As a teacher, I have a tolerable/hate relationship to fidget spinners. For those who don't know what they are, they are the latest fad that started at the end of last year.



They are basically 3 blade fans that can be held in the middle so that they can spin on your hands. Companies make them in different shapes and looks. Some light up. They are fast spinners with little friction. They are cool looking and different people around the country are using them for different things. Supposedly, they are created to help relieve stress and help people focus.

Here's the problem though, they have now become the very thing that people are losing focus when it comes to complete their tasks. Students would bring these to school and it is marketed as a way for them to stay focused in school so that their fingers would not fidget on other things, but the existence of these items make the student the main focus of other students and themselves. A kid having it out in the open on their hands would make other students talk about it, look at it, ask to try it, and then wanting to get one themselves. I would not have a problem with it if they were used in a low-key, under the desk, type of tool. But knowing some kids, they won't keep them down low.

Honestly, I don't think they are even doing what they are advertised to do. Waiting on new studies to make that proclamation.

What do you think? Are they helpful or a distraction? Should they be allowed in schools as long as people don't make a big deal about it? Or should they be banned from schools? 

  like many other toys that have come and gone it looks like fidget spinners is one of the latest things and while the kids find them to be quit popular now it probably won,t be long before something else comes along that eventually will replace them but in the meantime like any other toy I don,t feel that kids should be allowed to play with them in classrooms since they can be a distraction that will prevent them from learning and being able to perform the tasks they need to do in school in my opinion if the kids bring them to school they should only be allowed to play with them during recess or their lunch break back when I was in grade 7 I remember a friend of mine having  what was called scratch and smell stickers each one had a picture and a small saying on them the sayings were all things like what teachers would use to mark students tests such as one that had a picture of a bandage and it had the saying much better when you scratched it it smelled like bandages but the only time I saw my friend,s stickers was when we were on our lunch break because back then no one was ever allowed to bring any kind of toys or anything into the classrooms that could be used as a distraction to prevent us from performing our tasks

The perfect game doesn't exi.....

But for real tho, in my opinion, fidger spinner is just a really simple thing to kill your time with. Like for example, when you're waiting for your friend to hang out, spin a spinner, when you're waiting for your cookies to be cooked, spin a spinner, when you're waiting for your life to get back together, spin a spinaroo! Just kidding, but seriously, I don't think it should become a big deal, I don't know why people hating on it and getting so cancerous about it, i mean, it's a funny meme, but cmon, don't make it to become such a big deal.

These things look interesting, but can be an annoyance as said earlier. The spinners are ripped of by many companies (mostly from china) that make "hand spinners", a knock off brand that make somehow even MORE noise than the normal spinners. Like jeez, I remember when the Smencils were popular and now this? 

The main fidget company made other things too, like the Fidget Cube or even the FIDGET STICK. I'm not joking that is actually a thing, and there even may be more to come.

These spinners are more of a distraction than they are a tool to help people with ADD. Actually, most people with ADD say that fidget cubes are a lot more helpful and less distracting than the spinners are. Also, they stopped being a tool to help people. They are now just a fad that every 12 year old ever is buying into.

I don't think fidget spinners help students focus just because they're a trend. If people bought them for their original purpose it wouldn't be a problem, but since everyone wants one it's impossible to actually focus while having one. I brought my fidget spinner to school several times but I immediately regretted it after many of my peers asked to see it. I realized I couldn't have one out without people bothering me so I left it at home.

Despite all that, I think they should be allowed at schools but only for classes just for special needs kids. That's who they were meant for in the first place.

By the way, what's funny is that in my school district, the middle school had to ban them but the high school has been fine so far.

I consider it false advertising. Music helps people concentrate more than these.

As long as someone doesn't have the music up too loud, and as long as they have headphones or earphones in. Be able to hear the teacher while they're talking but still listen to music.

Fidget Spinners is like listening to death metal without headphones.

