The National Shooting Sports Foundation® Releases Gun Safety’ Videos for Young Children

The National Shooting Sports Foundation® (NSSF®) has partnered with the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) to produce two new firearms safety videos starring McGruff The Crime Dog® and his nephew Scruff® to help teach young children how to react should they see an unsecured firearm.

The new ‘McGruff Gun Safety’ videos deliver the compelling message of “Stop! Don’t touch! Get away! Tell an adult!” so that children immediately know what to do in a situation where a gun is unattended, or if a classmate brings a gun on to school grounds, or finds a gun at home to show friends.

The videos, created by Danger Pigeon Studios, use animated characters to hold the interest of young children. They deliver their important gun safety messages in approximately 120 seconds. The video titled “Molly’s Mischief” is designed for viewing by children in kindergarten through 2nd grades, and “Not Cool, Kyle” is for students in grades 2 through 6.

McGruff is joined in both videos by his nephew, Scruff, and some new friends. Together, Scruff and his friends apply the “4 Steps of Gun Safety” from McGruff that help them make the best decisions around a potentially troublesome situation. They are shown in scenarios that make it easy for children to understand how to be safe around unsecured firearms and to recognize that toy guns are very different from real guns.

“We encourage parents, school administrators and teachers to show children these ‘McGruff Gun Safety’ videos and make sure they understand the powerful safety message they deliver,” said Steve Sanetti, CEO of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association for the firearms industry. “Through this collaboration with the National Crime Prevention Council, we hope to teach children nationwide how to make good, safe decisions around firearms.”

“NCPC is thrilled to partner once again with NSSF on the important issue of gun safety,” said Ann Harkins, President and CEO of the National Crime Prevention Council. “The videos are informative and an entertaining way for kids to learn about McGruff’s 4 Steps to Gun Safety. This is a crucial time in today’s society to educate the public and get people engaged in talking about what to do to prevent tragedies from occurring in our communities.”

An accompanying discussion guide, activity sheet for each video, and McGruff’s Gun Safety Pledge will provide opportunities for teachers and parents to review the firearm safety lessons provided by each video, encourage repeat viewings, and reinforce how children should safely react if they see a firearm when adults are not around.

“Molly’s Mischief” and “Not Cool, Kyle” can be streamed on NCPC’s YouTube Channel, on NCPC.org and at ProjectChildSafe.org. Additional firearm safety materials are also available at ProjectChildSafe.org. The McGruff titles also are included on the NSSF Firearms Safety DVD along with five other firearms safety videos. Educators can access the complete classroom program, including lesson plans for each video, on this site.

NSSF and NCPC are proud of their work together over three decades with McGruff delivering safety messages to children to help prevent gun-related accidents.

—
Photo Credit: guteksk7 / Shutterstock.com