Bob Smith
bob@bassinbobs.com
Pensacola
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"BOBS LOCAL RIVER REPORTS"
Local Reports and Fishing Articles
Kid Fishing
Children have very short attention spans, so if you plan on getting them hooked on fishing you had better have a surefire plan! The best plan is one that guarantees the child will catch fish, and the more fish the better.
If you are a bass fisherman, a serious crappie fisherman, or some other specialized fisherman, then the act of teaching someone who has never held a rod before to fish can be very taxing. But, looking back you can recall that there was a time somewhere in the past when you didn't know anything about catching fish either: someone had to teach you.
First of all you have to make fishing interesting enough that the child wants to do it, and the best way to do that is to catch fish right from the get go. An ideal place to do this is a small pond where the sunfish are plentiful and always hungry or a pay to fish catfish pond, both of which are in abundance in Northwest Florida and Southern Alabama.
Patience is also a necessary item. Frustration can overwhelm an experienced fisherman (woman) when you say "cast right there" and the bait lands three inches from the waters edge, tangled in the weeds and mud. No matter how many times you explain the fine art of casting it never turns out quite right. But, you have to keep your cool because this is a part of the learning process.
Protection and caution are two things a good parent is good at, but to much can make you awful skittish when your five year old is swinging that sharp hook all around. Stress caution and respect for the hooks, but try not to yell (too much) when it seems you are about to take the place of the fish on the end of the line! Sometimes children don't understand the full impact of the reasons they are being yelled at.
Another aspect of teaching a child to fish is the tackle that they use. Your full size rods and reels are usually quite a bit on the large size for a young child, and those little "toy" rigs (spincast reels permanently attached to a foot long rod) might be OK once or twice, but the learning process is much better with better rods and reels. A decent beginners outfit shouldn't cost you much more than twenty dollars, and should be capable of casting a fair distance. Most low priced combo's fit this bill well.
Praise is important also. Make a big deal over those little three inch long sunfish. This conveys a sense of accomplishment and keeps the fishing fun. Let the child do the actual catching too. Its all right to hook the first few fish yourself and let them reel it in, but this will get old to the child after a while and they may loose interest. Its more fun to catch your own fish than reel in one that someone else caught.
Casting is one of the hardest things to learn when your young. Encourage practice in the backyard with a practice weight. It isn't as much fun as actually fishing, but the rewards are self-explanatory. Play the part of parent and coach, but try not to let it go to the point of boredom or frustration.
Teaching a child to fish has many rewards. Aside from the satisfaction of seeing an ear to ear smile over a tiny fish, it plants the seeds for the future. A child that learns to fish will always have a pleasant pastime to indulge in, learns patience and persistence, and develops a sincere respect for our natural resources and conservation practices.
Fishing is among the nations top forms of recreation, and should not be an adults only sport. Involving children in fishing helps to insure that they, and their children, can have the opportunity to enjoy the quality fishing available to them as we have available to us.
The children of today are the adults of tomorrow, as long as they respect and enjoy the outdoors they will strive to protect it. This is the future of our great fishing, lets all get involved in its preservation - teach a child to fish.
Good luck.
Bob
