Motor Skills Of Preschool Children Research Articles

Effects of an 8-Week Active Play Intervention on Body Composition and Fundamental Motor Skills in Preschool Children.

Objective: Examine the effect of an 8-week teacher-guided active play intervention on preschoolers' body composition and fundamental motor skills. Methods: Participants were from two local preschool centers randomly assigned to either the intervention (n = 25, 3.91 ± 0.53 years) or the control group (n = 25, 3.69 ± 0.81 years). All measures were assessed at baseline (week 0), post-intervention (weeks 9-11), and follow-up (weeks 30-33). Bioelectrical Impedance assessed body composition (fat mass (FM) and fat-free mass (FFM)). The Peabody Developmental Motor Scales, Second Edition (PDMS-2) assessed fundamental motor skills (gross motor quartile (GMQ)). Results: A significant Group × Time interaction for GMQ at post-intervention (p = 0.03), with the intervention group scoring significantly higher on GMQ. A significant main effect of Time (p < 0.001) indicated that GMQ increased in both groups across the 33-week period. For FM, a significant main effect of Time at both post-intervention (p < 0.05) and follow-up testing (p < 0.001) indicated that participants increased FM over the 33-week period. Lastly, there was a significant main effect of Time for FFM at post-intervention (p = 0.003) and follow-up (p < 0.001). Interestingly, there was a significant Group × Time interaction (p < 0.05) at follow-up testing showing that FFM increased over time but significantly more for the control group. Conclusions: Results indicate that active play interventions might be a successful pathway to improve gross motor skills in young children. Further research is needed to understand the effect that active play interventions have on body composition in preschoolers.

The impact of Playdough games on the development of oral motor skills in preschool children with childhood apraxia of speech

The relevant challenges are the use of innovative approaches that conserve both the speech therapist’s and the child’s resources while addressing multiple goals in speech therapy. The authors of this article have adopted such an approach to develop oral motor skills, which are crucial for speech development in preschoolers, particularly those with childhood apraxia of speech. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of an author-developed therapy using Playdough games for preschool children with childhood apraxia of speech. A controlled design with repeated measures was employed. The primary diagnosis of CAS was established based on clinical assessment. A comparative evaluation of two groups (control and experimental) was conducted using a developed methodology for assessing the level of manual and oral motor skills in preschool children before and after the author-developed therapy using Playdough games. Researchers discovered that the systematic use of their author-developed Playdough games positively impacted the motor skills of children with CAS. Children in the experimental group, who participated in Playdough therapy, demonstrated significant improvements in both manual and oral motor skills, increased precision and focus in movement execution, and enhanced accuracy and speed of articulatory movements. There was a reduction in delays and incorrect movement sequences during finger movement tasks. Children required less additional time and significantly less assistance from the speech therapist, indicating a positive impact of using Playdough in therapy. The following skills improved: transitions between articulatory positions, which helped children avoid coarticulation difficulties; planning of movement sequences; and smooth transitions between sounds and syllables. The practical significance of this study lies in the effectiveness of using Playdough games for significantly improving oral motor skills, movement precision, and concentration in children with childhood apraxia of speech, thereby reducing the need for additional speech therapy support

The Effect of Physical Education and Sports Activities on the Motor Skills of Preschool Children

The Effect of Physical Education and Sports Activities on the Motor Skills of Preschool Children

Comprehensive Method for Testing and Evaluating the Motor Skills of Children in Guangzhou City

Background and Aim: Motor skill evaluation of 5-6-year-old children is a hot topic in current research. The objective of this research was to construct a test for measuring and evaluating the motor skills of preschool children. Materials and Methods: Research component one constructs the motor skill ability testing program for 5-6-year-old children. This part is composed of 17 experts, through the survey of 17 experts, to construct the motor skill ability testing scheme for 5-6-year-old children; Research content II, to validate the motor skill ability testing scheme for 5-6-year-old children constructed in this study. Result： The results show (1) After analyzing the experts' questionnaires, the mobility class indicators were determined as: 15.2m running, two-legged continuous jumping, one-legged continuous jumping; throwing movement skills were determined as: overhand tennis ball throwing, one-handed in-situ ball slapping; and the stability skills were determined as: one-legged standing with eyes open, one-legged standing with eyes closed, walking on the balance beam, and walking in a straight line backward. (2) The results of the experimental test showed that according to the percentile method, first, second, third, fourth, and fifth classes were set. Different age samples will not show significance (p&gt;0.05) for 15.2m fast running, one-legged continuous jumping, overhand tennis ball tossing, one-handed in-situ ball slapping, one-legged in-situ standing with eyes open and walking backward in a straight line totaling 6 items. Conclusion: This test can better evaluate the motor skills of children aged 5-6, which will help promote the development of motor skills of children aged 5-6.

