I suppose but I think of the dozens of purpose-made "boy's rifles" from the late 19th and early 20th centuries that really were made for boys. They include my personal Hopkins and Allen 722 and Winchester 1890 and how they taught me and several other generations good gun handling.
While I hear you on the hammer let-down issue, they also excel at instantly telegraphing their condition from almost any reasonable distance. Are they cocked?
The singleshot break actions have the advantage of being easily unloaded w/o cycling the action also.
