jack,
with the fly rod I hook em' and let the kids bring em' in......they love to attempt to fly cast....and do so while holding a spinning rod, but it was a family picnic with many on lookers.....I think they would have hooked much much more than the gills!!!
Now, Vinny and his spiderman rod are a different story....we fished with that in the afternoon, he is only 2 and a half and gets really cranky if I handle the rod......
Zoe is pretty OK with the fly rod and much better with the spincast.....they both love rocking the rod back and forth.......
ps...those buggers are really tasty!!! I too have not put any in the fryer this year.............
pss....I actually bought Zoe's first fly rod, Wright & Mcgill Fly girl 7 foot 3 wt w/ matching reliance reel......have not given it to her yet......with my shoulder problems over the past year, I have not had the time or motion to sit and teach.....thinking next summer I will give it to her.........she will be 4.5 and it should be lots of fun!!!