Fidget Spinners-A Headache or Helpful? By Kim Crouch

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1 Fidget Spinners-A Headache or Helpful? By Kim Crouch Children across the globe have found a new craze-fidget Spinners. As you walk in the mall, the grocery store, or if you are a student in a classroom, it is hard to miss this latest phenomena. Fidget Spinners are the latest fad, and they are flying off the shelves of convenient stores everywhere. Many stores are out of stock, and parents have to rely on online stores to find this gadget. Fidget Spinners are a fun, small, cheap gadget that appeals to pretty much anyone, and they are even tagged as helping kids with ADHD; however, many parents and teachers argue that these spinners are extremely distracting and annoying. Are Fidget Spinners a headache, or are they truly helpful? What is a Fidget Spinner? The Fidget Spinner is a small, tri-circled, spaceship-shaped gadget that is designed for people to spin between their thumb and forefinger to relieve stress and help them focus. It gives a pleasing sensory experience, and it challenges people to toss, twirl and transfer the spinner from one hand to another. Kids are making YouTube videos of tricks and challenges they can do with the spinners, making the spinners also a sensation on social media outlets and encouraging kids to check out the How-To videos. The Positives Aspects of Fidget Spinners The Fidget Spinner is designed for children and students who have ADHD and autism, as they provide a sensory outlet. A seller on Amazon promises, greater concentration for people with those conditions, plus an opportunity to bring out the creative genius lying deep within you. According to the Brett Siegel, he discusses how there are positives of Fidget Spinners. First, he discusses how they are positive for social activity: Children often like to be a part of something that is going on. Having children partake in this healthy activity will help form bonds with other children and be topics of positive communication. Social activity is so important for children because they have the chance to practice verbal communication skills by negotiating, responding to their peers feelings while waiting for their turn and sharing materials. Also, they have the chance to experience others points of view by working through conflicts. In addition, it teaches them to be aware of their own emotions, manage impulses and communicate effectively. Secondly, Siegel discusses how it helps children stay focused. Children are often more successful in an activity if they are able to control their tendencies and movements. One way s/he does this is to fidget with an object, like a pen, or their body. The Fidget Spinners provide that needed stimulus without the child having to leave the classroom to work off their energy or stress. In addition, when people are able to fidget, especially with their hands, they are sending a signal back to their brain that s/he is involved in a repetitive task, and repetitive tasks free up the mind. It gives them a chance to think and free up their creative space. 1

2 One last aspect of why fidget spinners are so helpful is they are similar to play therapy. Play therapy is where a child is engaged in an activity to help them process events they would not otherwise be able to process. According to the article, Play Therapy Makes a Difference, the author notes, In recent years a growing number of noted mental health professionals have observed play is as important to human happiness and well-being as love and work. For many children who have emotional, behavioral or social skills deficits, in play therapy, toys can be a child s words and the play is the child s language. In addition, playing with a toy promotes cognitive development and provides insight and resolution of inner conflicts and thinking. Having a Fidget Spinner may help a student leave a place or classroom less, since they have something to help him/her manage their stress and anxiety. Fidget Spinners are a Headache! As much as it seems that Fidget Spinners are positive and are effective for children, many researchers, teachers and parents will disagree. These adults will argue the spinners are being used for the wrong reasons, and teachers find them highly distracting to children and their peers. According to Brett Siegel, not all children are the same. To be more specific, not all students require the same amount of sensory input to be successful. For students who really do not need it to stay focused, it becomes just a toy and a distraction. Kids just want to have it just because all the other students have one, and they are not being used for its proper purpose. With all of the current distractions in children's lives-digital devices, video games, cell phones-this is one more added distraction. According to Daniel Goleman, a psychologist and author, we have been more distracted than ever before, and we have to be more focused on cultivating the skill of attention. Why add another distraction to an already distracted world? Not only are the Fidget Spinners a distraction to students who do not need them, but they are also becoming a distraction in other settings like school. Many schools are banning the spinners because rather than distracting one person, it is distracting an entire classroom, hindering the academic learning environment. When children are at school, they need to be focused on their academic studies and subjects. According to a student at the Churchill Academy, When you are trying to focus on your work, all you can hear is it spinning round and round. If someone around you has one you kind of get attracted to it because they are trying to do tricks and everyone else is looking at it. This means that I am not doing my hardest on my work so I get less done. This student admits Fidget Spinners are a distraction when someone else is playing with a spinner around him/her. On the same note, teachers are finding the spinners to be a major distraction not to just the individual student but to their entire classroom. A number of teachers are complaining that the spinners are ruining lessons. According to author Brad Tuttle, Ironically, the gadgets that are billed as beneficial for focus have been banned from one middle school in Massachusetts because they are "highly distracting to students and those around them." A message placed last week on the Nissitissit Middle School's website states plainly, Students should not bring spinners to school. Classes are interrupted, stopped and are wasting valuable time for the teacher and the students. Another teacher from Queens, New York remarked, Fidget spinners are being misused by children who don t know what they re intended for They re using them as a 2

