When fishing with your family, it's really not about the size of the fish you catch, it's about the fun and the excitement it brings to your children's faces. Recently we went to Meramec State Park, MO on a week long camping trip and fished with our 6 year old daughter, she enjoyed catching the little fish and on occasion would catch a keeper. Generally we caught Blue Gill and Sunfish and the occasional “what kind of fish is that?”, but all in all she just enjoyed catching them. Watching the red & white bobber go under or just get tugged at will get them excited and motivated to catch a fish, no matter the size or type. They will have a sense of accomplishment, when they have reeled them in. If your child is anything like mine they will keep count and you can play games with them while fishing, like who can catch the most or biggest, just get creative.

We usually fished at least once a day, usually in the evening after we had dinner., If you prefer to fish through out the day, try to find a location that offers swimming, you can fish in the same vicinity (of course out of the way of the swimmers) and when the children get tired of fishing they can take a swim and continue fishing later. Which we did occasionally. We used a basic and easy pole set-up with just a simple bobber and worms as bait, just try to find some discount fishing gear, nothing expensive is needed. The only down side to this is you will either have to bait their hook for them or teach them to do it themselves, it really depends on the child's age. Fishing with children is also a way to teach them about the different types of fish. Fishing guides are available for free at most park visitor centers for that area, these guides will identify the fish and have helpful tips, rules and regulations.

Of course when you fish with children the tackle box might contain different things than your normal fish angler. I have made a fishing trip checklist of items you might want with you when fishing with children. These are items that I always have with me when fishing with my children. So just remember when fishing with your children that it's about the fun and not the size, that matters.

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