When kids go fishing, one of the biggest headaches is teaching them patience. When kids fish for panfish, they do not need a ton of patience to succeed. If you have located a nice school of bluegill, for example, you can quickly and easily 
catch them by dropping your line amongst them. When the bobber bounces, the child can then give the pole a quick tug and reel in the panfish.
Another great reason panfishing is great for kids is because they are not terribly hard to reel in. When you hook a bass or catfish, many kids will not be able to get them to the shore. This can be disheartening to a new fisherman and in particular a child. Let them practice on panfish instead for a bit, and then let them move on to the tougher game fish.
Panfishing is great for kids because of the type of bait involved as well. Panfish will largely bite most anything if it is remotely similar to food, so finding the perfect bait is usually very easy. Any child can dig up a worm or two and head out to the local pond for panfishing fun. Though panfish do hit certain types of bait best, they will chase most any worm or insect.
I grew up with a dad waking me up before sunrise to get a jump on the fish. I now do the same thing with my kids. Panfishing is a great kid activity. And great memories with Dad.
It is a great way to spend a lot of time with your kids — you won’t regret it — your kids will pass on the tradition