My 3yr old son has recently developed this liking to guns and shooting games. We don't have toy guns at home but he will pretend with his hand and pretend to shoot people. Is it okay?

Instead of prohibiting gun play, you can use this opportunity to teach him on how guns are weapons which can hurt people. Rather than discouraging it, you could get him a rubber dart gun and a bulls eye board for him to practice hand-eye coordination. http://www.pbs.org/parents/raisingboys/aggression05.html http://www.webmd.com/parenting/features/toy-guns-do-they-lead-real-life-violence

This is a very debatable topic. There are studies which contradict both the arguments: 1. letting children play with guns and 2. not allowing them to play with guns. I would say you son is just 3 years old. Let him play with what he wants but do give him instructions and advices like you shouldnt point the gun at another person, etc

Soon or later he will be exposed to more new things, either from TV or classmates. We can't always be there to shield our kids from negative influences. What we can do as a parent is to proper educate kids what gun is used for and why gun is dangerous.

I agree with Shrutika. Just explain to him why you don't like him to pretend playing with a gun. that being said, my 3 year old does the exact same thing and claims it's a water pistol! LOL

It is normal. But he should not be hitting people or using violence as he play.

thanks