Motor development-focused exercise training enhances gross motor skills more effectively than ordinary physical activity in healthy preschool children: an updated meta-analysis.

The growth of certain human brain structures peaks at early ages, and complex motor interventions could positively facilitate this process. This study aims to offer an updated meta-analysis regarding the effectiveness of motor development-focused exercise training on gross motor skills in preschool children. We searched English- and Chinese-language electronic databases as of March 2024. The main eligibility criteria were as follows: participants were healthy children aged 3 to 6 years old, and the experimental design was a randomized controlled trial, with the control arm participating in either free play or ordinary physical education curriculum. We conducted a Hartung-Knapp random-effects meta-analysis of the standardized mean difference for locomotor, object control, or gross motor quotient. The search identified 23 eligible studies, of which approximately 75% were considered to have a low risk of bias. Compared with active control, exercise training showed a large to very large effect size. Cohen's d values were 1.13, 1.55, and 1.53 for locomotor, object control, and gross motor quotient, respectively. From a probabilistic viewpoint, these effect sizes correspond to events that are "very likely to occur" and "almost sure to occur." Due to variations in intervention programs, all outcome measures showed high heterogeneity. This updated meta-analysis offers a realistic synthesis of the current evidence, leading to the conclusion that targeted motor skill exercise training can almost certainly enhance preschool children's gross motor skills. Practical implications are discussed regarding the refinement of the instructional framework and the dissemination of these findings in preschool settings.

Differences in Gross Motor Skills of Preschool Children Aged 5-6 Years Before and After Playing the Traditional Engklek Game

Background: Gross motor skills are important for a child's survival because they are stimulated during childhood, which is a long time to practice everything that will be carried into adulthood. According to national data, in Indonesia, 11% of children below the age of 5 experience growth and development disorders. The purpose of this research was to analyze the differences on the child's gross motor skills before and after the traditional engklek game at Dharma Wanita Tisnogambar Kindergarten, Jember Regency. Methods: Pre-experimental is the method used in this research with a one-group pre-post test approach. With a total population of 30 Dharma Wanita Tisnogambar Kindergarten children and a sample of 16, the SOP for playing crank and gross motor observation sheets, the intervention was carried out for 2 weeks with 4 meetings, the Wilcoxon Match Pairs Test is the analysis used by the researchers. Results: The results of the gross motoric research before the game were carried out in the BB category of as many as 11 children (68.8%) and in the MB category of as many as 5 children (31.3%). Meanwhile, after the game was played, the results were in the BSB category, namely 10 people (62.5%), in the BSH category, namely 4 people (25%), and 2 other people were in the MB category (12.5%). The results of the analysis show that there are differences on the child's gross motor skills before and after the traditional engklek game, the p-value is 0.03 - 0.05. Conclusions: The conclusion is that before and after the traditional engklek game, there are differences in the gross motor skills of children in kindergarten.

Geographical and gender differences in the development of motor skills in preschool children

Geographical and gender differences in the development of motor skills in preschool children

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.

PENGARUH PERMAINAN PLASTISIN TERHADAP PERKEMBANGAN KEMAMPUAN MOTORIK HALUS ANAK USIA PRASEKOLAH DI TK SWASTA KARUNIA MEDAN JOHOR

