Fidget Spinner Games - Coach D

                If you’re always aware of the new fads going on among the kids nowadays then you’ve heard of the new toy that is aptly named the fidget spinner. I don’t have any kids so I was a little late to the game and had no clue what this thing was until I read how it originally was meant as something for people with autism as a soothing mechanism. The way it spins and the colours that display as it spins help calm them, or so I read. This interested me because of my previous work with autism so I bought one just to see what it was all about. I also found this book, Fidget Spinner Games, written by a physical education teacher, Coach D. It’s filled with a variety of games that incorporate spinners. He has developed a variety of games, some to play individually and some within groups. Some of the games are very simple and based around childhood games we’ve all played. For example, there is a game based on the kids game Duck, Duck, Goose. The difference is that the child running around the circle must run until the spinner he/she is holding stops spinning. This is a great idea because not only does it promote physical fitness but it also prohibits the same kids getting chosen as the goose each time. It’s these types of games that really show how much Coach D has geared this book towards kids and how he understands what they would find fun.

                My favourite section of the book is the trick section. There are lots of tricks you can do using the spinner and Coach D lays them out here, written with easy to follow instructions. I tried most of them and, although I’m not great at lots of them, they were a lot of fun to try out, even for an adult. I love the format Coach D uses here as well as throughout the book. Each page has one or two tricks or games on it so that the page isn’t cluttered and it’s easy on the eye. The instructions are very easy to follow and in numbered format. There are pictures throughout that help to break up the text which is very important in order to keep a child’s attention. I think kids will really enjoy this book and it’s obvious Coach D has a lot of experience with children and how to keep them engaged. .

                I read this in digital format on my ereader and it formatted well. The cover is colourful and draws the eye.