The opportunity to learn good life lessons and pick up a few good character traits is all wound up in each fishing trip. Fishing teaches kids all sorts of things such as patience, responsibility, ambition, determination, and persistence but the opportunity to gain so much more is there as well.
Before a fishing trip, give your child a budget and take them to the tackle section of a store. Allow them to purchase a tackle box or tray and buy a few baits for it while staying in their budget. This is a good way to teach your child about budgeting and good money spending habits. Lots of lessons are learned upon losing a $6 spoon on the third cast. Be sure to allow them to pay the cashier too. Your child and the cashier will both get a kick out of it.
A good fishing trip will help kids become adventurous and cautious at the same time. They are also able to practice and improve on their problem-solving skills when a fishing trip isn’t yielding many fish and strategies must be changed. With a little friendly competition added to the mix, kids are afforded the opportunity to learn both sportsmanship and resiliency.
Learning isn’t over at the end of the trip either. Kids should be a part of the process of loading and unloading for the trip as well as the clean up afterwards. They can help pack the coolers, spool the reels, and even gather the life vests. Fishing is fun but it takes a lot of work to make it happen. Kids need to understand that part too and they learn to be helpful in the process.
Whether fishing from the bank or from a boat, kids can also learn how to respect property and other people. They can learn the etiquettes of being on a boat or sharing space on the land. Above all, kids can learn to respect nature and about conservation as well.
Kids will learn to be hardworking but they will also learn that hard work doesn’t automatically equal results every time. Sometimes the fish just aren’t there and they aren’t biting no matter what you do. They need to learn that this is okay and that there is always the next trip. The most important thing is to have fun no matter what.
Get out there and take your kids fishing. Bait Up & Send It!
