Video: Opening drinks

﻿Hi, I'm really looking forward to our lesson today. I hope you are, too. Before we get started, this is just a little reminder. We're here to support any approaches you might already be using and any work you might have already been set. We know that this lesson is going to be going out to so many different children and families. So if you're not sure about anything or have any questions, then please do contact your usual therapy team. Hi, today we're going to be looking at the skills needed to open our drinks bottles, and for example, juice cartons or smoothie boxes. Okay. Let's look in today's lesson at drinks containers, and how we can learn to be more independent in opening them. Okay, so there are a range of drinks containers you can get. You can get the ones that have, that are just screw top water bottles, and we need all of our fingers to be able to do that, okay? You have ones which are flip top bottles, so your thumbs need to be super, super strong so they can flick it up and back down again. You can get cartons which have straws in them. And for these, we need really good pincer grips so that we can take the straws and push it in. Okay, and we need to be able to look as well and see exactly where the hole is to put it in there. And we might also have pull tops. And for this you'll need a strong pincer grip so that you can pull the top up, okay? So the skills that we need to open containers include fine motor skills. So your hands need to be really, really strong and your fingers need to be especially strong. Okay? You need to have a really good sense of touch, your visual perception for looking at where you need to be opening needs to be quite good. Your focus and attention needs to be really good because if you're not focusing, then you might spill water or juice or a liquid everywhere. And you also need to have just generally good muscle strength and be able to grade how much force you're using. 'Cause if you don't pull hard enough, you're not going to get that bottle open. And if you don't twist, for example, hard enough, it's not going to be closed securely. I want you to pause the video now to get the items you will need. You will need some bubble wrap, and if you don't have bubble wrap, then some tinfoil, a cup, an elastic band and a pencil. Restart once you're ready. Okay. Here, we can see me using a screw top bottle. So I'm using my pincer grip. My thumbs are always facing my body. My elbows are very still and I'm just moving my hand and my wrist. Okay? And you can see it's just that movement. Okay? And screw it back on. We're going to do that again. And this is something that you can just practise all the time, okay? So look at that really carefully and still. Okay, so for the next activity, I want you to practise opening some screw tops. Ask an adult for an empty screw top bottle, and you may find one in the recycling bin. So the first thing I want you to do is to sit at a table and practise opening and closing the top while supporting your hands on the table. So my bottle up there has got a screw top. And what you're going to do first is just hold it really securely on the table. And you're just going to practise opening, whoop, that one, and closing. Okay? So I want you to do that while your hands are supported on the table. Once you feel more confident, push your chair away or lift up the bottle. So it's not on the table anymore and now unscrew it and screw it back on, okay? And you could also put that on your lap if you want to. And then what you can do is practise opening and closing the top while you're standing up, 'cause you might be standing up at the park and opening your bottle and then closing it again. Okay. Pause the video there to complete your task. Resume once you've finished. Now you can also get flip top bottles and these always use two hands, and you're going to use your thumbs to flick the spout up and your index finger to push it back down. You could use your index finger to push it up and your thumb to push it down. But these are the main fingers, okay? So these ones are the ones that are going to be doing all the work. So in order to practise opening and closing flip top bottles, we actually use the pots that we use for our snacks because we can flick up the ends and push them back down. Okay? And if you struggle using your thumbs, then you can hold the pot with one hand and use all your fingers to lift the clip up. So repeat this several times until you can do it without looking, okay? So there your thumbs are going and it's all about just improving the strength in your thumb and also in your index finger. You can also open cartons and pouches with straws. And these are opened by punching a straw into a small foil hole. And sometimes, the hole is actually plastic. For this activity, we are going to make holes in bubble wrap. I want you to ask an adult to help you put some bubble wrap over a cup and hold it in place with an elastic band. Then you're going to take a pencil and hold it right at the tip and carefully make holes in the bubble wrap. You could ask an adult to draw with a pen so you can see more clearly where the holes are. And then you're just going to slide it in and pretend that's your straw. Remember I said, if you don't have bubble wrap, you can do the same activity on some tinfoil. And that will be easier. You could also just take some bubble wrap and practise making holes in it while you're holding it in between your fingers. Okay? And this time, try and push the pencil, which is your pretend straw, all the way through. Okay? Pause the video now to complete your task. Resume once you're finished. Remember, try your best. I know you usually do, but just to keep on trying your best. Work carefully and slowly. Practise all of these when you are not in a rush, 'cause that means you won't make a mess and you won't feel stressed or panicked. Practise, practise, practise. Be proud of how independent you are becoming. If you'd like to, please ask your parents or carer to share pictures of your work on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter, tagging @OakNational and #LearnwithOak. Bye!

Lesson summary: Opening drinks

In this lesson we will practise opening different types of drinks containers.

Opening drinks

Activities of daily living 

UNIT

Being independent

Getting dressed

Fastenings

Opening containers and packets

Making a sandwich

Making a packed lunch

Showering

Hair washing

Drying and styling hair

Personal grooming

Going shopping

Having a meal out

Summary: Putting it all together

Opening drinks

Video

Lesson summary: Opening drinks

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