MILFORD – “Totally useless skills” is how circus people jokingly refer to their work.

Useless as in not practical – the skills won’t help you unclog your toilet or get your computer running.

But they are fun to learn and can help develop happy, self-confident kids, says Jackie Leigh Davis, author of “DIY Circus Lab for Kids,” published by Quarto Publishing Group.

Davis, who has been teaching circus skills around here for 23 years, will be signing her book at the Toadstool Bookshop in Milford from 2-4 p.m. Saturday.

She calls the book a family-friendly guide to juggling, balancing, clowning, and all-around circus-making.

Some of the skills can be safely learned in a few minutes or a few weeks, she says, and the book leads the reader to online tutorial videos. Then it shows how to link tricks together into an act and link acts together into a whole show.

Other skills require more time, tools, and adult supervision, but the book is written with kids in mind.

It’s also for teachers, home-school families, youth program leaders, and anyone seeking new ideas for fun physical activities.

“Circus skills foster qualities in kids that sitting behind a desk doesn’t,” said Davis, who has a master’s degree in human development and psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Education tends to focus on intellectual skills, she said in a phone interview, “but kids live in a social world, a physical world, and more and more we see how the parts are interrelated – how our intellect is linked to our social and emotional well being.”

“We do better when we are physically well and socially connected, and the exercise involved in doing circus skills helps our cognitive functioning in many different ways,” she explained, building eye-hand coordination, rhythm, balance, core strength and flexibility. There’s also evidence that coordination activities like balancing a ball increase adolescents’ ability to focus.

“They go from ‘I could never do that,’ to ‘I can!’,” she said.

And anyone can learn circus skills, even autistic kids and the disabled: “We have people with no legs doing aerials.”

And it helps that they do it with peers and witnesses, but without it being competitive. There are no winners or losers, and the skill-learning involves healthy touching and trust building. Kids can “take safe risks while their colleagues watch their back.”

Davis grew up in Chelmsford, Mass. and has been a professional mime since she was 13 when she attended a performing arts high school in New York City. She then went on to study theater at the University of New Hampshire.

She created the Hilltop Circus at the Pine Hill Waldorf School in Wilton, as well as the Silver Lining Circus Camp and the Flying Gravity Circus, which is a “farm team” for Circus Smirkus, a touring youth circus based in Vermont.

“We are trying to change lives and bring agency and self-determination” to young people, Davis said, and “teach them that ‘You are the captain of your ship’ and help them feel like competent, autonomous people.”

At the book signing, kids will demonstrate some of their skills and Davis will be joined by photographer Scot Langdon, videographer Joseph Laszlo, and Steve Opre of the Amherst Makerspace, to discuss how “DIY Circus Lab for Kids” was made.

On the same day of her book signing Davis will be at a performance of the Hilltop Circus at the Pine Hill School. The show is free and starts at 10:30 a.m., and there will be free popcorn for a donation to Wilton’s Open Cupboard Pantry.

Kathy Cleveland can be reached at 673-3100 or kcleveland@cabinet.com.