Our Kids’ 10 Favorite Classroom Fidgets

additudemag.com/slideshows/fidget-spinner-alternatives-adhd-kids

Elizabeth
Broadbent

ADDitude's Favorite Products

Learning Products

It’s true: Your ADHD brain can better focus when your body is moving. In the
classroom, this means using fidgets, or other special accommodations that keep
their senses stimulated without disturbing their classmates. We asked our readers
to tell us which fidgets help their kids the most, and the results may surprise you.
(Hint: There’s not a spinner among them.)

1 of 10

Gaiam Balance Ball Chair

$69.95
Learn more

These chairs encourage kids (and adults — it’s designed for users from 5’ - 5’11” and up to
300 lbs) to bounce, tilt, and roll: all those micro-movements that help promote enhanced
concentration through body stimulation. And this seating solution doesn’t just help your
kid focus; it’s ergonomic as well. Designed for standard-sized desks, the Balance Ball Chair
has leg extenders available, if needed. One of our readers told us the chair “keeps [her
daughter] in her seat and focused enough to listen and work.” And be honest: who doesn’t
want to use a bouncy chair with wheels?

BUY NOW

1/7
2 of 10

Twiddle
$8.99
Learn more

At first glance, Twiddle looks like a veritable mess of purple, green, and blue
interconnected parts. But kids can twist, mold, move, and flip the interconnected loop for
maximum — and quiet — fidget potential, keeping them on task and their classmates
unbothered. It can even be torn apart or snapped together. It’s small enough to stuff in a
pocket, but also long enough to wear as a lanyard or double necklace when unwound. One
reader told us, “The Twiddle is something my son can manipulate while doing other
things.”

BUY NOW

3 of 10

Crazy Aaron’s Thinking Putty

$11.95
Learn more

You can stretch it, mold it, change it, twist it, and generally fidget with it. This quiet, non-
2/7
invasive fidget works great for kids who need something more tactile than a bendable pen
and who are obsessed with slime. What’s extra cool: This emerald sky hypercolor thinking
putty (a color not sold in stores), changes from green to blue as you play with it, and it
glows in the dark. Pretty cool! As one reader notes, “Our kids listen better when they have
something to keep their hands busy.”

BUY NOW

4 of 10

Hokki Stool
$92.93 and up
Learn more

Hokki Stools operate on much the same principle as the Balance Ball Chair, and range in
height from 12 to 20 inches. Basically, they use small muscle movements to keep your kid
on task and focused in class. The company calls it “active sitting,” and the chairs “allow
movement in all directions” while the padded seat keeps them from slipping. Much more
portable than the balance chair, these lightweight stools come in different sizes, stack for
storage, and improve core strength.

BUY NOW

5 of 10
3/7
Balance Disc
$19.95
Learn more

Another active sitting device, this smaller cushion inflates to its desired firmness and
comes with its own pump. Covered with little nubbly bits, this balance cushion helps
“improve balance and posture, coordination and flexibility.” Like the Balance Chair and
Hokki Stool, this super-portable fidget promotes active sitting — at a fraction of the price.
It can also be flipped over for standing. This was by far our most popular school
accommodation.

BUY NOW

6 of 10

Think Ink Fidget Pen

$24.95

Think Ink pens pop, swing, bend, and spin, making them one of the ultimate fidget pens on
the market. In short, they are a great solution for pencil chewers and pen tappers. They’re
also (mostly) silent, which may decrease the level of annoyance suffered by co-workers and
classmates who can’t handle inveterate pen-clickers. Different sliders for the top of the pen,
plus ink refills, are available through the Think Ink website.

BUY NOW

4/7
7 of 10

Hearos Ear Plugs

$27.93
Learn more

Sometimes, kids with ADHD need to block out the world, but distraction-free
environments are tough to come by at school. That’s where these discreet ear plugs come
in. Hearos are the preferred earplugs of musicians, and come in a small size that’s
comfortable for long-term wear. They are both reusable and washable, and come with their
own case. While they won’t drown out all sound, they will dim it enough to keep students
on task with fewer distractions.

BUY NOW

8 of 10

Tangle Fidget Toy

$13.20
Learn more

A series of brightly-colored, 90-degree curves that connect and pivot, the Tangle Fidget Toy
is the ultimate in quiet fidgets. The components can be taken apart and re-used, so are
5/7
made to be changed and recreated into different fidgets for your child to explore. The quiet,
calming influence of the twists and turns can work one-handed, allowing your child to
write while using this. Plus this teacher favorite is a lot less messy than some others, like
putty, and makes no noise to disturb the classroom.

BUY NOW

9 of 10

Bouncy Band for Desks

$14.99
Learn more

Bouncy bands are the perfect solution for kids who tend to kick their feet, rest them on the
seat in front of them, or just generally need body-movement stimulation to help them pay
attention. Bouncy Bands wrap around the front legs of a standard school desk (19-25” wide
with legs 1-1.25 inches in diameter) and help kids move while they work. A device for
reducing anxiety and hyperactivity, the bands are quiet and don’t disturb other students or
teachers. While many of our readers hadn’t tried them, several of them expressed a desire
to give them a shot — especially given their seriously reasonable price point.

BUY NOW

10 of 10
6/7
Ansty Labs ZURU Fidget Cube
$9.90
Learn more

BUY NOW

Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.

Terms of UsePrivacy Policy

Copyright © 1998 - 2020 New Hope Media LLC. All rights reserved. Your use of this site is
governed by our and . ADDitude does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
The material on this web site is provided for educational purposes only.

7/7