The Effect of Progressive motor program on improving motor skills in children with autism

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of progressive motor program on improving motor skills in children with autism. In this quasi-experimental study, 16 subjects (2 girls, 14 boys) who had been diagnosed with autism in the cities of Semnan and Yazd were selected. After they relatively were matched based on age, sex, grade, and the degree and severity of autism, they were divided into the experimental (8) and control (8) groups. The Test of Gross Motor Development-Ed2 were used to assess fundamental motor skills. After pretest by TGMD-2, Progressive motor program was conducted for 30 sessions in experimental group. After 15 and 30 sessions, experimental and control groups participated in the mid and post-tests. Retention test was performed 30 days after the end of the 30th session. Data were analyzed by Variance Analyze of Repeated Measures. The results showed that progressive motor program, with the significance level of P <0/05, had a greater impact on the development of locomotor, object control and gross skills than the control group.