Opening and Closing

The Practical Life activity called Opening and Closing seeks to give children wider access to their world.

Even as adults, we sometimes struggle with difficult to open jars, bottles, and containers. Imagine how frustrating it must be for a child, when virtually everything in their world is not available to them because it’s in a container!

The Practical Life activity called Opening and Closing seeks to address this specific problem. And how better to give children the practice and confidence they need than by providing actual jars to pop open or lids to unscrew?

An array of jars and bottles, which can rotate routinely, is displayed on a shelf in a basket or on a tray. A guide presents how to open each specific container slowly and carefully, and then it’s the child’s turn!

Opening and Closing jars is the perfect activity to strengthen wrist and hand muscles, while directly helping children understand how to open the containers they see on a daily basis.

Perhaps, the next time you and your child are in the kitchen together, they might like to show off their skills by helping YOU open the jar of peanut butter!

Interested in other Practical Life activities? We suggest Dressing Frames and Bead Stringing!