The golden time is frequently used to describe children in the pre-school years. Children's intelligence is now growing and developing extremely quickly, as are their fine and gross motor skills, cognition, morals, social skills, emotional development, and linguistic skills. Writing and sketching by pupils that are not tidy, gripping things that frequently fall, and stiff finger motions are all issues with the fine motor development of preschoolers. The purpose of this study was to analyzing the effect of plasticine games on the development of fine motor ability in preschool children. The type of this study was quasy experiment using one group pretest-posttest. The population in this study were all students of Karunia Private Kindergarten, Medan, Johor. The number of respondents in this study were 26 respondents taken with total sampling. The results of the bivariate analysis of playing plasticine to development of fine motor skills in pre-school children obtained p-value (sig 2 tailed) = 0.000. From the results of the bivariate analysis p-value &lt; a (0.05), it can be concluded that there is an effect of playing plasticine to development of fine motor skills of pre-school-aged children in Karunia Private Kindergarten, Medan Johor in 2023. To ensure that children develop to their full potential, it is intended that parents and kindergarten instructors would actively participate in stimulating children's development activities.

Bioecological factors associated with gross motor skills of preschool children

ABSTRACT Motor skills during early childhood play a significant role in child development. We used the bioecological model to determine the bioecological factors associated with preschool children's gross motor skills (GMS). The GMS of randomly sampled 280 children were tested using a standardized checklist. The background variables theoretically framed in process, person and context characteristics were applied for multilevel logistic regression models. The children whose parents engaged daily in child-stimulating activities and who had family income above the mean were 2.3 times more likely to have normal GMS. Moreover, the children from the schools equipped with toys were 2.7 times more likely to be normal. Interestingly, the children who had teachers with higher degrees and more extended experience were less likely to be normal in GMS, demanding further exploration. Therefore, national child development policies and programmes should ensure parental support and the provision of motivated teachers.

Differences In Motor Skills In Preschool Children Enrolled In Different Exercise Programs

Differences In Motor Skills In Preschool Children Enrolled In Different Exercise Programs

Towards Identifying a Dosage Effect for Improving Fundamental Motor Skills of Preschool Children with a Mastery Motivational Climate Intervention.

Previous mastery motivational climate (MMC) movement interventions have enhanced fundamental motor skill (FMS) competence across diverse groups of preschool-age children. Yet, an adequate intervention length has not been established. Our purposes in this study were to (i) compare FMS competence in preschool children across two doses of MMC interventions, and (ii) describe changes in children's FMS 'mastery' across doses. We used secondary data analysis from a larger MMC intervention study in which 32 children (Mage = 4.4) received FMS testing (TGMD-3) at the mid-point of intervention and at post-intervention. A two-way mixed ANOVA with Group as the independent variable and FMS competence across three Time points as the repeated measure was significant for both Group and Time main effects for locomotor and ball skill competences separately. There was a statistically significant interaction between Group and Time on locomotor (p = .02) and ball skills (p < .001). Both groups showed significant improvements in their locomotor skills at each time point, but the intervention group improved faster than the comparison group. For ball skills, only the MMC group significantly improved by mid-intervention, and the comparison group showed significant improvements from pre-to post-intervention only. Children in this study were most likely to show mastery in running first, followed by sliding at mid-intervention. Few children mastered skipping, galloping, and hopping across the study. For ball skills, overhand and underhand throwing were more likely to be mastered, and few children mastered one and two-hand striking across the study. Collectively, these findings suggest that duration of instructional minutes may not be the most effective proxy for identifying a dose-response relationship of MMC intervention. Moreover, focusing on the patterns of skill mastery can help inform researchers and practitioners as to how to allocate instructional time during MMC interventions to optimize FMS competence for young children.

State-of-the-art CNN Architectures for Assessing Fine Motor Skills: a Comparative Study

It is considered that children’s normal growth depends on their ability to use their fine motor skills. Deficits in fine motor skills in preschool children can interfere with even basic daily activities. Research also links these problems to future challenges. Therefore, early identification of preschool children’s fine motoric abilities is considered essential. However, the assessment of the development of fine motor skills is considered to be a rather complex process. Complex and time-consuming methods are used for their reliable assessment, which also requires the presence of educational experts. The aim of this study is to investigate whether it is possible to create a simple and useful tool for assessing fine motor skills in preschool children, based on convolutional neural networks. For this purpose, a comparative study between 5 state-of-the-art CNN architectures is carried out, to investigate their accuracy in assessing fine motor skills. Drawings of Greek students from public kindergartens were used to train the investigated CNN models. The Griffiths II and the Eye Coordination Scale were used to assess the developmental age of preschool children. The findings demonstrate that, although challenging, automatic and precise detection of fine motor skills is feasible if a larger dataset is used to train deep learning models.

