Hello, today I'm going to show you how to open a can of soda. The procedure I'm going to teach you may not be immediately intuitive, so don't worry if it takes you a little time to master. With a little practice, you should be able to open cans reliably and confidently.

Step 1: Identifying the Parts

A can is any aluminum tube with a ring tab attached to the top. Make sure the can has this ring tab, because it is essential for the method I'm going to show you. You can still open a can without a ring tab, but you'll need to use a can opener.

If you look at the top of the can, you should be able to identify the 3 key elements, which are covered by the next three steps:

Step 2: 1 - the Ring

The first is the ring. As you can see, the ring tab has a ring on the end closer to the outside of the can.

Step 3: 2 - the Tab

The ring tab also has a tab on the side closer to the center of the can.

Step 4: 3 - the Opening Section

That tab rests on the opening section, which is an outlined area on the surface of the can itself.

Step 5: Putting It Together

All three of these pieces are going to work together to open the can: you'll use the ring to push the tab through the opening section, creating a hole in the top of the can that you can drink through.

To begin, slip the index finger of your dominant hand under the ring. Next, rest the thumb of your dominant hand on the tab.

Hold the can with your non-dominant hand so that the ring is facing away from you and the tab if facing toward you. Press down with your thumb while pulling your index finger up and toward yourself in an arcing motion , like so:

Use the same amount of force you would use to turn a key in a lock.

Step 6: Troubleshooting

Sometimes the opening section will only open partway, leaving just a narrow opening. If this happens, you have 3 options:

1 - If the ring tab is still attached, you can push it back to its opening position and try the whole procedure again.

2 - If the ring tab had broken off, you can use your thumb or any blunt object to push the opening section open.

3 - If all else fails, you can always pour the soda into a glass through the narrow opening.