Fundamental Motor Skills In Children Research Articles

EFEITOS DE UM PROGRAMA DE INTERVENÇÃO DE CURTA DURAÇÃO NAS HABILIDADES MOTORAS FUNDAMENTAIS DE CRIANÇAS DO PRIMEIRO ANO ESCOLAR

This study aims to evaluate the effects of an interventional program in the fundamental motor skills of children studding at the first year of Elementary School in São Leopoldo city, Rio Grande do Sul State. The study sample was composed by 40 children that were included in the study criteria, from these 21 were male with ages between six and seven years old. The procedures realized consisted on a “pre-test” followed by an Interventional Program with a “post-test”. The fundamental motor skills performances of the “pre-test” and the “post-test” were evaluated by the Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD-3). To analyze the effect of the motor interventional program in the fundamental motor abilities related with gender, generalized estimation equations were tested. The differences found were evaluated by the Bonferroni multiple comparison test, using Level of significance a<0,05. The results demonstrated significant difference in the medias of “pre-test” and “post-test” to all abilities tested by TGMD-3, except in the “running” during locomotion, where since the beginning of the tests children showed positive performance. There was no significant difference in the comparison of gender and motor abilities.

Increased Salivary BDNF and Improved Fundamental Motor Skills in Children Following a 3-Month Integrated Neuromuscular Training in Primary School.

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a protein involved in synaptic transmission and neuronal plasticity, which underlie the processes of learning and memory formation. Acute exercise and exercise training increase BDNF concentration. We aimed to evaluate the effects of a 3-month integrated neuromuscular training (INT) on salivary BDNF concentration and the mastery of fundamental motor skills in school-aged children. An additional goal was to explore the associations between potential changes in BDNF and fundamental motor skills. Sixty-seven primary school-aged children were randomly allocated to control (N = 32; 7.52 ± 0.31 y) or INT groups (N = 35; 7.56 ± 0.29 y). A 3-month INT was applied during the warm-up of physical education (PE) classes, twice weekly. Salivary BDNF was measured using a sandwich-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and the mastery of fundamental motor skills was assessed using the CAMSA test, at baseline and after 3 months. The children in the INT group, as compared to the children in the control group, exhibited higher salivary BDNF (F = 8.865; p = 0.004), higher scores for sidestep (F = 13.240, p = 0.001), 1-foot hop (F = 11.684, p = 0.001), kick (F = 4.010, p = 0.050), the sum of locomotor skills (F = 18.799, p < 0.0001), and the sum of control and manipulative skills (F = 8.151, p = 0.006), as well as the total sum of fundamental motor skills (F = 11.266, p = 0.001) after the 3 months. Interestingly, the increase in salivary BDNF concentration after the 3-month INT was associated with an improvement in locomotor skills (beta = 0.385; p = 0.039; adjusted R2 = 0.088) and the total improvement in fundamental motor skills (beta = 0.428; p = 0.020; adjusted R2 = 0.124). A school-based 3-month INT increased salivary BDNF and improved the mastery of fundamental motor skills in children, highlighting the positive impact of this intervention for a pediatric population.

"Track style" children's fundamental movement skills test: construction and verification of an efficient evaluation system.

This study aimed to develop an efficient tool for assessing children's fundamental motor skills, the "Track style" Children's Fundamental Movement Skills Test (TCFMST), based on theories of motor development integrated with Chinese cultural context and physical education teaching situations. Starting from a literature analysis, the study selected items from existing fundamental movement skill (FMS) assessments, textbooks, physical education and health standards, and children's movement guidelines to construct a pool of test items. Subsequently, the items were screened and optimized using the Delphi method. Finally, the feasibility, discrimination, difficulty, reliability, and validity of the constructed test were examined using testing methods. The TCFMST includes three dimensions: locomotive skills, body control skills, and manipulative skills, with a total of 10 items. The difficulty and discrimination of each item are appropriate; the correlation coefficients for retest reliability range from 0.789 to 0.943 (p < 0.01). The results of exploratory factor analysis indicate that the common factors align with the hypothesized three dimensions, indicating good structural validity of the test. The concurrent validity results show a correlation coefficient of -0.510 (p < 0.01) between the TCFMST and the total score of TGMD-3, indicating a moderate correlation between the two tests. The TCFMST developed in this study has good difficulty, discrimination, reliability, and validity. It also features strong operability, a short duration, and high interest. It can serve as an important tool for monitoring children's fundamental motor skill levels.

