The first thing to do is teach a new shooter the four basic gun safety rules. It means keeping the safety on and only firing when they’re ready in a safe direction (considering possible ricochets).
It also means never shooting at a moving target. Doing so can seriously injure or scare a new shooter.
Grip
Gripping a firearm properly is essential to gun training. It allows quicker target acquisition, natural finger placement on the trigger, and better recoil management. It becomes even more critical when shooting under compressed time or in a stressful environment.
Proper grip also means keeping your fingers off the trigger until you aim at a target and are ready to fire. Many people watch westerns or cop shows and see them drawing their guns with their thumb on the trigger. But that’s a big no-no in real life.
Always treat every gun as loaded, even if you think it is unloaded. A gun can malfunction or go off accidentally at any time. So you should always assume it is loaded until you check it to be sure. It includes when shopping for a new firearm (although a clerk should confirm that the weapon is unloaded before handing it to you). It also applies to your gun at home, on the gun range, or during a stress response such as a body alarm response (BAR).
Sights
One of the first things you must ensure your new shooter has mastered is sight alignment and sight picture. Requires them to superimpose the front sight on the target. Ensure it is correctly aligned concerning the rear sight for an acceptable picture.
It is important to stress to the new shooter that they should always keep their finger off the trigger until they are ready to fire. Its helps to prevent errant shots caused by jerking or slipping the trigger.
It is also essential to have the new shooter understand that they must treat all guns as if they are loaded. Hundreds of gun accidents, some fatal, happen each year because people erroneously assume that a firearm is unloaded. Always check a gun to ensure it is empty before handling it, and never point a firearm in a direction you do not intend to shoot.
Trigger
Triggers are anything that causes an immediate emotional response of fear, panic, agitation, etc. They are unique from threats because our brain encodes traumatic memories differently than non-traumatic experiences. They are stored outside of conscious memory but live just below the surface of our body and mind.
Keep your finger off the trigger until you are aiming and ready to shoot. It may seem like a no-brainer, but many people make the mistake of believing that safety is their primary safe and that they can rest their finger on the trigger while moving or otherwise handling the gun.
Instead, place the pad of your index finger on top of the trigger guard and your non-dominant thumb alongside the slide or frame to grip the gun firmly. It prevents the trigger from accidentally being pulled by a child or any other unauthorized person. Ensures that your sight picture is not affected when you touch it. Read more exciting articles on Tech new master