When I first saw people using them, I thought they were a lot of fun and all, until I got one myself (some of my cousins got these spinners for themselves and for me as well). Guess what? I used it only for one day, and then I stopped using it simply because I was bored of it. Till today I don't understand what's so entertaining about these spinners... I'm afraid they're becoming more than simple products :/.

I think they can be useful to relieve stress, but I have my own ways to relieve my own stress, and that is music. I think as long as students aren't distracted a lot by these spinners in a school and are focusing more on their studies, then the school shouldn't ban it.. However, if it was a HUGE problem for the school then yes, definitely they should.

I think they are ok to a certain extent. My little brother is autistic. My mom says that it helps him focus in class, as evidenced by the increase in his grades at the end of the year ( not that he's not a smart little cookie already ). 
Where I have a problem with them is all these fancy ones. I think if you have to let the kids who they actually help in classrooms have them, you have to let everybody have access to them. But the moment they start becoming a distraction, or a " Mine's cooler because it has a dollar sign on a Captain America shield! It's better and more cooler than your simple 3 point one! " contest, then something needs to be done. 
I think when it comes to teachers, it should be at the teacher's discreation, on a case by case basis. It's not right to punish the whole class, when it actually helps the kids who use it to help with their focus. I think it might have helped me becuase I always had to keep my hands busy, so the teachers were always coming up with extra work for me becuase I would finish my so early. 

I have REALLY mixed opinions on them
Personally, I think that any fidget toy, not just spinners, should only be used in class by people who need them. I'm talking about kids with autism, ADHD, and Anxiety.
Now, I myself have a form of anxiety and I also have another mental illness that I don't share online for fear of being judged. I know first hand how helpful it is to have a fidget toy in class. I mean, when I got my fidget spinner I got the most plain, but heavy one I could, because weighted stim toys are what help me the most. Before anyone knew I had it I would just spin it under my desk and move it up and down as the weight of it while spinning would help calm my nerves enough to be able to function normally and be able to focus.

But when everyone else found out it was a nightmare

You see, When a kid doesn't need it, there's a 100% chance that they will not use it properly. So, instead of doing their work they would be spinning them, seeing who's was the coolest like thing1 said and pretending to have Beyblade battles with them. So when someone noticed that I had a fidget spinner they would take it from me and try it out, and play with it.
I mean, they would just rip it out of my hands without asking
Remember how I said I need it to be able to function normally and focus? Yeah. It would send me into a panic, not only because it was what was keeping me calm in the classroom (a very stressful environment for me) but also because I didn't know if they would give it back, and my anxiety would prevent me from asking for it back

Needless to say, this affected me a lot, and because no one was working when they were playing with them, they all got banned, which really affected people like me who needed

What I am trying to say is two things.
1. If there is someone who has a mental problem and is using a stim toy to cope, DONT TAKE IT FROM THEM
2. people who do not need them should not have them because they will not be a help, and will really just cause problems for them and the people around them because they won't use it properly. it also ruins it for the people who need them because they get banned

Oh, and I've ditched my spinner. I have a weighted danger noodle in my lap instead. much better, much cuter. and when I'm stressed at home I just go and punch my punching bag.

I prefer spinners for when you're outside doing stuff more than when trying to keep your attention on something. Like when you're just walking and spinning it in your hand, or spinning it along to music, it helps lose track of the time.

I love these for when I'm angry or stressed out. I grab one of the outer rings, instead of the middle, and spin the entire thing as hard as I can. It basically gives my hand the same feeling as if I was using a stress ball.

I actually do have pretty bad ADHD and while I've never actually tried these, I could see how they might help. I've always gotta be doing more than 1 thing at a time because of it. While I'm working, I usually have to be either chewing gum while working, sucking on hard candy while working or something similar. I know of people who smoke while working (not something I've ever considered) and not because they're necessarily addicted to smoking but because they have to fill the void of needing something else to do while working.

My daughter is kind of the same way. We'll watch movies or shows with her and even though she's giving it her full attention, she always has to have something in her hands to play around with like a toy. My wife home teaches her and she has a heck of a time because of how easily distracted my daughter is.