Intervention effects on low performing preschoolers' early mathematical skills: Adding fundamental motor skill practice as a supporting method

BackgroundThis study examined the effects of (1) combined early numeracy and fundamental motor skills (MovEN), (2) early numeracy, and (3) fundamental motor skills intervention programs on children's early mathematical and fundamental motor skills, and how individual background variables affect the effectiveness of these interventions. ProcedureTogether 50 preschoolers participated in the interventions (16 × 45 min sessions). Children's early numeracy, mathematical problem-solving, and fundamental motor skills were measured once before and twice after the interventions. Main findingsThe results showed that the MovEN and early numeracy -interventions were effective in improving children's early numeracy, and mathematical problem-solving. Whereas the MovEN and fundamental motor skills interventions improved children's fundamental motor skills. From individual factors, only updating ability predicted the intervention's effectiveness over and above prior performance. ConclusionThe results suggest that children's early mathematical and fundamental motor skills can be supported effectively at the same time with the MovEN -intervention.

Focused attention and intrinsic motivation using animations for instruction of fundamental motor skills in children with Down syndrome.

Children with Down syndrome (DS) demonstrate poorer performance in locomotor and ball skills than children with typical development. During motor assessment, keeping children's attention and motivation is challenging, especially for children with DS, which may affect the test outcomes. This study aimed first to examine the impact of examiner and App-animation demonstrations during the assessment on the performance of fundamental motor skills, focus of attention and intrinsic motivation for children with DS and neurotypical development (NTD). The secondary aim was to examine the differences in those outcomes between children with DS and neurotypical development. A sample of 24 children (10 with DS and 14 with NTD) aged between 3 and 10years were subjected to two motor performance assessment protocols: a traditional protocol using the Gross Motor Development Test-3 (TGMD-3) and a protocol using animations from an application as support for TGMD-3 (AppP). The focus of attention was obtained from video recordings during protocol instruction (number of eye shifts, eye shift time, instruction focus time, number of instructions required and total instruction time). Intrinsic motivation was assessed by the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (IMI) at the end of each protocol. The results showed no significant differences between the protocols for locomotor skills, ball skills and gross motor index. However, children with NTD outperformed those with DS in these skills. When analysing the focus of attention, children with DS showed greater ocular deviations and longer instruction time requested in the traditional protocol compared with AppP, even when compared with NDT children. When comparing protocols in both groups, AppP demonstrated fewer ocular deviations and shorter ocular deviation times. Regarding intrinsic motivation, children with DS in the traditional protocol had lower motivation scores than those with NTD. Regarding the purchase of protocols, in both groups, the AppP presented higher scores for interest/pleasure, perceived competence and general motivation, with lower pressure/tension. The animated application (AppP) proved effective as a visual support during the TGMD-3 assessment, particularly benefiting children with DS by enhancing motivation and attention.

The Effect of Sports Game Intervention on Children's Fundamental Motor Skills: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

The purpose of the present study was to carry out a systematic review and a meta-analysis determining the effects of sports game intervention on fundamental motor skills in children. This paper presented a systematic review from 2001 to 2020, including the databases of Web of Science, EBSCO, Science, PubMed and Springer. (1) Participants comprised 1701 children age 3-12 years; (2) sports game interventions were investigated; (3) only studies using a Test of Gross Motor Skills assessment were included; (4) RCT were chosen as the study design to assess the impact of sports game interventions on children's motor skills; (5) only culture-based sports game studies in the English and Chinese language were included. Two researchers independently reviewed and assessed the eligibility criteria. Out of the initial 1826 references, 12 studies with a total of 1608 participants were included in the meta-analysis. All interventions were implemented in preschool (kindergarten) or primary school populations, and all studies followed a randomized controlled trial design. The results demonstrated significantly superior development of fundamental motor skills in the intervention groups compared to the control groups (standardized mean difference = 0.30, p < 0.0001). The methodological quality of the included studies ranged from fair to excellent, and no evidence of publication bias was observed. Among them, the 12-week sports game intervention of 35 min each time three to four times a week had a better intervention effect, promoting children's physical health and fundamental motor skills.

