Tying or Untying Knots on Weighted Bags for Sensory Processing

Here is a fun way to teach how to tie or untie a knot. I inserted plastic bags of sand inside socks, sleeves or other fabric and tied the pink, fleece fabric strips to them. The fleece is thick and easier to manipulate than thin string.

I adapted the activity to require matching the colors or fabric designs on the bags. Carrying heavy bags and all the pulling provides sensory stimulation. The client in the video is quite good at tying and untying the knots.

Another client enjoyed most of the steps to this task. However, he has poor motor planning skills and required hand-over-hand assistance to grasp and pull apart the fabric ends to tighten the loose knot that I made.

Teaching the last step of a task first is a technique called “backward chaining”. My client experiences success as he completes the easiest and final step in the sequence to knot tying.

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