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I have 2 granddaughters, one 9-1/2 years old, the other 4-1/2 years old. When the oldest turned 8, I bought her a Cricket .22 single shot rifle for her birthday. My first time to ever buy (or even hold) a pink gun. Her father is LEO, so she's been well educated regarding not to touch any firearm without adult supervision.

Her dad and I took her to a friend's private property for some shooting education. I made her memorize the 4 rules of firearm safety. She has a set of pink ear protection and rated eye protection, and wore a baseball cap. We set up some targets to get her used to sight pictures, and then moved to some colored chalk eggs. Those give a nice puff of colored dust when hit, which she thought was a lot of fun.

After a while with the single shot rifle, I let her try my Walther P22 (small enough for her hands). Started with only one round in the magazine, so she could get used to the proper grip and control of the handgun, and proper discipline of the 4 rules. Then worked up to 2 rounds, then 5. She did well, even when one ejected cartridge went down the front of her shirt and landed right by her navel. She maintained good control, finished the magazine, and then lifted her shirt to show a .22 LR cartridge shaped blister on her tummy.

I plan on repeating the process when the youngest granddaughter has her 8th birthday - hopefully without the blister....