Effects of structured and unstructured interventions on fundamental motor skills in preschool children: a meta-analysis.

It has been suggested that higher levels of fundamental motor skills (FMS) promote the physical health of preschool-aged children. The impacts of structured and unstructured interventions on FMS in children aged 10-16 years have been widely acknowledged in previous studies. However, there is a lack of relevant studies in preschool-aged children. This meta-analysis aimed to compare the effects of structured and unstructured interventions on FMS in preschool-aged children. The PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases were searched from inception to 1 November 2023 to identify experiments describing structured and unstructured interventions for FMS in preschool-aged children. The Downs and Black Checklist was used to assess the risk of bias. A random effects model was used for the meta-analysis to evaluate the pooled effects of interventions on FMS. Subgroup analyses based on the duration and characteristics of the intervention were conducted to identify sources of heterogeneity. A total of 23 studies with 4,068 participants were included. There were 12 studies examining structured interventions, 9 studies examining unstructured interventions, and 6 studies comparing structured vs. unstructured interventions. The risk of bias in the included studies was generally low. All interventions significantly improved FMS in preschool-aged children compared to control treatments (p < 0.05). Structured interventions had more significant effects on locomotor skills (LMSs) in preschool-aged children than unstructured interventions (Hedges' g = 0.44, p = 0.04). The effects of structured interventions were strongly influenced by the total intervention duration, such that long-term interventions were more effective (Hedge's g = 1.29, p < 0.001). Structured interventions play a crucial role in enhancing FMS among young children, especially when considering LMSs. These interventions require consistent and repeated practice over time to reach proficiency. PROSPERO, identifier number CRD42023475088, https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42023475088.

A37: An Experimental Study on the Effect of Traditional Old Games on Fundamental Motor Skills of Children Aged 7-8

Purpose: Fundamental Motor Skills as the "cornerstone" of children's healthy growth, its firmness determines children's future development. However, with the progress of science and technology and the convenience of modern life, the physical activity level of children has decreased significantly, and the development of basic motor skills has increased rapidly. Therefore, in October 2020, it was clearly proposed to gradually improve the school physical education teaching model of "health knowledge + basic sports skills + special sports skills". At the same time, as the wisdom crystallization of human development, traditional old games are increasingly replaced by the ever-changing electronic games and gradually fade out of human's vision. The inheritance of excellent traditional sports culture is in urgent need of improvement. Based on this, standing at the intersection of two hundred years of history, this study takes the opportunity of the introduction of excellent traditional sports culture into the campus, fully explores the action education value of traditional old games, integrates the design and implementation of online sports intervention of traditional old games, deeply discusses the influence and effect of traditional old games on basic sports skills, and tries to expand the ideas and perspectives of the inheritance of excellent traditional sports culture. To effectively promote the healthy growth of children to provide empirical reference. Methods: In this study, literature, experiment, interview, mathematical statistics, and other research methods were used to design and improve the teaching design of traditional games, and the first-grade students at a primary school in Shenzhen were selected for experimental research. Among them, 24 students (11 boys and 13 girls) in the experimental class used traditional old games for experimental intervention, while the control class (11 boys and 13 girls) conducted routine teaching arrangements. The experiment lasted for 4 weeks, twice a week for 30 minutes each time. The Gross Motor Development Scale III (TGMD-3) was used before and after the experiment to evaluate children's basic motor skill development, in order to verify the effectiveness of traditional games in improving children's basic motor ability development. Results: After the experiment, the overall level of basic motor skills (t=3.091, p=0.000 &lt; 0.01), mobile skills (t=4.694, p=0.000 &lt; 0.05) and mobile skills of female students (t=6.502, p=0.000 &lt; 0.05) were significantly different between the experimental class and the control class. Conclusion: Through reasonable design and creation of the five principles of fun, feasible, antagonistic, educational, and changeable traditional games, can effectively improve the basic motor skills of 7-8 years old children; The intervention was suitable for the sensitive period of children's motor development, and the traditional online games had the most obvious effect on improving the mobile skills of 7-8 years old children. Influenced by social role awareness and growth sequence, there are significant gender differences in the influence of traditional old games on basic motor skills of children aged 7-8 years, and the development of motor skills of girls is significantly better than that of boys.

