4. Keep your finger outside the firearm's trigger guard and off the trigger until you have aligned the firearm's sights on a safe target and you have made the decision to fire.

By keeping your finger completely outside the trigger guard until you are aimed at he target, you are guaranteed that any shots you fire will go safely in the direction of our intended target.

5. Always be certain that you’re target and the surrounding area are safe before firing.

Remember that a bullet can travel as far as several miles, so you should be certain of what your bullet could strike before you pull the trigger. Always look beyond your target to see where the bullet will end up if you missed your intended target. Look for houses, boaters on the water, campsites, and animals in a farmer’s field etc. Never fire at a movement, a noise, a flash of color, or a rustling bush without positively identifying your intended target.

6. Whenever you handle a firearm, the first thing you should do (while keeping it pointed in a safe direction with your finger outside of the trigger guard) is to open the action or cylinder to determine whether or not the firearm is loaded.

If you don't know the proper way to open the action or cylinder of particular firearm don’t handle it. Instead, consult the owner's manual, your local firearm dealer, or a more knowledgeable shooter. Do not experiment.

7. Never hand anyone a loaded firearm.

Before you hand a firearm to another person, you must first clear the firearm. (Make sure that the firearm is unloaded.) In the case of an automatic, first remove the magazine, then pull back the slide and lock it open, (if the firearm is so equipped.) look into the chamber to see if cartridge is present. Leave the slide locked back when you hand the firearm to the other person. If you have a single action revolver, open the loading gate and rotate the cylinder and check all the chambers for the presence of a cartridge. Leave the loading gate open when handing the firearm to the other person. If it is a double action revolver with a swing out cylinder, open the cylinder and check the chambers for cartridges, hand the unloaded firearm to the person leaving the cylinder open. In the case of a rifle or shotgun, open the action, check it and with the action open hand it to the other person.