Effect of Touch Screen Devices Use on Fine Motor Skills of Preschool Children

Effect of Touch Screen Devices Use on Fine Motor Skills of Preschool Children

Reliability and Validity of the Four Station Fundamental Motor Test (4-SFMT) for Assessing Motor Skills in Preschool Children—A Pilot Study

The main aim of this study was to create a new test to assess the motor skills of children of preschool and early school age and to determine its reliability and validity. Thirty children (5–6 years old) were tested on two occasions 14 days apart. The testing procedures included measuring the participants’ performance on the Four Station Fundamental Motor Test (4-SFMT). The newly constructed 4-SFMT tested four fundamental skills/tasks: space covering (ROLL), overcoming resistance (PULL), object control (BALL), and overcoming obstacles (CLIMB). The performance was evaluated with a 22-point scale with different criteria for each skill, and the time taken to perform the test was measured. The concurrent validity was assessed by determining the correlation with a Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD-2). The level of agreement across trials was statistically significant for all three raters, with two variables presenting excellent reliability (ICC &gt; 0.9) and two variables having good reliability (ICC &gt; 0.75 and &lt;0.9). No significant differences were found between the test and retest scores, indicating the test’s high reliability. A factor analysis isolated only one motor factor (accounting for 43.99% of the variance with the eigenvalue of 1.768) from the four tasks. There was a large correlation (r = −0.576, p &lt; 0.01) between the process- and product-oriented assessments of the 4-SFMT. Moreover, significant correlations were found between the 4-SFMT and TGMD-2 regarding the scores (r = 0.824, p &lt; 0.001) and time taken to perform the tasks (r = −0.652, p &lt; 0.001), which indicates the good concurrent validity of the newly constructed test. Small to moderate correlations between tasks (0.016 to 0.497) and no differences between boys and girls in the total score (p = 0.943) and time taken to complete the tasks (p = 0.49) were determined. The 4-SFMT appears to be a valid and reliable tool that can be used to evaluate motor skills performance in children between the ages of 5 and 6 and is reasonably simple to use.

Association between motor and math skills in preschool children with typical development: Systematic review.

Mathematics has been the subject in which many school-age children have revealed many difficulties. Research carried out in an attempt to understand the causes of failure in this area pointed to a positive association between mathematical performance and motor performance. Given the importance of math development in future school outcomes, knowing which specific motor components are most associated with math performance can help educators define better strategies for teaching mathematics. In this sense, the present systematic review study aimed to identify the components of motor skills most positively associated with mathematical performance in children with typical development who attend preschool. The PRISMA methodology (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) was used in this study. The databases searched were ERIC, PubMED, SciELO, Scopus and Web of Science. A total of 2,909 articles were identified, of which 18 were included in this systematic review. The main results showed positive associations between fine motor skills, namely fine motor coordination and visuomotor integration, and mathematical performance. The math skill of numerical counting was the most associated with FMS. The main characteristics of the instruments used showed that the tasks of copying figures or drawings are the most used to assess visuomotor integration and the tasks of handling objects with pinch-like movements are the most used to assess fine motor coordination. Given the importance of mathematical performance in future school results, identifying early children with difficulties in fine motor skills will help educators to design better strategies for teaching mathematical skills. In this sense, the need to identify instruments to assess fine motor skills in preschool children with characteristics that facilitate their administration by the educator in the classroom context, i.e., requiring little administration time, not requiring much experience or training, the possibility of being administered to the group/class, few material resources, and the results can be easily interpreted, classified, and associated with mathematical performance.

RELACIJE ANTROPOMETRIJSKIH KARAKTERISTIKA I MOTORIČKIH SPOSOBNOSTI DECE PREDŠKOLSKOG UZRASTA

The goal of the research was to determine the importance, degree and direction of the impact of anthropometric characteristics on some of the most important preschool children’s motor skills, in order to pay more attention to the development of these skills. The research sample included preschool children from Belgrade (6‒7 years ± 6 months). The research involved measuring anthropometric characteristics (body height, body mass, mean chest circumference, forearm and upper arm circumference) and mo- tor skills (speed, explosive leg strength, coordination and static arm and shoulder girdle strength). Using regression analysis, it was determined that there was a statistically sig- nificant influence of the system of anthropometric variables on speed only in boys. The common variance is observed with the same criterion (48%). Taking into account all an- thropometric characteristics, chest circumference in boys was the only one that indicated a statistically significant impact on the criterion variable Running 20 m from a high start. It can be stated that there is a correlation between anthropometric characteristics and motor skills in preschool children, although it is more prevalent in boys.

