Make-Your-Own: Snap-Cover Board for Developing Hand Skills

The “Snap Lid Board” enables children or adults with developmental disabilities to practice skills that will help them to open and close food and other pull-lid containers. This is a very functional daily living skill that also works on
1) Visual attention
2) Upper extremity strength
3) Bilateral hand coordination
4) Sorting by a category and/or
5) Eye hand coordination to string onto the pipe cleaners

I showed my clients how to listen for the click sound that indicates that the lids snapped in place. People with learning challenges benefit from the repetitive practice- six times pushing the lid into place! Pushing or pulling the lids requires force as it stimulates the proprioceptive sensory receptors in the arm/hand muscles and joints. Many children or adults with sensory processing disorders avoid pushing with their palms possibly due to touch sensitivities and decreased strength. Let’s distract them from the fact that this is exactly what they need to do in order to make the cover snap into place. Finally, the “stand up the frame” test will indicate success or need for more pushing…….

Have fun turning the board into a sorting or lacing activity as your children or clients fill the containers according to color, shape, size or another category. Another option is to string beads or shapes with holes onto the pipe cleaners.

Learn more about activity adaptations on my website and blog:
http://www.RecyclingOT.com
http://www.RecyclingOT.blogspot.com
http://www.FromFlappingtoFunction.com