Registered report protocol for an e: Health motor skills and physical activity intervention in early childhood education centers- e: Motor skills At Playtime (MAP).

Children have alarmingly low levels of competency in fundamental motor skills (FMS) and high levels of physical inactivity. e:health interventions, interventions delivered electronically, are useful tools for intervention in the home through parents, but less is known about the effects of these interventions in early childhood education centers or settings. Therefore, we created the Motor skills At Playtime (MAP) e:health intervention (e:MAP) to be delivered in an early childhood education setting. The goals of this pilot study on e:MAP are to (1) determine the intervention effects on children's FMS and physical activity and (2) explore the teachers' perceptions and ability to facilitate e:MAP. This pilot study uses a pretest/posttest randomized cluster control design. We will recruit at least 64 children (3.5-5 years of age) enrolled in a single early childhood education center. Children will be randomly assigned at the level of the classroom to an e:MAP group (n~30) or a control group (n~30). Children in classrooms assigned to e:MAP will complete an 8-week intervention. We will collect measures of child FMS and physical activity, and teacher's perceptions of the program before (pretest) and after the intervention (posttest). FMS measures include process (Test of Gross Motor Development-3rd Edition) and product-oriented scores. Physical activity will be assessed using a 7-day accelerometer wear protocol. Teachers' perceptions will be assessed through a brief survey. Lastly, we will collect data on teachers' ability to facilitate e:MAP through a daily survey. This study will yield novel insights into the effectiveness and feasibility of a health intervention in an early childhood education setting. Results from this work will expand our knowledge of how to harness e:health modalities, which have the potential to significantly expand the distribution and scalability of FMS interventions.

Early childhood educators' beliefs on increasing fundamental motor skills by playing games in a physical education context: The contradictory belief

The development of fundamental motor skills (FMS) is crucial and should begin in early childhood. As of now, several early childhood educators in Indonesia, particularly in West Java, think that incorporating playground games into the classroom curriculum is the best course of action for raising children’s FMS. This study aimed to present statistics on FMS findings for early childhood who have incorporated physical activity into the curriculum and to demonstrate that these results are still in conflict with teachers’ beliefs. Ex post facto research was applied to one of the early childhood education pilot programs in West Java, Indonesia, including a total of 30 kids. This school’s long-standing intervention involves giving children 30 minutes of structured playtime and 30 minutes of unstructured playtime at the start of each learning period. The Test of Gross Motor Development-2 (TGMD-2) was used to measure FMS. The study’s findings showed that both boys’ and girls’ FMS in both locomotor and manipulating components of the movement were very lacking and inversely proportional to teachers’ belief who believe that this activity will improve children’s motor skills. It is recommended that physical education specialists accompany both structured and unstructured play programs conducted on school playgrounds so that the early childhood education curriculum's programs are properly validated to raise children's FMS following Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP).

Influence of different caregiving styles on fundamental movement skills among children.

