Shooting facts for kids

A man shooting hawks with a Krag-Jørgensen bolt-action rifle in 1940

Shooting means firing a weapon that sends out a projectile. This can be a rifle, shotgun, or even older weapons like bows and crossbows. It also includes firing larger things like artillery, rockets, and missiles.

Someone who is very skilled at shooting is called a marksman. Shooting can happen in special places called shooting ranges. It also takes place outdoors during hunting, in fun shooting sports, or in serious situations like combat. Shooting is even a sport in the Olympics!

What Is Shooting Used For?

Shooting is often used for hunting animals. People might hunt birds like grouse or pheasants, or small animals like rabbits. Sometimes, when people say "shooting," they just mean "hunting."

Shooting is also used in warfare to protect a country. It can be used for self-defense to stay safe, or by law enforcement officers to keep people safe.

Competitive Shooting Sports

For a long time, people have enjoyed shooting as a sport. In many countries, special clubs for rifle shooting started in the 1800s. Soon after, international competitions began.

Shooting has been an Olympic sport since the very first modern Olympic Games in 1896. There are also World Championships that started in 1897. The International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) organizes many of the big rifle, pistol, and shotgun competitions, including those in the Olympics. Other groups also run different kinds of shooting sports around the world.

Getting Started with Shooting

If someone wants to shoot firearms, they usually need a special permission called a license in most countries. Firearms can only be bought from shops that are officially registered and follow strict rules.

Related Pages

• Gun

Images for kids

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  Glenn Eller shooting at 2008 Summer Olympics double trap finals

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  Olympic competitive air rifle shooting by Nancy Johnson in Sydney 2000

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  Pehr Evind Svinhufvud, the third President of the Republic of Finland, shooting at a shooting range in Kuopio in 1934.

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  Edward Hacker (1813–1905), after Abraham Cooper, RA, (1787–1868), print of shooting, UK.

See also

In Spanish: Tiro (proyectil) para niños