Friday, April 29, 2011

Functional Assessment of Self Feeding Skills

You know your student is improving with functional fine motor skills related to self feeding when she opens the skinny, flimsy, resistant top of the maple syrup package without a single spill--Yeah!

Well, maybe she did have to briefly use her teeth to start opening the steamy package of mini pancakes, but we all have room for improvement, right?


Happily, the orange juice was easy to open today and she used her more affected hand to stabilize the container without needing a reminder.  Amazingly, the cellophane pack containing her spork and napkin was also easy to open.
Since her right sleeve was dipping in the syrup as she reached for her pancakes, we figured out how to arrange the food configuration so her arm would not travel over the open syrup packet.

Final test--can the messy tray make it to the trashcan without a spill--Yes!

I try to go to breakfast or lunch with her once a month, to monitor her progress and thank the lunchroom staff who help her become more independent.

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