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Photo: Hunter-education graduate Sophia Raines, an eighth-grade student in Hallsville, demonstrates her proficiency in safely handling a pump-action training shotgun. Photo: Courtesy MDC
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. COVID-19 presented considerable challenges to Missouri schools, staff and students in 2020, including closures, cancellations, remote learning and more. The pandemic also presented challenges to schools and instructors teaching the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) hunter education courses.
“Many schools were closed for much of the year, which reduced the number of kids who could get hunter-ed certified in schools,” said MDC Education Program Coordinator Justin McGuire. “However, MDC staff, teachers and other volunteer instructors responded to these challenges and were still able to teach hunter education in 244 classes at 150 schools as part of their 2020 in-school curriculum. Thanks to their efforts, nearly 4,300 students were certified in hunter education
Outdoornews
February 22, 2021
Discussion has started to allow 12- and 13-year-old junior hunters to take the next step to hunt big game with firearms here in New York. Currently, young nimrods can only hunt small game with firearms at that age class. However, 12- and 13-year-old archers can hunt big game with a bow, which does not include crossbow. That is because the crossbow is not considered archery equipment. You need a muzzleloading privilege to use a crossbow during the archery season. It has long been a big, convoluted mess and it is time to resolve it all.
New York State is among the most restrictive states in the country when it comes to hunting big game with a firearm. Some states have no minimum age while others are age 12 or less. All include adult supervision. Lowering the age for big game firearms hunters will get junior hunters more involved at an earlier age, before we lose them to other activities – such as with the use of electronic games and the Internet. Gett
NM bill would make teaching youth to shoot illegal
By Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation
Also, any child 12 to 18-years-old would not be allowed to handle or have access to a firearm unless completing an undefined “firearm safety course.”
In addition to limiting parents’ ability to introduce their children to hunting and recreational shooting at ages widely accepted across the nation, SB 224 would have a devasting impact on scholastic recreational shooting programs and is in direct conflict with the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish (NMDGF) Mentored-Youth Hunting Program and Hunter Education.
The NMDGF’s Hunter Education Program allows New Mexico residents 10-years-of-age and older to earn their hunter education certification completely online, while the traditional in-person hunter education classes allow children under 10 to participate with a parent, legal guardian or responsible adult.
With more free time on their hands, a growing interest in securing their own food, coupled with the needs for physical outlets and mental relief as a result of the