Minnesota Teacher Has Introduced Over 1,000 Kids to Ice Fishing

Middle school teacher Karl Erickson has been introducing kids to ice fishing for the past 5 winters. Fishing is a passion of his and he wants to be able to share that with others. He hopes that some of these kids will pick up his love of fishing too.

Karl teaches physical education at Higher Ground Academy in St. Paul. The Star Tribune writes that Karl "estimates that he has introduced more than 1,100 kids to ice fishing by working with schools, community groups and veterans’ family organizations (he served two tours in Iraq with the Minnesota National Guard)." This includes all of the kids at Higher Ground Academy.

The important part about what Karl teaches these kids is that it's not all about catching fish. He told one of his classes that fishing is 99% about being patient. He also showed them how to read a sonar fish finder, the safety measures that you need to follow while ice fishing. A science teacher also accompanies the class and they tie it into their science lesson.

Of course, if a student does catch a fish Karl will take a picture of them with their fish before releasing it.

The Star Tribune writes that Karl actually recently received a grant from Minnesota's No Child Left Inside program. He ended up getting enough money "for his school to buy five pop-up shelters, fish finders and enough gear for 30 kids."