Should children be allowed to play with toy guns? What are the rules you set?

Question

Just curious what others are doing. My boys have begun to play with toy guns -acually they aren't even toy guns - a toy drill used as a gun, a squirt gun w/o water. They like to pretend to shoot bad guys and fall over like they've been hit. It's pretty good acting, but I'm not sure about the gun play.

Answer 1

I was so bent out of shape on this one for a while, until i realized that yep!! boys make toy guns out of anything! I just perfer to keep them lazer guns and squirt guns.

Answer 2

I have had this same question in my head for my own children. I do not buy toy guns and won't allow them to be given as gifts either. I have found a few things to be true about the whole gun thing and play shooting..... it's not so much the toys that are a question but why, how and where they came to realize that they could play like this. My 3 year old has done it very few times like your with a toy drill after seeing something on tv. I think if we watch what our children look at on tv ... on EVERY aspect of VIOLENCE then we are more able to keep a good handle on this. Teach them that guns are for the police, to hunt and to protect our families not to play.


also I would consider that anything that resembles a real gun to a police officer could cause nothing but trouble. I have heard of kids getting shot after police assumed the kids had real ones... come to find out they were toys.

Answer 3

In our home we allow water guns in the summer, but that's it. There are no pretend guns, no pretend shooting each other. My oldest is 8 at this time and we have already started a unit on gun safety(we homeschool). By the time he is ten he will definitely know all the gun safety rules, and probably the hunting rules and maybe how to take apart and clean a gun and put it back together(depends on his maturity). Our family is full of both hunters and army personnel so guns are very serious in our family and everyone is taught to respect them and how to use them safely. Anyone more interested usually goes into the army. Guns are not toys and should never be used as such. They are serious weapons and tools that should only be used by people who know what they are doing and are aware of the safety rules(and follow them). My children think only bad people use guns carelessly. We have not yet made them aware of any children shooting children or other horrific gun crimes. Once that happens there will definitely be multiple discussions on the true "badness" of irresponsible gun use and storage I am sure. We will cross that bridge when we get there. As far as play guns go they are aware of why they are not allowed to have them and they never complain. Lord knows there's enough other crap to play with lol. Good Luck

Answer 4

I have a 19 year old and a 14 year old son and when I was considering parenthood, I was absolutely certain that no child of mine would play with a toy gun.

As you've already found out, a boy will shoot even if they're using their fingers. Boys socialize with each other using more aggressive games and they play at having conflicts. When my oldest son started asking for guns for Christmas, I was horrified but after watching him play with his friends, I relented and got him the one he wanted. He was thrilled and it didn't increase or decrease the amount of "war" games he was playing.

My youngest son recently asked for an air rifle. My husband told him the story from his own childhood when he accidentally hit a small bird and killed it. My son was upset that that could happen and he never asked again. It's clear that neither of my boys wanted to ever hurt anything with their guns.

I don't think it's a coincidence that the phrase "boys will be boys" was coined. I think boys being boys is a wonderous thing and, as the mom of boys (one raised in an all girl family), I have come to appreciate boy games and rough housing.

My 19 year old is as gentle and kind a person as any mother could want. He's been a volunteer in our community for years and playing with guns have had no negative effects. My 14 year old has tired of guns (girls are now more interesting) and he also has a sweet and loving nature.

Answer 5

Our children (all 3 girls) played with toy guns....No shooting at each other No I'm gonna kill you or anything like that but all of our children were raised around guns and were taught proper gun safety......but we live way out in the woods (45 minutes from a town) and shooting is something we do on an almost daily basis so guess your surroundings should also be taken into consideration we wouldn't send our kids into the city with guns toy or otherwise

Answer 6

Yes they should, just as their parents and grandparents did. It's sad that our society has come to a point where people are scared to let their kids play cop's, cowboy's, and army men. How did the past generations ever survive? But this is only a small part of what we have become.

With that said, yes let your kid's be kid's. But in today's world as we now know, make sure the guns do not resemble authentic firearms and that they have the bright colored tips on the barrels (orange).

.Also be aware of just because someone has a colored tip on a firearm, or a completely off the wall color such as blue.......it may still be a real firearm.

Answer 7

I played with toy guns as a child, I was taught that even though they were toys to never point one at anyone (except a water gun, because you have to point it at your "victim" if you want to squirt them). It never hurt me. I don't own guns now and don't fee the need to. Playing with toy guns if taught PROPERLY and if taught values and morals as children does not lead to Columbine type events.

Answer 8

I never allowed toy gun play in my house...

When I was 14 I babysat for a family who allowed toy gun play in thier home and had real guns one of thier children shot another to death playing guns and picking up a real one...

I never wanted the possibility of this happening so I never allowed my children to play guns because the real kind are far to dangerous... My husband and I have several guns including shot guns rifles and hand guns all are kept unloaded under lock and key.. Our children all know how to use them as we have taken them target shooting since they were very small (3-4) they know never to point any gun no matter what kind at another person.... They can learn self defense with guns later if they so choose, for now the only guns are real ones they can shoot under close supervision at targets and nothing else..

Answer 9

All young kids like to play "cops & robbers". The trick is to only allow "guns" that do not look real. For example, a "space laser gun" that is bright blue would be acceptable.

A replica of a hand gun that was black or metallic would not be allowed.

Accidents with toy guns and future problems with toy guns are rare....but why take the chance.

Answer 10

Im not either. It is tricky. I have a daycare and we don't allow guns but because we don't allow them they are always coming up with something in place of a gun like you say the toy drill. I don't know if they are fasinated by it because it's not allowed or they are just fasinated by them. Kids will be kids but I wouldn't allow them.