Reliability and validity of the Körperkoordinationstest Für Kinder in Chinese children

Effects of fancy rope-skipping on motor coordination and selective attention in children aged 7-9 years: a quasi-experimental study

Introduction

Recent studies have emphasized the intricate connection between exercise and cognition, focusing on specific cognitive processes and their correlations with specific motor skills. However, research on the impact of the qualitative aspects of movement on both short- and long-term cognitive performance is limited. In this quasi-experimental study, we investigate the impact of a 10-week fancy rope-skipping intervention on motor coordination and selective attention of 7-9-year-old children.

Methods

A total of 60 primary school students from Changbin School in Haikou participated and completed the study from October to December 2022. The 60 participants were divided into a fancy rope-skipping group and a control group. Children's motor coordination was assessed using the Körperkoordinations Test für Kinder (KTK), while selective attention was evaluated using the d2 Test of Attention. Children were assessed at baseline and after the 10-week intervention.

Results

Compared with the control group, the scores for the total KTK and for the hopping for height, jumping sideways, and moving sideways sub-items were significantly higher in the rope-skipping group after the intervention, with a significant interaction effect between time and intervention. Attention concentration improved in the rope-skipping group and had a significant interaction effect between time and intervention compared with the control group; the effects of the intervention on other aspects of selective attention were unclear.

Conclusions

Our study suggests that a 10-week fancy rope-skipping intervention may potentially enhance motor coordination and selective attention accuracy in children aged 7-9 years.

Differences and Relationship between Body Composition and Motor Coordination in Children Aged 6-7 Years

BACKGROUND

The primary goal of this study was to investigate the relationship between body composition and motor coordination performance, and the secondary goal was to determine sex differences in body composition and motor coordination of preschool children.

METHODS

Forty-eight children (23 boys and 25 girls) underwent assessments for body composition and motor coordination using the Köperkoordinationstest für Kinder (KTK).

RESULTS

Linear regression analysis revealed significant associations between body composition and motor coordination in boys (p < 0.05) but not in girls. In boys, Body height (p = 0.01), Total muscle mass (p = 0.03), Total fat (p = 0.03), and Total water (p = 0.02) show statistically significant influence on single-leg jumps. Similar results were obtained for lateral jumps where there was a statistically significant influence of Body height (p = 0.01), Total muscle mass (p = 0.03), and Total water (p = 0.02). Interestingly, predictive variables showed no statistically significant influence on KTK overall score in boys (p = 0.42) nor in girls (p = 0.90).

CONCLUSIONS

The predictive system of morphological variables demonstrated significance only among boys in this age group and sample. Girls outperformed boys due to early maturation, resulting in better average KTK scores.

Effects of sports experience on children's gross motor coordination level

Background

Gross motor coordination (GMC) development could be influenced by age, gender, weight status, geographical area, living setting, home environment, socio-economic status, sports practice.

Purpose

To verify whether practicing sports and practicing different sports could influence children's GMC level.

Methods

A total of 295 children aged 8-11 years were involved in the study and divided into 5 groups in relation to the sport they practiced: gymnastics group (n = 67; 51F, 16M), cycling group (n = 64; 15F, 49M), athletics group (n = 47; 22F, 25M), swimming group (n = 35; 20F, 15M), control group (n = 82; 42F, 40M). The four subtests of the Körperkoordinations Test für Kinder (KTK) assessed children's GMC level. The scores from each of the four subtests were summed into the KTK total raw score (RS) and then converted into a gender- and age-specific motor quotient (MQ).

Results

Children practicing sports showed significantly higher RS and MQ score than children of control group (203.14 ± 38.55 vs. 163.63 ± 43.50 and 98.56 ± 15.79 vs. 83.01 ± 16.71, respectively; p < 0.001). Children practicing gymnastics had a significantly higher RS and MQ than children of cycling, swimming, and control groups (p < 0.05), children of control group had a significantly lower RS and MQ than children of all other groups (p < 0.05). Children practicing gymnastics performed better walking backwards subtest than all other children's groups (p < 0.001). Children of control group performed worse jumping sideways subtest than children of gymnastics, athletics and swimming groups (p < 0.01). Children practicing gymnastics performed better moving sideways subtest than children of athletics, cycling and control groups (p < 0.01); children of control group performed worse than children of all other groups (p < 0.01). Children of control group performed worse hopping for height subtest than children of gymnastics, athletics and cycling groups (p < 0.05); children practicing gymnastics performed better than children of swimming and control groups (p < 0.05).

Conclusions

The performance model and therefore the specialized training that each sport discipline required, could justified the differences in children's GMC level among sports groups. Thus, coaches should plan individualized interventions and choose activity contents to support children's GMC development.

Motor Coordination in Children: A Comparison between Children Engaged in Multisport Activities and Swimming

Motor coordination has a crucial role in various physical activities and sports, highlighting its significance in overall movement proficiency and performance. This study aimed to compare motor coordination in children engaged in multisport versus swimming activities. The participants of this study included 180 boys and girls (girls = 87) aged 8.25 years ± 0.89. A total of three groups were included: group 1 consisted of inactive children, group 2 included children participating in swimming, and group 3 included children enrolled in multisport. Motor coordination was assessed using the Kiphard-Schilling body coordination test, evaluated by motor quotient (MQ): walking backwards, hopping for height, jumping sideways, and moving sideways. Additionally, a total motor quotient (Total MQ) was calculated based on the performance in all four tests. ANOVA revealed a significant difference in Total MQ and all subtests between the groups (p < 0.01). A significant difference in Total MQ was found not only between the inactive and multisport groups (Diff = 19.8000; 95%CI = 13.1848 to 26.4152; p = 0.001) but also between the multisport and swimming groups (Diff = 12.8000; 95%CI = 6.3456 to 19.2544; p = 0.001). In conclusion, the results revealed that children involved in multisport activities exhibited significantly better motor coordination compared to both the swimming group and the inactive group. Therefore, to enhance the growth of motor coordination abilities, it is crucial that parents, instructors, and coaches encourage kids to engage in multisport physical activities on a daily basis.