There are a number of institutions that offer handgun safety instruction, but the most common provider is the NRA. There is more to safely operating a handgun than just firing it. Safety training will provide you with the information you need to know on how to load it, unload it, generally handle it and clean it safety.
Controlling the Gun
One of the more important lessons taught in handgun safety training is that you should never assume anything. Whenever you are holding a gun, you should act as if it is about to go off. This means that even if the safety is off and you think the gun is not loaded you should still handle it as if it is firing at that moment. This means never pointing it somewhere you don’t want a bullet to go – including out the window, at someone else, or at yourself.
Fingers Off
Handgun safety training also teaches you to never put your finger on the trigger unless you are about to shoot. This is the same principle as above – by keeping your finger away from the trigger you are stopping unsafe situations before they start.
Loading and Unloading
As with the above, you should only load the gun when you are prepared to shoot it. You should not, for example, store it loaded. Handgun safety training will also teach you how to tell if a gun is loaded or not; if you cannot tell immediately, you are not ready to fire a gun and should be enrolled in a training class.
Know the Gun
Handgun safety training teaches how a gun works. Its key components are explained and you are taught how to test for basic safety things, such as whether the safety is on and whether there are any bullets in the chamber. Cleaning is also taught, in addition to how to tell if a gun is clean or not. Basically, handgun safety training focuses on how to tell whether you should be using a gun or not.
Know Your Target
Handgun safety training also teaches situational awareness, such as the fact that your bullet will likely go through your target and into whatever (or whoever) is behind him. Handgun safety training also teaches you where to fire at a target, how to know when to fire, and also drills you in order to force you to internalize these ideas and store them in your muscle memory.
Gun Storage
Finally, handgun safety training will teach you how and where to safely store your gun. It should be in a palace where nobody can gain access to it except you. Otherwise, the entire purpose of having a gun is defeated, as it could be used against you. This is not to say that storing a gun properly makes up for not knowing how to use it properly. Rather, it simply underscores the rest of your training.
NRA Gun Safety Rules
