Picking up crawdads is one of those old fashioned thrills for kids and adults alike. The most fun time to hunt crawdads is when the weather is hot and the creek is cool. An afternoon splashing around in the water is an Ozark tradition, catching crayfish, minnows, small perch and other critters.
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Some people like to eat crawdads so it's a really good reason to collect a batch. We just like to catch them and play for a while, then let them go. Sometimes we even bring a few home to put in a fish tank. Crawdads can live on land or in water, but they like fresh, cool running water the best.
They also make good fish bait, so catching a nice batch of crawdads my precede a fishing trip. Smallmouth bass like them better than just about any other bait, except maybe hellgramites. Learning to pick them up without getting pinched is a skill learned early by Ozark kids.
If you want a good family fun outing just go down to your creek, find a place with shallow running water and tip some rocks looking for crawdads.