5 Reasons Instructors Should Start New Shooters on a .22 LR

This little cartridge can be one of the most powerful tools for teaching the fundamentals that create safe, confident and successful shooters.

As a longtime NRA Instructor, one of the best tools I have found to use with new shooters is a .22 LR. The NRA Training Department encourages instructors to utilize the .22 LR in training to aid in student concentration in the NRA Basic Rifle Shooting Course and in the NRA Basic Pistol Shooting Course.

The five reasons instructors should start new shooters with a .22 LR are: low recoil; easier learning; eliminates common fatigue issues; students receive double the instruction; and it builds confidence.

Low Recoil
In all my years teaching, I have found that recoil is a new gun owner’s biggest fear when it comes to shooting. The low recoil of a .22 LR helps to quickly get a new shooter over any apprehension he or she might have to shooting. A .22 LR gets your student over their fear of shooting quicker, so that you can begin teaching the safe and proper use of the firearm.

The greatest advantage of using a .22 LR in your firearms training curriculum when training a new shooter is that it helps prevent or even eliminate flinching. Flinching perpetuates bad habits and diminishes the proper shooting fundamentals, handling, and use of a firearm for accuracy on the range.

Another great advantage to the low recoil of a .22 LR is that you can easily isolate the issues that a student might be having when performing the 5 Fundamentals of Rifle and Pistol Shooting. By eliminating the higher noise and recoil of larger calibers, you are eliminating outside factors that might contribute to issues that affect proper shooting.

The low recoil of the .22 LR allows the firearms instructor to accurately diagnose any issues that their students might have while shooting. Trying to figure out what your student is doing wrong is the hardest part of firearms instruction. The .22 LR allows the instructor to quickly determine the issue their student might be having and quickly correct them. This makes for a more efficient lesson and better student progress.

Makes Learning Easier
As an NRA Firearms Instructor, it is our job to teach our students the safe and proper use and operation of firearms. We do this by teaching two concepts.

The first is the NRA Rules for Safe Gun Handling:

• ALWAYS Keep the Gun Pointed in a Safe Direction.
• ALWAYS Keep Your Finger Off the Trigger Until Ready to Shoot.
• ALWAYS Keep the Gun Unloaded Until Ready to Use.

The second is the 5 Fundamentals of Pistol and Rifle Shooting: 

• Aiming
• Breath Control
• Hold Control
• Trigger Control
• Follow-Through

The .22 LR is the perfect tool for teaching these two concepts. This is because of the benefits of low recoil as discussed above. As firearms instructors the most important thing that we teach new shooters is safety. Everything else takes a back seat.

A .22 LR allows the shooter to concentrate on three safety rules without distractions from the firearm’s report and recoil. I have found that students who are taught these safety rules while using a .22 LR learn the safety rules faster and are more apt to retain this knowledge than those who were taught these same rules using a larger caliber. This fact alone is enough of a justification to start a new student on the .22 LR.

The next reason for using a .22 LR is to make your job as an NRA Firearms Instructor easier and more efficient. Just like safety, a .22 LR allows your student to concentrate on the fundamentals of shooting. Also, like the benefits of teaching your student safety, I have found that my students learn the fundamentals quicker and tend to retain this knowledge better than those who were taught with larger calibers.

Eliminates Common Fatigue Issues
As firearms instructors, it is important for us to remember that a new shooter does not yet have the abilities or fine motor skills that we, as more experienced shooters, have. It has taken us decades to get where we are. A new shooter is likely to get fatigued very quickly so make sure that you give them ample opportunity to rest between each cylinder or magazine while on the range.

A new shooter does not have the muscles or muscle memory to perform many different types of shooting. For example, they may not be able to hold the gun out in the isosceles position very long or have the strength in their hands to properly grip the firearm for long stretches. The muscles required to shoot a firearm need to be built, just like in any other skilled activity.

A .22 LR helps eliminate fatigue issues. Firearms that are chambered for .22 LR are usually significantly lighter than other firearms. Additionally, .22 LR rimfire cartridges weigh just a fraction of larger centerfire cartridges. Together, these two things make for a very easy shooting experience with this caliber. Combined with the fact that the .22 LR has very little recoil, it makes for a fun shooting gun.

What all this means to you as the instructor is you now have a student who is willing, able, and ready to be taught. This is the key to success.

Students Receive Double the Instruction
In a range setting where training is conducted, one thing that I quickly noticed when I started using a .22 LR in my class, was that my students became more engaged and received double the instruction. This is because the sound of a .22 LR is much quieter and more pleasant for the students to be around, while waiting their turn to shoot. The reduced report of this smaller caliber is much easier on the hearing while using proper ear protection and allows for students to engage in relevant conversation.

I originally taught my NRA Basic Pistol and NRA Basic Rifle classes using larger calibers. What I found was when the students were waiting their turn to shoot, they backed away from the shooting area and moved further back to normal conversation range, away from the shooting line because of the loud report of the firearm. When I switched to using the .22 LR, the students who were waiting their turn to shoot moved up closer to the shooting area and within normal conversation range.

This accomplished two things, especially because the majority of my students are working toward getting their NRA Certified Instructor rating. First, my students were receiving double instruction—once when they were on the line shooting, and again while they were observing and waiting to shoot again while I was working with other students. The second thing switching to the .22 LR did was allow my students to start thinking like a firearms instructor. For example, if I am having trouble getting a shot grouping with a particular student, often one of my Instructor Candidate students usually jumps in and asks if they could give it a try and work with that student, trying to analyze their difficulty and practice being a “good” instructor.

Confidence Builder
Next to safety, I believe that the most important factor when it comes to shooting is confidence. Confidence in their gun. Confidence in their ability. Confidence in themselves. The .22 LR delivers this. I have seen the .22 LR handgun transform the most doubtful, hesitant, and nervous individual into a new person—a confident student!

Too often a new student tries to run before they can crawl. Without any formal training, they purchase a firearm that they are not ready for or unable to handle because their family member, friend, or the person behind the counter at the local gun store told them they had to have this or that particular gun. By the time they make it to me, they have already worked themselves up and their anxiety is getting the best of them.

By starting all my students with a .22 LR, I eliminate all the issues they bring to class and I can focus on the 5 Fundamentals of Rifle and Pistol Shooting. This allows me to work them up to a more suitable gun, one caliber at a time. Sometimes I can get them up to the gun or caliber that they were told “they had to have” and sometimes it might be a smaller gun or caliber, depending on the person.

Some individuals may think that a .22 LR is not “enough” gun or not worth their time, but this caliber has been an accepted training tool since its inception, almost 150 years ago. As an instructor, do not let your students tell you how to conduct your training class because after all, they came to you. If a student questions my technique of starting out with a .22 LR, I ask them to show me their shooting technique with the firearm. If a student has a difficult time with the fundamentals and marksmanship using a .22 LR, they are likely to be unsuccessful with their fundamentals and marksmanship using a larger caliber.

By incorporating a .22 LR pistol or rifle into your training sessions, you will find a successful training experience will deliver a successful and confident shooter. Always remember that using a .22 in your training is not just for those beginner shooters.