Help me Help Kids CATCH Fish...!!

Battle Creek Knives

Battle Creek Knives

Joined
Feb 23, 2010
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OK I just responded to a post about someone helping a kid out fishing, which brought me to a story a while back where I did the same thing.

First I'm not the greatest fisher hands down, I tie simple knots and sometimes I'm good enough to catch what I'm actually fishing for...

That said, its been a couple years and I really miss it, I have small children 3-7-8-.. and I'd like to be able to catch fish..

We've been out twice with only 1 catch to our good, I want to catch the easy stuff for kids, albeit crappie, bluegill whatever..

I'm in Oklahoma, and was wondering what type of set up I'd need, etc.. ..

anyone with pics of what they use?? from leaders, weights, bait and hooks etc.

I will also be sharing my newly acquired skills with my nieces/nephews and anyone around us at the fishing trips..
thanks,,
 
A pretty sure way to catch fish is this setup:

1/16 or 1/32 oz jig, with a chartruse (yellow-green) painted head. Put that about 24 inches under a bobber just big enough to float the jig. Use either minnows or about 1-1.5 inch section of night crawler. For best success, fish off riprap or right along weedlines. I've caught everything from panfish, to large bass and fairly nice catfish on that setup. Best to use that rig with monofilament fishing line, or at least a mono leader. I usually use about 12 lb line.

Experiment with depth if the fish aren't biting, and sometimes a little action helps as well. This rig seems to work best for me when the wind is blowing just enough to put a bit of ripples on the surface of the water, which gives the jig a bit of natural action.
 
I have found the following to work for 40+ years now. I use a small arbdeen hook ( size 10, 12, or 14), any size bobber ( large when casting out, small when inclose to shore), and I sometimes use a small pinch weigh. As for bait, I use wax worms, small sections of night crawlers, entire trout worms ( small night crawlers), pillsbury buttermilk dough ( the ten bisquet roll is less than a dollar and last all day), minnows. I find the dough and wax worms work best for bluegills and other sunfish. The wax worms will get all the panfish and trout. The minnows get bass, crappie, perch, trout.

You have to know how to read the water as to where to fish. When using dough, I sometimes chum the water with a few pieces of white bread to get the sunfish biting.

I always stop and teach kids to fish. I have taught my son and about six of his friends. I also carry lots of extra hooks and floats with me and have redone the "wrong" set ups that Mom and Dad where using to try to caught the first first for their child. I did this as recently as last week. I actually bought 12 rod and reel combos at Dicks last year that were on sale the day after Thanksgiving for $8 ( with my discount coupon added), so that I could give them away to kids who wanted to learn how to fish! I have not given away one yet.
 
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thanks guys I appreciate it... its not much fun when you're not catching anything, well maybe its fun for the first hour..

kids as we know have little attention spans and tend to bore more easily, actually catching fish will keep them interested and exited about fishing.

Since posting I've down some searching on the net and have compiled some info.

Along with your info and that I've compiled I should be good to go, I'll post some feedback after our next trip to the lake..

Rob
 
The best fishing will generally be early and late in the day. Cloudy weather is preferable and a light wind is better than no wind.

I like real windy with lots of big waves crashing on shore but thats probably would be too much for beginers.
 
bobber

split shot

pan fish hook

cricket (possibly a piece of a worm or a grasshopper)

Pretty much guaranteed if there are fish in the vicinity.
 
Went fishing today, and ended up with 62 sunfish ( mostly bluegills), two small large mouth bass, and one 23" shell snapping turtle ! I was using wax worms for most of the pan fish. I got a few of them and one bass on a spinner ( uncle joe's flies), and the turtle and some panfish on Pilsbury buttermilk dough! I got to show two women and a father and two very small little girls how to caught fish ! It doesn't get much better than that !
 
For panfish use really light line 6lb test. Tie a really small hook (8,10,12) and a small split shot about 12" up from that, then maybe 2 1/2 - 3 feet up put on a small pencil bobber. Use anything from crickets, wax worms, small garden worms, minnows for bait. Get out at sun up or couple hours before sundown. You should do pretty good if you fish around brush piles, weeds or some cover. Good luck and have fun.
 
I would suggest red worms and inexpensive closed face reel setups with bobbers. I'd probably use 6 lb test line versus heavier line as it is easier to cast out further like Daddy. Small jigs work for crappie or similar fish in lakes but they have to pay more attention to hooking the fish.
 
One of the best times they'll have is fighting a largemouth bass. Buy them each a mouse and frog (topwaters). The mice usually have a treble hook (3 hooks) coming out the back and a puffed up body. The frogs have dangly legs and a single hook coming out the bottom. Try and find a pond or lake that has a lot of lilly pads, tree stumps and such and on an overcast day or if its shady then cast towards the shady parts and definately ontop of the lilly pads. Slowly reel them in, and if you dont get hits wait until it hits the side where the water and pads meet, or any pockets of water in the lilly pads and give a little twitch and let it sit 5 or so seconds and reel in. More often than not you'll get hits. Good luck!
 
zoom lizards and worms in june bug, june bug red, watermelon, and watermelon red will catch them some bass. they are cheap. a pack is 3 bucks at the most.
 
Top water lures are fun when they get bored casting. Happens to me sometimes too, but especially kids who do not want to change the lure.
 
3 year old? Try a series of four to six very tiny hooks tied about four inches apart, baited with "beads" of biscuit dough and fished from a dock. The target fish are tiny bream, usually called "bait stealers". It isn't uncommon to pull the line in with every hook occupied.

State laws (and sometimes certain river or impoundments) vary on how many hooks are allowed per line, so check this out first.

Wife and son 30 yars ago...
30rohh2.jpg
 
I can't believe no one said cane poles. I started both my boys on Cane poles and any kid that wants to use a pole from my garage. ( the pond is two doors away). Most memories of helping kids before I started using cane was tangled casts, not leaving the bait sit and watching the bobber, reeling the line into the first eye and general frustration.

With a cane pole they lift it up still has bait put it back in. If they catch a fish that is too big to lift out I have them walk back until it drags the fish out. If the kids is too short to hold a 10 footer then don't use all the sections...

Simplicity is the key to fun. don't let them get frustrated with short casts and tangled messes. You never know you might like it too. I remember fishing for Crappie with an uncle using 15ft fiberglass "cane" poles and having a great time.

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