The feasibility and outcomes of a 12-week extracurricular family-based intervention led by physical therapists that was designed to increase physical activity (PA) in three Hispanic male middle-school children was examined. This intervention has limited feasibility and may increase physical activity levels for overweight Hispanic middle school children. In a second study, differences in motor proficiency, strength, endurance, and PA among healthy weight, overweight and obese children were examined, and correlations between BMI and physical impairments were explored. Obese children demonstrated impairments in motor proficiency, strength, and endurance when compared to healthy weight children. Among overweight children, higher BMI was associated with more physical impairments. Overweight children were less physically active than healthy weight children. A high proportion of children were not meeting daily step recommendations to maintain a healthy weight. Girls were less active than boys at this crucial stage of development. The findings of this study have important clinical relevance for physical therapists, who are uniquely qualified to assess these identified impairments and activity limitations that may limit a child’s ability to engage in greater levels of physical activity. This information lends support to the role of the physical therapist in addressing current public health recommendations related to the childhood obesity.

Thesis (M. App. Psych.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Psychology, 1991. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 57-64).

Bibliographic Identification Name and surname of the author: Mgr. Jan Jirovec Name of dissertation: The level of influence of motor proficiency on the performance in the nonverbal aspect of intelligence in younger school-age children (6 - 11 years): A longitudinal study. Workplace: Department of Kinanthropology and Humanities Supervisor of the work: doc. PhDr. Martin Musálek, Ph.D Year of presentation: 2021 Abstract Motor development in children is often linked to the development of cognitive or executive functions. Nevertheless, it still remains unclear how much the level of children's motor proficiency can impact the level of nonverbal intelligence, which is an important part of academic achievement of children. Objectives: The aim of the dissertation thesis is to determine the level of influence and its stability in time between the level of motor proficiency and the performance in the nonverbal aspect of intelligence in younger school-age children with age (categories: 6 - 7 years, 8 - 9 years and 10 -11 years) and sex being considered. Methods: The research sample consisted of 396 children (n=214 girls, n=182 boys) aged 6 - 11 years (age 8,9±1.3) from two elementary schools (Karlovy Vary Region, Prague). The children were divided into 3 groups by age: 6 - 7 years, 8 - 9 years, 10 - 11 years. The...

The problem investigated is that of determining if there are differences in the ability of mentally retarded persons over age 21 to learn motor skills as opposed to those under 21. Data were gathered at the Denton State School on 110 subjects. The first chapter is concerned with the theoretical background, purpose, and the hypothesis. The second chapter contains information on subjects, materials, method, and statistical treatment. The third chapter covers presentation and discussion of the data, and the fourth chapter includes the summary, conclusions and recommendations. Results of the study indicated that there were few differences between the two groups. Future studies should be run with samples from individual age groups extending from 6 through 21. This would be realistic in establishing a motor learning curve for this population.

Introduktion: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, ADHD, är en vanlig neuropsykiatrisk diagnos hos vuxna i Sverige med en prevalens på 2,5%. Karakteristiska problem är hyperaktivitet, impulsivitet och ouppmärksamhet. Attention Deficit Disorder, ADD, är en form av ADHD som innebär problem med uppmärksamhet och koncentration. Kunskapen om förekomst av motorikstörningar hos vuxna personer med ADHD och ADD är ännu begränsad. Syfte: Undersöka och beskriva motorisk förmåga hos en grupp vuxna med ADHD och ADD samt jämföra eventuella skillnader mellan dessa grupper. Metod: Denna studie är en del av ett större projekt vid Neurorehab Sävar, Västerbotten. Motorisk förmåga bedömdes för 109 personer enligt The Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency second edition, som i vuxen ålder fått diagnosen ADHD eller ADD. Testet är uppdelat i fyra motoriska områden; Fine Manual Control, Manual Coordination, Body Coordination, Strength and Agility, och en summering av alla områden: Total Motor Composite. Datamaterialet analyserades med oparade t-test och Mann-Whitney U-test och jämfördes deskriptivt mot normativa data. Resultat: Gruppen med ADD hade signifikant bättre poäng i Fine Manual Control än gruppen med ADHD: 60 (9) respektive 53 (10.75), p=0.027. Enligt beskrivande kategorier för Total Motor Composite hade 36,5% ur gruppen ADHD en individpoäng som var under till väl under genomsnittet jämfört med normativa data och 61.5% lika med genomsnittet. Gruppen ADD var 41.1% under till väl under genomsnittet och 59% lika med genomsnittet. Konklusion: Gruppen med ADD förefaller ha bättre finmotorik än gruppen med ADHD. Resultaten indikerar att motoriken är nedsatt hos vuxna personer med ADHD/ADD för över 30%. Ytterligare forskning om motorikstörning, vuxna och diagnosen behövs.