This study investigated the influence of parenting and grandparenting caregiving styles on fundamental motor skills (FMS) of preschool children. A total of 1,326 preschool children (698 boys, 628 girls) aged 4-6 years were recruited from the kindergartens of Jinhua City, China. Locomotor skills (LM), ball skills (BS), and total fundamental movement skills (TS) of children were assessed by the Test of Gross Motor Development-3rd edition (TGMD-3). There were 978 children in parenting and 348 children in grandparenting caregiving styles. The LM, BS and TS scores of children were considerably (p < 0.001) increased with age (irrespective of sex or caregiving style). For the sex comparisons, BS scores of boys were significantly higher than girls (p < 0.001), while LM and TS scores were not different between boys and girls. For the caregiving style comparison, parenting is superior to grandparenting in developing of children's FMS. Parenting boys of 4-, 5-, and 6-years old showed better BS compared to age-matched parenting girls, whereas boys of 5-years old in grandparenting only showed better BS compared to same-age grandparenting girls (p < 0.05). Furthermore, parenting boys of 6-years reported higher LM (p < 0.01), BS (p < 0.001), and TS (p < 0.001) scores compared to grandparenting boys, but girls' FMS at all ages were not significantly different between the caregiving styles. Parenting caregiving style is positively associated with proper development of FMS among children. Girl children with poor FMS in grandparenting may need a special care or intervention programs to promote their FMS.

Effect of intervention programs to promote fundamental motor skills among typically developing children: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundProficiency in fundamental motor skills (FMS) is associated with children's overall development and long-term physical literacy. However, FMS is not acquired naturally, but needs to be trained. ObjectiveThis study aims to evaluate and provide up-to-date evidence on the effectiveness of intervention programs focused on promoting FMS among typically developing children between 2010 and 2022. MethodsFollowing Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, a search was conducted in four databases (PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and SPORT Discus) from January 2010 to December 2022. Studies included any interventions in preschools and primary schools that aimed to improve fundamental motor skills in typically developing children aged 3 to 12, and reported fundamental motor skills outcomes and statistics. ResultsThirty-six articles (21 randomized controlled trials, 11 pre-post trials, and four quasi-experimental trials) satisfied all inclusion and exclusion criteria. Outcomes were primarily demonstrated in composite fundamental motor skills (n = 32) and its three primary parts: locomotor skills (n = 26), object control skills (n = 26), and balance skills (n = 4). A meta-analysis was conducted on 16 of these publications, revealing significant intervention effects for overall FMS proficiency (Std diff in means = 0.928, 95 % confidence interval 0.744–1.112, P = 0.001), locomotor skills (Std diff in means = 0.636, 95 % confidence interval 0.508–0.765, P = 0.001) and object control skills (Std diff in means = 0.871, 95 % confidence interval 0.660–1.081, P = 0.001).Discussion and Conclusions: The results indicate that implementing FMS development intervention programs in preschools and primary schools can be effective in promoting typically developing children's fundamental motor skills. The interventions on object control skills had a more significant effect size than locomotor skills. However, existing evidence cannot conclude which types of interventions are most effective.

The fus test: a promising tool for evaluating fundamental motor skills in children and adolescents

