Most of us elders remember lots of things we played with that didn't hurt us or anyone else. However, with that in mind I allowed my teen to practice shooting his compound bow in the backyard using the fence as a backdrop for his target. Within ten arrows he came running inside saying his arrow went through the fence and into the neighbors kitchen window where the owner was standing and he was terrified! We ran outside to the neighbors who were equally terrified that the arrow so narrowly missed hitting the neighbor's head! Thinking we'd be arrested for negligence, I thanked god for watching over us because he touched the hearts of the neighbor who said, "well, you and I were very lucky. And you know, I did the exact same thing when i was a teen!" He laughed, but we made mental notes!
Our daddy grew up on a res in northern Wisconsin. When we were little he showed us how to do it. Nowadays you probably wont let your kids use a pocket knife but one is needed. You need to hunt down a good branch thats flexible but not too flexible. Notch both ends and tie a nice strong kite string in the notches. Find straight sticks and point them with the pocket knife and notch the other end. These made by kids do not fly far at ALL...... but it is an authentic way to make the bows and arrows much like 'real' indians did it. When we were small the ones we made couldnt hurt a fly so i dont see anything wrong with letting kids make em.
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