Bibliographic Identification Name and surname of the author: Mgr. Jakub Holický Name of dissertation: The Psychomotor Development Children from Prague Schools and Orphanages Workplace: Department of Pedagogy, Psychology and Didactics of Physical Education and Sports Supervisor of the work: prof. PhDr. Antonín Rychtecký, DrSc. Year of presentation: 2015 Abstract The results of the international studies showed significantly lower level in psychomotor development of children from orphanages in comparison to their peers from majority society. There is currently no study in Czech Republic. Therefore it is important to analyze children in Czech Republic in this field. Objective: The aim of this study is to compare the level of psychomotor development and anthropometric indicators of children in orphanages in Prague with their peers from majority society. Methods: This dissertation is a type of quantitative research. The dissertation has the character of empirical and theoretical work. This research used method of observation. The psychomotor development of children was tested with the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, Second Edition (BOT-2), which contains 52 items, divided into 12 dimensions. The sample size consists of 449 probands, 224 boys and 225 girls from the Prague region. In orphanages were...

Bibliographic Identification Name and surname of the author: Mgr. Jakub Holický Name of dissertation: The Psychomotor Development Children from Prague Schools and Orphanages Workplace: Department of Pedagogy, Psychology and Didactics of Physical Education and Sports Supervisor of the work: prof. PhDr. Antonín Rychtecký, DrSc. Year of presentation: 2015 Abstract The results of the international studies showed significantly lower level in psychomotor development of children from orphanages in comparison to their peers from majority society. There is currently no study in Czech Republic. Therefore it is important to analyze children in Czech Republic in this field. Objective: The aim of this study is to compare the level of psychomotor development and anthropometric indicators of children in orphanages in Prague with their peers from majority society. Methods: This dissertation is a type of quantitative research. The dissertation has the character of empirical and theoretical work. This research used method of observation. The psychomotor development of children was tested with the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, Second Edition (BOT-2), which contains 52 items, divided into 12 dimensions. The sample size consists of 449 probands, 224 boys and 225 girls from the Prague region. In orphanages were...

Mental retardation is a heterogeneous group of disorders with countless causes. It is characterised by cognitive and functional limitations in everyday skills, for example social skills, communication skills and motor skills and can be classified in behavioural, etiological and educational systems. Down's syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome are two of the many syndromes defined under mental retardation. The goal of this dissertation was to determine the effect of a water activity intervention programme on the motor proficiency levels of children with Down's syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. These aims were addressed by structuring the dissertation in five chapters: Chapter one constituting the introduction and statement of the problem, Chapter 2 presenting a review of relevant literature, Chapters 3 and 4 consisting of two research articles, addressing the specific aims of the study, and Chapter 5 including the summary, conclusions and recommendations. All the children who participated in the study were intuitionalized in a school for the mentally and physically handicapped. The MABC-test was used as the main evaluation instrument, and components of the Charlop-Atwell test were used to evaluate the coordination skills of the children with Down's syndrome. The first aim of this study was to determine the effect of a specially designed water activity intervention programme on the motor proficiency levels of children with Down's syndrome. Six children classified as having Down's syndrome, formed part of the research group. Their chronological age ranged between 9 and 14 years while their mental age classification was that of a 4 to 5 year old. The data was analysed by means Summary of descriptive statistics, and effect sizes were determined. The second aim of the study was to determine the effect of a water activity intervention programme on the motor proficiency levels of children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Six children participated in the programme. Their chronological age ranged between 7 and 17 years while their mental age classification was that of a 4 to 11 year old. Reporting the results were in the form of case studies, and effect sizes of differences were determined. With regard to the first aim of the study the results indicated that the motor proficiency levels of the experimental group with Down's syndrome improved, especially regarding the MABC-total, balance- and total body coordination skills. With reference to the second aim of the study, the results indicated that improvement in the motor proficiency levels of the children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome had a lasting effect. The MABC total, ball skills and manual dexterity were the components that showed the best improvement. It can be concluded that a water activity intervention programme is a suitable method for rectifying motor deficiencies among children with Down's syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Recommendations for the improvement of the water activity programme were presented, as well as suggestions for further studies. / Thesis (M.A. (Human Movement Science))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.