3 game to see who can balance them longer or spin them faster. All in all, teachers are worried the students are focusing on the spinners and not on their work. All in all, parents are urged to think about the reasons behind the purchase and decide if a spinner is beneficial for his/her child s learning, or if it is just another toy the child brings into class. Fidget spinners have both positive and negative attributes to them, and there is quite a bit of controversy whether the fidget spinner is helpful or a hindrance. It must be left up to the user s experience to determine their thoughts on this argument. Works Cited Isenbergl, M.; Why is Play Important? Social and Emotional Development ; Jay, Shelbi; Fidget Spinners Controversial Use in Classrooms ; News 2, 2017; Singh, Anita; Fidget Spinners: the new classroom craze being banned across the nation ; The Telegraph; May 3, 2017; Tuttle, Brad; More Schools Are Banning Fidget Spinners Because They Are 'Highly Distracting ; Time, May 3, 2017; 3

4 Multiple Choice Questions

Name Date: Multiple Choice Fidget Spinners-A Headache or Helpful? Directions: Read the questions carefully, and answer the multiple questions based off the article. 1.

Fidget Spinners are a phenomenal toy with so many different advantages D. Kids do not really have an interest in the latest phenomena 2.

5 Name Date: Multiple Choice Fidget Spinners-A Headache or Helpful? Directions: Read the questions carefully, and answer the multiple questions based off the article. 1. What does the author mean by the latest phenomena? A. The Fidget Spinners are an annoyance to the classroom B. Kids are obsessed with this new gadget, and it has become the latest fad C. Fidget Spinners are a phenomenal toy with so many different advantages D. Kids do not really have an interest in the latest phenomena 2. Read the line below: Fidget Spinners are the latest fad, and they are flying off the shelves of convenient stores everywhere. What figurative term is being used in this line? A. Simile B. Metaphor C. Personification D. Idiom 3. What is the essential purpose of a Fidget Spinner? A. To relieve stress and help people focus B. A toy for kids C. For education purposes D. A gadget primarily for adults 4. Which is NOT a purpose of the Fidget Spinner? A. It will help form bonds for children B. To help children who cannot sit still C. Teaches children to be aware of their emotions D. A important tool for the classroom experience 5. Read the sentence below: As much as it seems that Fidget Spinners are positive and are effective for children, many researchers, teachers and parents will disagree. What does the word effective mean? A. Tricky C. Complicated B. A roadblock D. Helpful 6. What is the author s purpose in writing the section, What is a Fidget Spinner? A. To persuade to the reader to buy a spinner B. To make an argument about the Fidget Spinner C. To inform the reader about the components of a Fidget Spinner if the reader has not seen one before D. To teach the reader how to make a spinner 7. What would be another good title for this article? A. Be Respectful of Another s Space B. The Latest Craze and Fad C. A Creative Space D. The Fidget Spinner History 8. Read the sentence below: All in all, parents are urged to think about the reasons behind the purchase... What does the word urged mean? A. Advised C. Driven B. Angered D. Bullied

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