This is a most interesting thread, but it lacks a little structure. Everybody is talking about introducing fishing to kids at the high school level, but through different methods. Each method would have different requirements and, hence, different hurdles in getting it implemented.

I see three different methods being discussed:

1. Sport. Like football, volleyball, golf, or track. An after-school activity where the "fishing team" would practice and compete against other teams--presumably from other schools. I see it being fairly simple to set up with the school, but fairly tough to actually execute. Obviously the school isn't going to have any part of boats so it would be a bank fishing show. The biggest obstacles, that I see, are timing the school's season to coordinate with a local fishery. If it is to be a fall quarter sport, the salmon fishing is good in the rivers up until mid-October--usually. Then what? If winter steelies don't happen to come in until December, do Napavine, Castle Rock, and Kelso bus their kids up to Hoodsport for Chums? Obviously there's way to work around these problems, but they're probably not optimal situations--plus these hurdles look even larger to a school administration when contemplating establishing a program.

2. School class. I like this option best. Offer a class (for actual credit) wherein the student would be taught and tested on various disciplines of fishing. Reading and following regulations; fish identification; selecting proper tackle; implementing various fishing techiniques; fish habitat and life cycles; and proper fishing etiquette (when casting lead at the boat that just anchored in front of you, use the lightest amount necessary to actually land in the boat, this minimizes the injury to boater--you don't want him unconscious, making him unable to move his boat). <--that was a joke. There could be classwork, and out of class assignments. You could easily formulate written instruction and testing to go along with actual fishing type work. I don't know what the law says, but it would seem if you offer it as a class, the school would have to make reasonable efforts to provide the equipment--like shop or Home Ec. Otherwise you're offering the class only to "the rich"--as the critics would say--because it would cost a couple hundred buck to get a basic setup, plus some tackle.

3. School Club. Easily the most practical and easiest to establish. Join or don't--it's up to you, but if you join you bring your own gear. A faculty member has to be the official advisor, but the advisor could recruit help--experienced fisher folks. There'd be a few insurance issues concerning the sharing of transportation. But, since the subject of fishing isn't a hotly contested activity, there shouldn't be any real opposition to setting the club up or using the school's paper and bulletin boards for announcements. Of course no hooks or filet knives would be allowed in classrooms but I'm sure there could be a safe place to lock those items up. Sheeesh, I can't believe I just said that--you can bet it will be a real issue if any school tries to set this up!!

Anyway, let the discussion continue! I would just suggest that you specify as to what type of a program you're addressing. Tight lines!

Not good, bad.

There's more to school than reading, writing, and arithmetic. School without football and basketball games? Bah!

I guess everyone could just sit around and smoke dope all afternoon........think of the money we'd save as taxpayers.

CFM,

Great idea. But why wait for the schools to do a job we can do? Why not take a kid fishing and let the schools worry about what they can do best? I may not be not much of a teacher but I can still share my enthusiasm and love of this sport with anyone who is interested. And from what I see, there are still a lot more kids interested in learning to fish than there are "fishermen" willing to teach them. Best part too is whenever I am fortunate enough to take a eager young lad fishing, by the end of the day I usually feel like I was the one getting schooled.

When I was in fourth grade I had a teacher that taught fly tying after school. That was pretty cool.

Grandpa you are way off base on this one. You need to put an end to those tired conservative clichés and get out to see what is happening in your local schools. Both of my kids graduated with honors from the public school system . My daughter is working toward a Masters in Architecture and my son has a double major in Engineering and Accounting. Both could balance your checkbook or do a brake job on your truck, thanks to an outstanding group of dedicated teachers. AuntyM has it right , the key to educating a child is parenting, with an emphasis on the importance of education. My only problem is my son is beginning to talk like a Republican, Oh where did I go wrong?

Yeticaster says;

"Teaching fishing as a sport? I don't think so, mostly because most fishing involves no competition"

I don't who you fish with, or where you fish, but most of the fishermen that I know are extremely completive! Why do you think that they get up at dark thirty to be the first one in the hole? Why do you think that they buy bigger and better boats, reels, and all the other toys that we use? Why do you think they go crazy about snaggers? The big difference is, fishermen don't need steroids, or dugs to be "completive" as so many of the other of the sports so often do.

Grandpa

I am not talking about taking time away from any student during school hours! This is all to occur after the normal leaning periods are over (after school). But maybe it will show to be the best, lets see what everryone else says about that one!

fromcuthroattosteelies


Wader
Excellent discussion!! Great points for discussion! I will add my thoughts after everyone else has made there own impute to this thread. You are really thinking like I am thinking, and I hope to add to what you have just said.

