Taking up fishing as a hobby has no age limits. To enjoy such a hobby, you need some leisure time that city life cannot offer. Still, if you take out time to squeeze in little fishing expeditions in your vacation schedule, then you are a true enthusiast. It is more or less likely that you picked this hobby as a child, with your family members being the ultimate teachers. The honing of the skill is done using the trial-and-error method over the years, but the initial foundation is laid by the fishing enthusiast in your family.
If you want to keep the tradition alive and bring your next generation on board, here are a few tips from professional educators that will help you!
Let them watch and learn
Watching and learning is the best way to introduce anything to anyone. Tag your kids along with you in your fishing expeditions. Yes, it might be a little tedious, as you have to keep your eyes more open and check on both the child and the fish, but there is nothing more fruitful than this. As curiosity piques the interest and they get excited, they would naturally want to know more and try them by themselves.
Make it fun
Making them enjoy quality time is very important. If they don’t find the activity enjoyable, they’ll be hesitant to do it again. Hence, increase their passion by going off-road. Well, not literally. Instead of directly jumping on to the fishing tactics, familiarize them with the underwater world. There are many magical things that take place down there. Let the kids explore and build interest to see them in reality.
Use the correct gears
Before taking them fishing, do invest in the correct gear. The adult-sized gear would be too much to handle for kids, especially if they have not yet hit their teen years. There are different types of fishing accessories, but nothing goes as simple as the rod. Add bobber to the fishing line as it makes things easier to comprehend. Buying kids their tackle box set makes them further engrossed in the art of fishing.
Do the pre-requisites
Many things go in between buying the gear and casting them out. First, teach the kids about casting, knot tying, fish handling…etc., at home itself. This will help you dive straight into the fishing sessions without wasting time on the basics. This, in turn, helps keep the session short enough for the children not to feel bored. Though they may not pick it up ideally, it is fine as they can perfect them in future outings.
Go easy on the first trial
The best part of fishing is, of course, the catches. Yes, we all know fishing requires patience before you can get any catches, but as a child, what they’ll want is some action to keep them hooked. Hence, scout for places that will guarantee good yields. Beware of overhanging trees, water plants, and debris that can make fishing difficult. Go to open spaces like decks and farms to begin the lesson.
Tip: Do avoid the boat sessions, as it can be dangerous. The excitement of fishing can lead the kids to compromise their safety.
Look for safety
It is vital to double-check for safety as kids are involved here. The hooks, the fishing lines can all possibly harm the kids if they are handled without supervision. Hence, make sure all the accessories are tweaked a little to be safe around children. Get the safety vests, at least in the initial days, to keep kids safe, even if some accident befalls them.
Keep the children engrossed
As the children take their starting lessons, it is unlikely you can join them in fishing as a majority of the time would be spent supervising them. Hence, it is only better that you take this time to concentrate on them entirely. Then, double up the fun by bringing food and snacks and end the fishing outings with a picnic. As you spend time looking over them, don’t forget to capture the big and small moments on the frame.
End your day with prep talks
As the kids start handling the gears on their own, you can add tips and valuable lessons you’ve learned to them. Discuss what happened when and share your insights on what to do. This helps them to improve their game with each outing rather than being stuck at the same level. This will also give you an inference on when you can let them take up sharp accessories and live lures.
Address the issues
Many things should be discussed early on. Teaching the basic ethics early on helps the children become sensitized to them. Tell me about the dos and don’ts of fishing. Talk to them about the art of releasing the fishes. Introducing them early on helps them be responsible early on.
Know when to stop
You should know when something becomes too much. As anglers for years, it is obvious you know a lot more based on your experience. But for kids, too much information means they’ll lose track of it fast. Hence, contain your excitement and introduce kids to the basics. Let them learn the tricks through their experience. Yes, help is always desired, but let them also know how to go about it.
Conclusion
Using the above tricks, you can introduce your favorite hobby to kids of any age group. The key here is to build interest and then, riding on the interest, introduce the hobby to them. Make sure to go slow so they can learn as much as they can. So pass down the tradition and build budding anglers in your family gatherings with these essential tips.
