Developmental dyslexia is defined as a specific reading disorder but is also thought to be underpinned by a deficit in motor skills that may well affect handwriting performance. However, the results of studies addressing this issue are not consistent. The present study was, therefore, designed to better understand the functioning of handwriting in…

A heterogeneous sample of 137 school-aged children with learning disabilities (IQ greater than 80) attending special needs schools was examined on the "Movement Assessment Battery for Children" (MABC). The results show that compared to the available norm scores, 52.6% of the children tested performed below the 15th percentile on manual…

Using a memory for sentences procedure, 50 learning disabled boys, with and without motor impairments, were compared with normal controls when trained with and without motor enactment. Memory in both normal and learning disabled Ss (with and without motor impairment) improved significantly following motor enactment with a trend for greater…

The authors postulate that dysfunctions in the cortical sensorimotor areas of the brain that control internal speech may adversely affect the learning of reading, writing, spelling, and arithmetic, especially in children who are first learning these skills. (Author)

Some methods for evaluating movements are reviewed and their usefulness for neuropediatric diagnosis discussed. (SBH)

Complex motor tics associated with vocal tics indicate a high likelihood of Tourette syndrome; children with this syndrome may also have learning disabilities and attentional disorders. Individuals may be treated with stimulant drugs which may precipitate or exacerbate tics. Pharmacotherapy is available for management of tics and attentional…

Forty-five children with various handicaps, aged 3-15, were screened for motor delays and assigned to therapy with occupational or physical therapists. Results were that developmental therapy affected gross motor gains in preschool children with moderate delays, and that one treatment per week was effective. (Authors)

The results showed that while the children with bilateral OME did not differ in terms of background characteristics, they were significantly disadvantaged in speech articulation ability, verbal comprehension, motor development, and intelligence. They also had significantly more behavior problems. (Author)

Reviewed is research on the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities, which are designed to assess several areas of a child's cognitive and motor development from the age of 2 1/2 to 8 1/2 years. (Author)

Investigated was the effect on the sensory integration of 24 aphasic students, of a 7-month sensorimotor program-designed to stimulate the tactile, vestibular, and proprioceptive systems; motor planning ability; bilateral integration; postural and equilibrium responses; visual form and space perception; and motor development. ( DLS)