Mental retardation is a heterogeneous group of disorders with countless causes. It is characterised by cognitive and functional limitations in everyday skills, for example social skills, communication skills and motor skills and can be classified in behavioural, etiological and educational systems. Down's syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome are two of the many syndromes defined under mental retardation. The goal of this dissertation was to determine the effect of a water activity intervention programme on the motor proficiency levels of children with Down's syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. These aims were addressed by structuring the dissertation in five chapters: Chapter one constituting the introduction and statement of the problem, Chapter 2 presenting a review of relevant literature, Chapters 3 and 4 consisting of two research articles, addressing the specific aims of the study, and Chapter 5 including the summary, conclusions and recommendations. All the children who participated in the study were intuitionalized in a school for the mentally and physically handicapped. The MABC-test was used as the main evaluation instrument, and components of the Charlop-Atwell test were used to evaluate the coordination skills of the children with Down's syndrome. The first aim of this study was to determine the effect of a specially designed water activity intervention programme on the motor proficiency levels of children with Down's syndrome. Six children classified as having Down's syndrome, formed part of the research group. Their chronological age ranged between 9 and 14 years while their mental age classification was that of a 4 to 5 year old. The data was analysed by means Summary of descriptive statistics, and effect sizes were determined. The second aim of the study was to determine the effect of a water activity intervention programme on the motor proficiency levels of children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Six children participated in the programme. Their chronological age ranged between 7 and 17 years while their mental age classification was that of a 4 to 11 year old. Reporting the results were in the form of case studies, and effect sizes of differences were determined. With regard to the first aim of the study the results indicated that the motor proficiency levels of the experimental group with Down's syndrome improved, especially regarding the MABC-total, balance- and total body coordination skills. With reference to the second aim of the study, the results indicated that improvement in the motor proficiency levels of the children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome had a lasting effect. The MABC total, ball skills and manual dexterity were the components that showed the best improvement. It can be concluded that a water activity intervention programme is a suitable method for rectifying motor deficiencies among children with Down's syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Recommendations for the improvement of the water activity programme were presented, as well as suggestions for further studies. / Thesis (M.A. (Human Movement Science))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.

This study investigated the impact of a sensory-motor stimulation programme, namely the SEMOSTI Programme, on the gross motor proficiency of four-to-six-year-old children. A field experiment was conducted using a quasi-experimental comparison group pretest-posttest design as three teachers implemented the SEMOSTI Programme over a 30-week period. Data collection took place at two schools’ grade R classes in Gauteng province of South Africa. Due to a limited sample of 73 participants, the results are context-bound and specific to Afrikaans-speaking, white, grade R children and selected gross motor skills. Data was collected using subtests of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, Second Edition (BOT-2), a scale and measuring tape as well as several questionnaires. The variables, physical activity, body mass index (BMI), gender, age, and perinatal morbidity could possibly influence the results and were taken into account. Data was statistically analysed using the General Linear Model (GLM) procedure and Dunnett’s t-test analysis. Findings indicated that the SEMOSTI Programme had a significant impact on the dependent variable, gross motor proficiency. The SEMOSTI Programme positively impacted on all five motor skills tested (bilateral coordination, balance, running speed and agility, upper-limb coordination and strength), but only the impact on running speed and agility and strength were statistically significant. Findings from the questionnaires indicated that the teachers who presented the SEMOSTI Programme perceived it as user-friendly, well-structured and effective in choice of equipment and activities. They identified the timeframe for the evaluation of developmental milestones and the structure of the plan-of-action section as weaknesses. Findings suggest that the SEMOSTI Programme is promising in improving gross motor proficiency in four-to-six-year-old children. Through participation in the programme, the experimental group significantly improved total gross motor proficiency, running speed and agility, and strength. This study offers support for the future use of the SEMOSTI Programme as a stimulation programme in grade R after further development and validation. / Dissertation (MOccTher)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Occupational Therapy / unrestricted