Mooch

Good comments, and I am sure you are doing all that you can do Buy I also know that we can do more! This is a good thread that bring fishermen together, and that should also have some good results when is done!

I know that we all we all want the best for our kids, so lets not knock each other on this one! This one is truly for the kids, and we need to think of it that way. I am not going to bait anyone up on this thread! This is truly to see what we can do for kids who can't get the chance to have their fathers or grandfathers teach them what we have been lucky enough to learn. Everyone's impute has been far batter that I thought it would be, so lets hear some more!

Thanks for keeping this one on line!!

Cowlitzfisherman

My son's biology teacher had a excursion to Pine Lake, giving the kids extra credit for trout fishing so they could disect fish, instead of frogs.... I had to assist on that one!!!

Doug P: I am all for kids fishing. Anyone who knows me understands how committed I am to that. I am all for schools teaching that fishing is good. I am all for schools teaching kids about fish and fishing. I have three daughters who are all very articulate and well educated (public schools). No offense to all the good teachers out there but test scores in Washington aren't very good to say the least. My kids were all taught that fishing is bad in the Shoreline school district. PETA people were allowed to come into the school and lobby against fishing. So if any school can put together any program promoting fishing as a good thing I am all for it. I taught all three girls to fish responsibly and also taught them to balance their checkbooks and they are all doing well in college. Parents are an integral part of education for sure. No conservative or liberal stuff here, just common sense.

Grandpa: The trouble with common sense is, it's not too common. But this time we are in full agreement. I doubt fishing will ever be a mainstream course, but it sure wouldn't hurt if it was. I dang near flunked out of high school, in part, because about all I could think about was fishing. I skipped several times to go fishing. Later, when I moved to a college near my favorite fishing area, I made the Deans Roll every quarter. What's my point? I think many a boy and girl might look forward to school a bit more if they had some classes they really looked forward to, like Trout Fishing 101.

I often feel sorry for the kids in Cherry Valley school. It sits on a hillside overlooking the Cherry Valley hunting area and, beyond that, the Snoqualmie River. Man how those kids must daydream while watching a field full of hunters and their dogs, on a fall morning.

I used to beg my brother and Dad to take me fishing when I was a kid and I think I actually convinced them 3 times in my entire growing up. Once I even got to float the mighty Skookumchuck!

In the last 4 years, thanks to my best friend taking the time to teach me, I fish a lot! I'm taking my son out and he's almost 7 and learning to fish and loving it.

He wants a rod and baitcasting reel for his birthday even. Definately time well spent together and he will be fishing for a long time to come. He even stomached several trips this summer to Westport and can brag that he never puked. LOL

They had logging as a credit class where I went to school (podunk Elma) not too long ago, so fishing isn't that far off. LOL

Would be a good elective. Fishing has taught me, among other things, patience, concentration, and determination. I still can't tell a rock from a fish, but I keep going out there and trying.

i didnt think anyone else did that, i almost flunked to.

Skywalker,
Fishing is very much part of what we teach kids. Old school PE is all about sports. In this day in age, our goal is to make kids less sedentary and fishing is a LIFETIME activity that gets kids out of the house and into the woods. We have enough community support that lends itself to the team atmosphere but what we need to keep our kids from being obese and SOMETHING they can do and like for the rest of their lives. Kids now a days have no hobbies that require any kind of movement. Fishing gets them going. On top of getting fishing going in our school, I'd love to get a rcok climbing wall.

~steelymann~

My grades have gone strait up since I started fishing actually.

I almost flunked out of JUNIOR HIGH! lol I just didnt care, got to stressed out to the point where I just stopped caring...

About 8th grade I got more into fishing and hunting, and my grades slowly started to go up. Now I fish (usually) at least once a week, and I'm maintaining about a 3.0... I'm going to college (using Running Start), and I'm shootin for a 3.5 or better.

But yeah, my point is that everyone has a hobby, whether they know what it is or not, that helps reduce stress. Mine (like everyone here), is the outdoors, and my grades went up the more I got into them.

I am all for a fishing class or extra-curricular club, and I think CtS's is the best plan I've heard so far. If you need any volunteers for that, I'd love to contribute.

Curtis

P.S. As for PE??? hahaha THATS A JOKE! In Freshman P.E. we had to take WRITTEN TESTS on the sports we played, no joke. It was the most BS. Me and my best friend were number one on all the sports we did, we ran the fastest miles etc... We got B's. The only time our grades went up in PE were our sophomore years, when we both did Cross Country.