Hope Im not too late here but I kind of disagree with the guys and Ill explain why
My daughter is also 11 ... Turning 12 on the 4th of July....
April 21st will be her first hunt... She drew a turkey tag up here in the Upper Penninsula of Michigan and I could not be more proud.. She can not wait to start hunting.
I have had my daughter shooting now for 4 years and she still can not shoulder my stock Ruger 10/22
Its not that she cant handle it.. Its just that she plain and simply can not reach the Trigger.
So while I completely agree that a .22 is the way to go...I would really be scared of getting a full sized rifle for fear that she will not be able to use it comfortably..
I would recomend a Chipmunk .22
Its a very small Bolt Action Single Shot rifle
Not only does it fit her very well.. but its light enough for her to handle all day if needed.. I dont have to worry about her having to Lift hard to swing it around and potentially loosing control if it.
There is no Magazine for her tender little thumbs to get sore loading. Easy to teach maintance..
And another thing it teaches is accuracy.
Kids see a squirell.. Shoot... and then chase it with the other 9 rounds till the squirell is either gone.. or winged..
With a Single shot rifle you can teach accurace... you get 1 shot make it count type of thinking...
Which is why when we started looking at Turkey Hunting I had to find a decent solution for her to hunt with.. Nothing I had would work.. Either to big and heavy.. Or to much Recoil..
So I went out just last week and bought her a Remington 870 Express Junior Model. Its exactly like a 870.. but its a 20 Guage and everything is Smaller.. GOOD GOD I CANT WAIT....
Im a bit worried about a 20 Guage having the knockdown power needed to take a turkey.. Which is why Daughter will get the first bird... With Dads Remington SP10 ready to finish the job if needed.
But thats just my 2 cents.
I think a small revolver is a good choice.. I havent taken that step with my daughter yet...But when I do it will be a revolver..
Look into the Chipmunk .22 for me.