Reviewed for 2007, Fifth Grade

What, a wildly popular activity that kids are addicted to that's not a video game? That's right. It's called "sport stacking". And it involves "up stacking" and "down stacking" 12 specially designed cups into pyramid formations as fast as possible. There are international competitions aired on television, record-setting champions featured in the Guinness Book of World Records, and about 11,000 schools that have incorporated sport stacking into their Physical Education curriculum. Proponents of the activity say it increases reaction time, concentration, hand-eye coordination and ambidexterity--skills which can translate into more traditional sports, like baseball, or playing a musical instrument, like the piano. Others say the magic lies in its ability to empower kids who aren't natural athletes. But, whether you call it a sport, or glorified dish washing, one thing's for sure: it'll get kids off the couch. Vancouver 2010, anyone? (Play Along, $29.99)

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