It is also very important to use a very small hook. Use a hook that is just large enough to cover the bait you are using.  If you are fishing with small Crappie minnows use a hook that can go through their back with just enough clearance.  Keeping the hook small serves two purposes.  First it will keep your bait livelier by putting less stress on it than a larger hook would do.  Secondly it will allow your offering to fit inside the small mouth of a Yellow Perch much easier and therefore increase your catch rate.
 
Yellow Perch are best caught using live bait.  There are a variety of live baits you can use.  A small minnow hooked once through the back is my first choice. I believe that while fishing for perch it is better to hook through the back than the lips as many others do while fishing.  Hook the minnow through the upper back and it will live long enough to hook a perch.
 
Perch love to eat crayfish.  They problem is most of the crayfish sold at tackle and bait stores are too large is used whole.  If you have small crayfish by all means use them whole.  If however you can only find larger ones you will need to break them apart and use pieces of meat.
 
Nitecrawlers are also a viable option for catching perch. Again you should break the bait in pieces as using a whole nitecrawler will result in feeding the perch rather than catching them.
 
Whatever bait you choose you should keep it near the bottom.  Unless the current is strong a small split shot weight should suffice for this purpose.  I like to let my offering hit bottom and pull it up about six inches to a foot and wait for action.

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