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Can anybody recommend any books/dvds which focus on magic for children aged between 5-10?

I have some relatives coming over in the summer and i would love to be able to show the kids some magic.

I realise children of 10 are not so easily fooled as a child of 5 so any suggestions would be welcome.

I can do the old 'coin from ear' routine but I would like to know more about the sort of magic they would like.

Cheers guys.

Have you considered doing some balloon modelling?
I'm not suggesting it's better for kids than magic or anything, just throwing it out there as a suggestion; whenever I need to entertain kids I resort to balloon modelling and juggling (but then if you've seen my act you'd understand)

No I had not thought of that, thanks for the suggestion

You are two months too early - I am writing a book at the moment! But I do have a chapter in Easy Magic Tricks on this topic. Seriously Silly by David Kaye also seems to be highly recommended. I have not read it yet, but have only heard good things.

My 13 year old daughter has been doing some magic for both her school talent show & for Scout events for a couple of years. And we have found a theme helps to make it work best for her. For last Christmas's Scout's dinner for local pensioners she did one based upon ropes. A cheap ebay mechanical cut & restore, a rope that goes stiff & a vanishing knot. So a mixture of of brought & learnt.
Karl Fulves self working series of books is excellent, for simple tricks that give great results. Karl wrote a book specifically for Children & another for magic with everyday objects.
At under £3.00 including postage on Amazon, Karl's Easy to do magic tricks for Children has to one that is worth purchasing..
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Easy--Magic-Tricks-Children-Dover/dp/0486276139/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1329899049&sr=1-1

Hi there,

I would strongly recommend David Kaye's Seriously Silly. Search him on You Tube for the trailer to his DVD - very funny David Blaine sketch!

I also recently acquired David Ginn's Clown Magic which pre-dates Seriously Silly, covers some of the same ground but offers more techniques, suggestions, routine ideas. David Ginn has also focused on other children's magic. I am trying to track down his book KidBiz. . . .

You could also try How to Create Kid's Magic And Triple Your Income by John Breeds, targetted more at the professional but still has some great tips, suggestions etc.

Hope that helps.
Drew

David Ginn is a regular at Blackpool and gave a lecture this year which explained how he mixes entertainment and education is his acts. Apparently he has a wide selection of acts, all of which can be expanded or reduced to suit but they all aim to teach the children something as well as royally entertaining them. If you want to make contact and ask about that book or anything else then the details are:

E-mail: ginnmagic@comcast.net, website: http://www.ginnmagic.com

Watch the BBC series Help my supply teacher is magic. The responses they get from simple magic is as good as that they get from elaborate tricks. Last nights cooking lesson was superb, as was the Rubik's cube trick & the capillary action lesson. I do think they prove simple & with things children understand & use is best.
My youngest daughter (aged 11) who has never shown any interest in magic. Has been asking & wanting to learn as a result of this series. And it has always been the tricks involving things she uses that makes her the most impressed.

Excellent point Daxi.

Everything is magic to children, even something as simply as turning over the TV via remote, because of this some great effects that would drive adults into rapturous applause simply don't seem to impress children at all! But take something they use/know/accept on a day to day level and make it 'magical' and you can get a super reaction, i.e. something as simple as here is an empty bag, oh no, here is an egg etc.

Connected to this, and something David Kaye expresses really well in his book mentioned above, is that the journey is much more magical for children than the effect.

Thanks for the tips guys, I knew of David Kayes book but I shall check out the other tips too as never thought of Karl Fulves.

Thanks for the links,Mandrake.

It sounds like the original poster just wants to show the kids some close up tricks rather than present a formal show. There was a great book by Clayton Rawson on that but alas I forget the title. It is probably out of print by now. Although it focused on close up stuff to show the kids it gave me a priceless piece of advice in the foreword about keeping kids quiet when they get too rowdy when doing a show. I have used it all my performing life. I am tempted to keep it to myself but because of the benevolence for which I have always been known I shall reveal it providing I see enough people begging for it and grovelling in an appropriate manner. On the other hand I might just change my mind about the revelation and tell you to just buy the book if you can find it. We shall see what mood I am in.

Oh,go on, Mark, otherwise people will have to buy a copy of How to Entertain Children with Magic You Can Do for rip-off prices.

Yes Mark you are correct, that was my original idea but I am keen to learn as much as i can, so any tips about books or DVDs on the subject are much appreciated.

I really would suggest that Clayton Rawson book. I have no idea where you would get it at a reasonable price. I would suggest Abe Bookshops which is an online site.

A good book is "How to entertain kids without looking a bit rapey" and "Entertain but don't touch" by Mark Jackman are great books if your wanting to do kids stuff. ISBN-10: 1905091427 and ISBN-13: 978-1905091423