches either by team and or individual while trying to qualify for your state match. We live in Georgia and at our state match we have 500+ shooters each year! Then in June/July Daisy host the Daisy National BB Gun Championship Match! Total fun….Daisy is a top notch company! This is our 4th year!
I was thinking about getting my daughter a BB gun too after reading your article as it seems to be quite an entertaining and useful way to teach them to protect themselves and discipline while having fun. The part where you mentioned about the fun of the activity being contagious and satisfying to the child is something I would like my daughter to feel and embrace. Personally, I would like to enroll her in a gun safety course too so that she’ll be able to handle a real gun once she’s old enough to have one for self-defense purposes. Thanks for the inspiring story about gun safety lessons for kids!