I can see how these would be annoying though and how they probably do more harm than good for most people but I can also see how they can help for certain rare cases.

They're basically just toys. If they help some people, great. There's nothing wrong with a toy helping you concentrate on what you should be doing. But that doesn't make it any less of a toy and that doesn't mean it helps everyone.

I don't really have any data on them, so I can't say whether or not they've been proven to be helpful to anyone or not, but I can definitely see how they can be a major distraction in any learning environment. My younger brother of 11 collects these things like they are going out of style. He recently bought a couple of them that have flashing lights and look somewhat cool when you spin them, but they don't really do anything outside of that. My brother is already easily distracted and finds it hard to concentrate on anything as it is (I also have reason to believe he has ADHD) and the fidget spinners just amplify his level of distractedness. It's hard to say whether or not it helps him in school since he just started collecting them in the summertime, but I really think they would just serve as another outlet for him to not pay attention in class.

My department supervisor recently found a lost fidget spinner that hadn't been claimed in several weeks, so he brought it to our stockroom for our own "personal use." The only time I ever mess with it is when I am on hold on the phone for long periods of time waiting for another store associate to respond. In that regard, it's somewhat nice to mess with in short instances like this, but I don't use them for refocusing my attention or relieving stress. I actually think they're quite counterproductive in that respect. From a teacher's perspective, one student using a fidget spinner could wind up distracting other students or even serve as a new excuse to not focus in class. Unless you know your students really well, you really have no way of knowing whether or not they have a fidget issue or struggle to concentrate on class material.

Ultimately though, I don't have ADHD or a fidget tendency, so it's entirely possible that they could  prove to be incredibly useful for those who do. 

They are more distracting than they are helpful in my view at least while in class room environment in which case you need to give the teacher your full attention. I could easily see them disrupting class as well from dropping them or from students who don't have an attention problem bringing them in. I will say that I could see them being more helpful outside of school if you're doing something like watching TV where you don't really have to stay as focused but there are probably better alternatives.

I'd like to update my statement.

I've had a spinner for the last couple weeks and I definitely understand the argument for not using them in class. As zanderlex says, they're great for just keeping yourself preoccupied and passing time but I don't get anything else out of it. If anything, it's far more distracting for me than helpful. I think it's overkill that schools are outright banning them but I don't really see it having a practical application in a classroom environment. Seems more counterproductive.

I think Fidget Spinners are pretty much annoying at this point, they are a meme that needs to be lost. What isn't good is that it most likely will not be forgotten, just like that dead gorilla. 

When it comes to fidget spinners I'd have to say they are more of a distraction, and used more as a distraction rather than used to keep kids focused. Now granted I'm not a believer in attention disorders or disobedience disorders in the first place( I think all the kids need is old fashioned discipline and structure)  but in my opinion fidget spinners do nothing but provide a tool for staying off task and distracting not only the kid that has it but the other kids around because simply they might not have one and want to play with it. And I look at it like this if the kid is playing with a fidget spinner how are they focusing on their work if they are playing. And also what doesn't help there case is it's marketed as a toy in most places and I've seen advertisements in stores that have on the box as a slogan " If your at work or not at work, if your bored or if your at work and bored, fidget spinner "...that says it all to me in my opinion its simply a tool for distraction and relief of boredom and allowing them in schools will only further dumb down the students and allow for more distractions and more people will become afflicted with "attention disorders". 

I think fidget spinners are fine as long as they aren't in the classroom. I think it's kinda obvious that it's a bit of a distraction for the students when they are focused on the toy they have in their hand instead of focusing on the material the teacher is teaching them. It can be controlled like in a study hall, but I would have them put it away during lectures.

I don't know how you would even tolerate these in a classroom, to be completely honest.

I've posted this in another thread, and my opinion hasn't changed: these are a very big distraction in classes, people throwing them about, spinning them indefinitely, it never comes to an end.

Have you ever thought of any confiscation methods for misuse? That might help with classroom troubles.