Today I was thumbing through my library copy of Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder, and came across this list:
Fishing Tips for Parents from Matthew Louv (age 12):
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Fish with your kid.
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Let your kids go fishing, even if you don’t want to take them.
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Let your kids buy supplies and tackle. That’s half the fun of fishing.
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If your kids are young, take them to a place where fish are easy to catch and are small.
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Let kids fish as long as they want. Let them get obsessed.
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Let the kids go off and do their own thing. It can get to be incredibly annoying and/or frustrating if there’s an adult standing over them barking orders.
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At least pretend to act excited when your kid catches a fish. It can quickly ruin a day of fishing if the kid feels you don’t want to be there, and he’s just dragging you down.
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If you know how to fish, don’t give your kid too much unsolicited advice, although it can be helpful if the kid is young.
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Let your kid teach you how to fish; participate in the fishing. This can be quality bonding time.
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Remember that fishing and spending time with family is just as, or more important than, homework.
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Have fun; that’s the entire point of going fishing in the first place.
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And whatever you do, DON’T LET YOUR KID THROW ROCKS IN THE WATER!
I’m including this list for two reasons: 1) I simply think it’s great advice, and 2) I think it’s relevant information to my project with Tommy. Though, it’s going to be hard to teach Tommy that last rule. If there’s water and a single rock to found, no matter the size, he’s going to throw it in.
