Shooting Games
Rifle Shooting Challenges
There are a number of shooting challenges you can work on:
Dime Club - get 5 rounds to fit under a dime
Double Dime - get 10 rounds to fit under a dime
NRA Marksmanship Awards - work on nationally recognized shooting qualification
Split a Card - turn a card sideway and split it in half
Card split with .22 rifle
9mm PLINK!
Pistol Shooting Challenges
Pistol shooting is limited to Venture Crews, Jamboree and special Council Events. Scouts generally need to be 14 years of age. Many Councils required one on one instructor to shooter ratios and there just aren't as many pistol instructors in the BSA as rifle and shotgun instructors. Luckily, Troop 60 has a pistol instructor and our scouts have been able to participate in shooting events.
Games may include:
Plinking challenges
Shooting cards
Splitting cards is possible, but is challenging without zeroing a pistol
Card shot with Pistol
BB Gun Shooting Games and Activities
Per BSA National Shooting Sports Manual
A variety of games or activities can be done with BB gun shooting skills. Different ranges could be set up to play a particular game or courses could be set up where participants go from station to station. BB gun shooting games and alternate activities work well, especially when youth are in camp for more than one day or if a council sponsors a special BB gun shooting camp for Cub Scouts. Shooting games are designed to improve shooting skills. Remember—safety is a must.
The following games and activities are appropriate for Tiger Cubs with their adult partners, Cub Scouts, Webelos Scouts and Arrow of Light Scouts.
Fun Target Activities
Make 8.5-by-11-inch targets with several squares on each. Put a number in each square. Shooters can see the squares but not the numbers in them. After firing at the page, the shooter adds up the numbers from the squares that their BBs hit. The highest score is the winner.
Place dots on a target, then shoot at the back side of the target. Count the score from the dotted side.
Suspend table tennis balls in a box to use as targets.
Create a target by taping round candy to the back of a box. When the target is hit by the BB the candy shatters.
Set up balloons as targets.
Set up crackers as targets. Have participants shoot at the narrow edges of the crackers.
Tic Tac Toe
Place three rows of three balloons on a target mat. Divide the group into two lines and have them stand in a single file 20 feet from the target. At the signal to shoot, each shooter will shoot one BB and step back. The second and each succeeding person will shoot one at a time. The first team to break three balloons in any line is the winning team.
BB Gun Shooting Practice Fun
A practice station is a simple, basic BB gun shooting range, but is very fun for the boys. Many Cubs have few opportunities to shoot guns, so having the opportunity at a council camp or event to practice is a great experience for them.
Discuss and emphasize the primary rules of proper gun handling. Point out that all guns are potentially dangerous.
Practice the following skills:
Have participants always point the muzzle in a safe direction and to be sure of their target.
Show how to handle a gun while standing and when walking.
Demonstrate and practice various gun-handling situations—how to pass the gun to another person, how to cross a fence with it, how to store it in an automobile, and how to get in and out of a boat with it. Use real or artificial situations, but use the Scouts as demonstrators and require them to practice with others watching.
Review sight pictures and sight alignment. Give reasons for sighting in a gun before shooting. Tell how little mistakes in sight alignment cause big misses on the target.
Explain sight adjustment—move the rear sight in the direction you want the BB to go.
Have relays, prone position without magazine, using sling or sandbag and paper targets.
Explain the use of BB dishes.
Demonstrate sitting, kneeling, and standing shooting positions.
Shoot five rounds per Cub Scout using the standing position.