Fifth Grade
Worksheets
Skeet Shooting
Guns have had a serious reputation for a long time. People have used guns to hunt for food. They have used guns in wars. However, guns have also been used for recreation. Skeet shooting is a shooting sport where a person tries to hit a clay disc moving rapidly through the air.
People have different opinions about when this sport started. Around 1915, a man named Charles Davies wanted a game that would help him practice his marksmanship. According to Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, a marksman is "a person who is skilled in shooting at a mark or target." Charles was an ardent grouse hunter, and he also had a sense of fun. He invented a game to help him practice shooting birds.
Charles invented a game called Clock Shooting. It was also called Shooting Round the Clock. Charles set up a circle with a 25-yard radius. This circle had marks at twelve points on its circumference. It was like a big clock. The targets came out of a "trap" positioned at the 12 o'clock spot. The person would stand at each number position on the clock. He would shoot at targets that rocketed out of the trap and into the air. He shot two times from each position, which meant that he took 24 shots as he moved around the clock. Then, the person took one last shot from the center of the clock. The game was challenging and fast. If a person could hit 15 out of 25 targets, that person was considered to be an excellent marksman.