3D-фитнес в адаптивной физической культуре как метод коррекции речевых нарушений у детей дошкольного возраста

Importance. The features of 3D fitness in adaptive physical culture as one of the methods of correction of speech disorders in preschool children are revealed. The purpose of the research is to analyze the possibilities of using 3D fitness in the framework of adaptive physical culture as one of the promising areas of correction of speech disorders in preschool children. A number of tasks were solved: the interrelation of speech and motor skills of preschool children was briefly characterized; the definition of adaptive physical culture and 3D fitness as one of its directions was given; the possibilities of using 3D fitness in order to correct speech disorders in children of pre-school age are analyzed. Research methods. Analysis of theoretical and methodic literature, analysis of the experience of practitioners working with preschool children with speech disorders, comparative analysis, as well as the method of generalizations. Results and Discussion. It is revealed that exercises that include separate areas of 3D fitness, for example, exercises with a ball, as well as exercises aimed at the development of fine motor skills in combination with speech exercises, represent a comprehensive approach from the point of view of correcting speech disorders of preschool children. Conclusion. Due to the fact that the need for movement in preschool children is very significant, 3D fitness exercises are usually perceived by children with great enthusiasm, and correction of speech disorders takes place in a playful way.

Relation Between Physical Abilities and Fundamental Motor Skills in Preschoolers

The aim of this study was to determine the interconnection between physical abilities and fundamental motor skills in preschool children. The aim was also to determine the differences in the observed variables in relation to gender.&#x0D; Materials and methods. The testing successfully included 52 preschool children, 30 boys and 22 girls. Five tests of physical ability (modified agility "T" (MAT) test, broad jump test, standing balance test, squat test and sit up test) were used, and fundamental motor skills were assessed with the Test of Gross Motor Development, 3rd edition (TGMD-3). One-way ANOVA was used to determine the effects of gender on results in physical abilities and fundamental motor skills. The Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient was used to determine the relation between physical abilities and fundamental motor skills.&#x0D; The results of this work indicated, in most cases, a moderate and significant correlation of fundamental motor skills and parameters of physical abilities both in the total sample and also individually in boys and girls (p≤0.05). A significant difference in almost all variables of physical abilities and fundamental motor skills was noted in favor of boys (p≤0.05 and p≤0.01), except for the Standing balance test which indicated that there were not considerable differences between the sexes (p &gt; 0.05).&#x0D; Conclusions. So it can be concluded that the information obtained can lead physical education educators to better understanding of the relations between motor status variables, which further enables them to work effectively with children who will, by virtue of a proper physical development and education, become and remain physically active throughout their life.

Peningkatan Motorik Halus melalui Kegiatan Melipat Kertas Origami di PAUD Kober Cempaka

Fine motor development of a child is very important to be trained because when the fine motor development of children who are well trained will make it easier for children to carry out further developmental tasks. Usually, children will have certain motor skills at a certain age, but not every child will reach these stages at the same time. The art of origami can train children's creative abilities because of its various shapes. Playing origami can help children make their own toys, thereby creating satisfaction compared to toys that have been made or made by others. The purpose of this community service is to carry out play therapy to improve fine motor skills through origami folding activities for PAUD children at PAUD Kober, the location of this community service is in RT 07/RW 02 Sadananya Village, Sadananya District, Ciamis. This method of community service is collaborative, including writers and classroom teachers. The method chosen was to carry out play therapy on 9 students, for which we conducted education, observation, and documentation. The results of this evaluation of community service indicate that the fine motor skills of preschool children at PAUD Kober have reached indicators of success. Participants were very enthusiastic about participating in the origami folding activity. The conclusion of this community service is that play therapy activities with the origami paper folding method were carried out very well without any problems, the children were very enthusiastic, happy and in the end were able to fold origami paper neatly even though it was a little difficult at first.