Fundamental motor skills (FMS) are essential for enjoyable, confident and skillful participation in physical activity across the lifespan. Due to the alarming low level of FMS proficiency in children and adolescents worldwide, the development of motor competency is an urgent issue for physical education. The promotion and implementation of a systematic process of teaching and learning FMS should be a physical education priority. Accordingly, effective assessment tools for evaluating FMS should be adopted or developed. Because FMS assessment for both children and adolescents need further effective solutions, the primary aim of this study was to develop the new age-related test of FMS (Fundamental Motor Skills in Sport test, in Polish: Test Fundamentalnych Umiejętności Ruchowych w Sporcie, FUS). The secondary aim of this study was to establish validity and inter-rater, intra-rater, test-retest reliabilities and internal consistency of the FUS test. The FUS test involves six sport skill-based tasks: hurdling, jumping rope, forward roll, ball bouncing, throwing and catching a ball, and kicking and stopping a ball. Two hundred sixty-four Polish students in grades 1–3 (7–9 yrs; n = 81), 4–6 (10–12 yrs; n = 89) and 7–8 (13–14 yrs; n = 94), including 139 girls and 125 boys completed the FUS test. The content validity index for all items was notably high. Both inter-rater and intra-rater reliability showed substantial to almost perfect agreement, with observed agreements for FUS skills between 78.5 and 93.1%. Ball bouncing had a moderate correlation with the forward roll and throwing and catching, while other correlations were low or insignificant. ICC values, ranging from 0.95 to 0.97, confirmed excellent test-retest reliability. The results of our study provide evidence that the FUS test is valid, reliable, and feasible to administer in school settings. Therefore, this tool test has the potential to support deliberate practice and improve motor competence by providing a standardized and structured approach to measuring FMS among school-aged children and adolescents.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Children's Fundamental Motor Skills: A Study for the Taiwanese Preschoolers Teachers.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in reduced opportunities for children to engage in fundamental motor skills [FMS]. This prolonged inactivity and restriction of play can have serious consequences for children's physical and mental health. The purpose of this study was to explore teaching strategies during the pandemic, whether there were differences in children's motor development, and the differences in the implementation of physical movement courses before and during the pandemic from the perspective of preschool teachers. This study was a retrospective study using an internet survey, and participants comprised 2337 preschool teachers. The statistical methodology of this study included descriptive statistics, the dependent t-test, and the independent t-test. The results showed that regardless of the time, frequency, activity intensity, and frequency of outdoor courses, the results from before the pandemic was better than those taken during the pandemic. Only the "frequency of implementing physical movement courses indoors every week" had not been affected by the pandemic. This study also obtained the performance of "children's fitness", "overall performance of physical movement ability", "stability movement skills", "locomotor movement skills", and "manipulative movement skills". All were better before the pandemic than during the pandemic. During the COVID-19 pandemic, mixed-age classes performed better than same-age classes in terms of frequency, time, intensity, outdoor course implementation, and physical fitness. Public schools performed better than private schools in terms of frequency, time, intensity, outdoor course implementation, and fundamental motor skills performance. Private schools implemented physical movement courses indoors every week, which was more than public schools. Excepting the frequency of implementing physical movement courses indoors every week, fewer than schools with five classes performed better than those who had more than schools with six classes. Finally, rural schools were better than urban schools in the implementation of outdoor courses and fundamental motor skills performance. Therefore, we suggest that in response to the pandemic, teachers should further improve their professionalism and use diversified teaching methods, and guide students to be willing to learn and improve their skill performance.

Overweight/obesity and socio-demographic disparities in children's motor and cognitive function.

Fundamental motor skills (FMS) and cognitive function are important indicators of development in early childhood. Using a cross-sectional design, the purpose of this study was to investigate obesity (healthy weight vs. overweight/obese) and socio-demographic (i.e., gender, SES) disparities in FMS (locomotor and ball skills) and cognitive function (reaction time [RT] and movement time [MT]), in preschoolers. There were 74 preschoolers (girl = 38; Mage = 4.02 ± 0.73) recruited from two childcare centers and were categorized into healthy weight (n = 58, BMI percentile < 85%) and overweight/obese (n = 16, BMI percentile ≥ 85%) categories. Children's FMS were assessed using the TGMD-3; cognitive function was assessed by the iPad-based CANTAB™ software using the Reaction Time Task (RTI), including reaction time (RT; Simple RT [SRT], choice RT [CRT]) and movement time (MT; simple MT [SMT], choice MT [CMT]). Children presented less FMS proficiency compared to recent data. Both weight groups performed comparably in FMS (ps > 0.05; ball skill Cohen's d = 0.40; locomotor Cohen's d = 0.02). Children in the overweight/obese group performed significantly worse on all cognitive tests compared to healthy weight peers (ps < 0.05; Cohen's d range from -0.93 to -1.43). No significant gender or SES disparities were observed. Maintaining healthy weight status is critical for cognitive development among preschoolers, which may influence their developmental trajectory and school readiness.

