Have you ever seen a child with Autism who is spinning? One of the reasons why he does it is because that helps him release his anxiety, stimulate his senses and thus handle his incapability better. What would happen if you were to stop the child from spinning or rocking? Naturally, he will respond with crying, throwing a tantrum, etc. That is just because you have taken away the child’s calming technique. That is what a fidget spinner does.
Fidget Spinner is a toy used by almost every child today. This toy is hand sized and looks like a fan. It is held in the centre with a thumb and an index finger. With a flick of the finger, the wings of the toy can be spun. There are also ball bearings in the centre piece of the toy that makes the fan like wings spin smoothly. The child can further use the toy to master balancing- by placing it on one finger, etc. Research claims that this toy has health value, i.e. it can help a child focus and concentrate better.
Historical facts about the Toy:
Fidget spinner wasn’t created by any Behavioural Scientist. It was created by an inventor named Catherine Hettinger in USA who wanted to promote world peace. She began imagining the spinner while visiting her sister in Israel. ‘What if the young boys throwing rocks at police officers played with something calming instead?’ she thought. Hettinger’s spinner never took off until earlier this year, when some YouTube videos with children playing with them went viral.
Later, research was done on Children with Attention and Hyperactivity and Autism Spectrum Disorder which proved that giving them fidget spinners improved their academic grade as it helped them concentrate more.
Some Facts:
The facts say that the spinner acts as sensory stimulation for these kids. The more a child moves around before coming to the task, more his alertness during that cognitive task.
For a child having Autism Disorder, one of the effects of repetitive movement is to give a calming effect. Infact think about yourself or your friends or colleagues. How many of them have the habit of shaking a leg repetitively, playing with their hair or biting their nails especially when doing a task that requires concentration? This, as a normal person, is our way to deal with our internal emotions to cope with the challenges that the environment throws at you.
I have heard of people who listen to music through earphones to concentrate while there is distraction in the surroundings. Things like rolling a pin, using a stress ball, playing with coins, etc is known to stimulate some senses and help a person focus, especially people who have a tactile learning style.
Fidgeting can also help distract you from unhelpful recurrent thoughts but according to counselors, it’s not the ideal way to deal with the issue.
But here the question arises of whether the fidget spinner helps everyone concentrate better? Everyone is different. Everyone has a different learning style. Some people cannot focus at all with any distractions and need to focus 100% on the task for full result. For such people, fidget spinners will only distract them and lower their cognitive abilities at handling the task.
This is the main reason why schools and teachers are banning fidget toys. It is ideal to use the toys depending on your learning style. Another reason why they are being banned is that it needs eye hand co-ordination at first (especially for younger children) which takes most of your attention.
News have been doing the rounds that this toy is dangerous when not very careful, the wings of the spinner may cut your hand. Spinning the toy too close to the eyes can also prove to be dangerous. The ball bearing in the toy can be dangerous as a young child may accidently swallow it.
Thus, Fidget Spinner is valuable but not for everyone. Looking at the sales of the toy and its ranking as the number one object being purchased today, it only seems like a FAD which will wear off soon as something more interesting comes along.
It’s just that not many children realised that they had issues with attention and focus until the toy came in and now, every person wants to treat himself with the toy. This makes it look more like a fashion trend than a treatment. It’s as if suddenly people all around the world want to be more relaxed, more focused and less distracted by using the toy.
Fidget Spinner is not a magic wand which when spun, will endow you with supreme focus and calm! Don’t get carried away with the Fidget Spinner.
For Parents; understanding a child and his learning style is vital in deciding if it will work for you or your child.