Psychometric Proprieties of the Slovenian Version of the Test of Gross Motor Development–3

Motor competence as an indicator of gross motor development is characterized by changes in movement patterns and outcomes. The Test of Gross Motor Development-3 consists of six locomotor and seven ball tasks used to assess the quality of fundamental motor skills in children. The purpose of this study is twofold—to produce a Slovenian translation of Test of Gross Motor Development-3 and to evaluate it on a sample of Slovenian children. First, a back translation was carried out with the help of relevant field professionals, thus producing a Slovenian version of Test of Gross Motor Development-3 with excellent content validity. Second, trained assessors rated the video-recorded test tasks of 452 Slovenian children with smaller groups of measured participants repeating the procedure within 2- and 4-week interval to assess reliability. Finally, the collected data were analyzed using several statistical methods. The data showed good to excellent reliability for intrarater, interrater, test–retest reliability, structural validity, and internal consistency for the majority of motor skills, as well as good measurement invariance across genders.

Developmental disorders and motor activities in children: ADHD as a model

The study aimed to identify the relationship between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (attention deficit, hyperactivity, impulsivity) and Fundamental motor skills of children in primary school, and the problematic question was as follows: what kind of relationship that links between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and Fundamental motor skills of primary school pupils?, and in order to reach the result, the study was conducted on a sample of 60 students of primary school children, using the descriptive correlational method. It was concluded that there is an inverse correlation (negative) between the dimensions of the scale of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (attention deficit, hyperactivity, impulsivity) and some Fundamental motor skills, by the increased acuity of this disorder the level of motor skills decreases and by the decreased acuity of this disorder the level of motor skills increases.

Development of an ICT-Based Exergame Program for Children with Developmental Disabilities.

The purpose of this study was to develop an information and communications technology (ICT)-based exergame for children with developmental disabilities (DD) and to examine its impacts on physical fitness and fundamental motor skills (FMS). The ICT-based exergame consisted of visual and auditory demonstrations of diverse locomotor movement and object manipulation activities by the virtual characters. A total of 52 children with DD participated in the present study. The participants were divided into twenty-seven children in the experimental group and 25 children with DD in the control group. The experimental group participants engaged in the exergame program for 12 weeks. All participants’ muscle strength (i.e., standing long jump) and four fundamental motor skills, such as the horizontal jump, hop, overhand throw, and dribble, were assessed during the pre- and post-test process. There were significant impacts on physical fitness and FMS (p < 0.001) between the groups. Specifically, the results of three FMS (hop, overhand throw, and dribble) and standing long jump significantly improved in children with DD except for the horizontal jump skill. The results of this study is evidence that the ICT-based exergame program for children with DD may be utilized to improve physical fitness and FMS in children with DD.

A Feasibility Trial for Virtual Administration of the Test of Gross Motor Development-3 for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The Test of Gross Motor Development-3 is one of the most popular assessment tools in physical education and physical activity settings. It is a valid assessment originally designed to administer in-person, but the virtual administration of the assessment has yet to be deemed feasible. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore the trial feasibility of virtual data collection using the Test of Gross Motor Development-3 to assess the fundamental motor skills of children with autism spectrum disorder. Most specifically, we report on the design and feasibility of the online assessment process. A total of 22 families of children with autism spectrum disorder participated in the online data collection.

ACTIVE PLAY INTERVENTIONS ON MOTOR SKILLS OF PRESCHOOLERS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Active play can contribute to the reduction of sedentary time and generate potential benefits for the performance of fundamental motor skills in children. Thus, the aim of this systematic review was to provide a synthesis of evidence on the contributions of active play to fundamental motor skills in children aged 2 to 5 years typically developed, as well as to verify the differences between the intervention protocols used in the studies. The studies were identified by searching the PubMed, Web of Science and Lilacs databases. Clinical trials available in English, conducted in typically developing children, were included, and studies with the theme of electronic games were excluded. Two independent researchers examined the studies and conducted data extraction. Eight articles were included in the systematic review; three identified that children who experienced interventions with free active play had better performance in handling and balance skills. Four studies identified that children who practiced guided active play had better performance in locomotion, manipulation and balance skills, one study found no significant difference. We concluded that the practice of active play, especially guided active play, positively contributes to the fundamental motor skills of children aged 3 to 5 years typically developed.