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Children
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Recent Advances in Children’s Motor Development: From Birth to Adolescence
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Recent Advances in Children’s Motor Development: From Birth to Adolescence

A special issue of Children (ISSN 2227-9067). This special issue belongs to the section "Pediatric Neurology & Neurodevelopmental Disorders".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2025 | Viewed by 2153

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Dario Colella

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Guest Editor
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies—DiSTeBA, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy
Interests: motor learning; teaching styles; teaching–learning of motor competencies; sport and physical education in school; motor assessment of process and product; teaching education (PETE)
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Domenico Monacis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Humanities, Università Telematica Pegaso, Naples, Italy
Interests: teaching–learning styles applied to physical education teaching; quality of physical education (QPE); enriched teaching and technologies for teaching in physical education; models and methods of motor assessment; relationship between physical activity, motor development, and related factors; multicomponent projects in primary and secondary school; health-promoting schools; relationship between lifestyles, overweight and obesity, and physical fitness in childhood

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The contribution of motor experience to children’s growth in developmental age has been widely supported by numerous scientific evidence and good practices. However, complex socio-cultural transformations—i.e., the increased use of digital tools and devices among infants and children—are generating new opportunities for accessing knowledge and, consequently, different ways of learning and interacting with peers.

This Special Issue aims to address this topic with a particular emphasis on pedagogical and educational models related to lifespan motor development. It may include studies aimed at presenting a new synthesis about the complex, fluid, and context-dependent nature of developmental change, emphasizing the interconnectedness of perception, action, cognition, physical fitness, and factors related to the practice of physical activity. From novel advancement in motor development, this Special Issue aims to showcase the links between scientific and methodological approaches applied in contexts (i.e., sport, physical education, free time, etc.), translating theory into practice and enhancing the transformative nature of motor development in different ages.

Prof. Dr. Dario Colella
Dr. Domenico Monacis
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Children is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • motor development
  • learning of motor competence
  • physical literacy in children and adolescents
  • health-related physical fitness components
  • skill-related physical fitness components
  • multidisciplinary approaches
  • dynamic systems theory

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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16 pages, 2282 KiB  
Article
Exploring Self-Reported Physical Activity Levels and Physical Fitness in Italian Children: A Mediation and Moderation Analysis
by Domenico Monacis, Italo Sannicandro and Dario Colella
Children 2025, 12(2), 204; https://doi.org/10.3390/children12020204 - 8 Feb 2025
Viewed by 1070
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Skill-related physical fitness is a crucial factor influencing health status during childhood. Starting from the lack of knowledge in the field of skill-related physical fitness and levels of physical activity in Southern Italy, this cross-sectional study aims to explore the mediating and [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Skill-related physical fitness is a crucial factor influencing health status during childhood. Starting from the lack of knowledge in the field of skill-related physical fitness and levels of physical activity in Southern Italy, this cross-sectional study aims to explore the mediating and moderating influence of PAL on the association between BMI and skill-related physical fitness. Methods: The sample (N = 387 students; male = 196, age = 12.2 ± 0.87 yrs; female = 191, age = 12.3 ± 0.93) was recruited from schools in the Apulia Region. The assessment included standing long jump (SLJ), 2 kg medicine ball throw (MBT) and 10 × 5 shuttle run (10 × 5) as indicators of physical fitness, and a self-report for measuring daily physical activity (PAL). A 2 (gender) × 3 (BMI cutoff)-factorial ANOVA was performed to highlight differences between groups for physical fitness components and PAL. Then, mediation and moderation models were created, establishing BMI as the independent variable, physical fitness tests as dependent variables, and PAL as the mediator and moderator variable. Results: The findings showed higher physical fitness and PAL in male and female normal-weight groups than in those who were overweight and obese. Mediation analysis revealed that higher PAL improved performance in SLJ (b = 0.091, p < 0.01, R2 = 17.16%), led to a modest understanding of the variation in MBT (ΔR2 = 0.026), and significantly reduced the time spent to perform 10 × 5 (p < 0.0, R2 = 10.72%). Conclusions: Despite the obtained results, future research is needed to further understand the association between physical fitness and the sociocultural determinants of physical activity to guide institutional policies and interventions to prevent poor health habits. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Children’s Motor Development: From Birth to Adolescence)
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Review

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19 pages, 792 KiB  
Review
Parental Perspectives and Infant Motor Development: An Integrated Ecological Model
by Ran An and Klaus Libertus
Children 2025, 12(6), 724; https://doi.org/10.3390/children12060724 - 31 May 2025
Viewed by 403
Abstract
Infant motor development has traditionally been studied through child-centered frameworks that often overlook the vital role parents play in shaping early outcomes. This paper provides a renewed ecological approach, foregrounding parental perspectives—knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, theories, and expectations—and examining how they directly and indirectly [...] Read more.
Infant motor development has traditionally been studied through child-centered frameworks that often overlook the vital role parents play in shaping early outcomes. This paper provides a renewed ecological approach, foregrounding parental perspectives—knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, theories, and expectations—and examining how they directly and indirectly guide infants’ motor trajectories. Drawing on cross-cultural evidence, we illustrate how differences in parental priorities and caregiving behaviors can either accelerate or delay the emergence of crucial motor skills. We also highlight the reciprocal relationship between parent and child: while parental views shape caregiving practices, children’s developing abilities and behaviors can, in turn, alter their parents’ perspectives. Building on existing theories, including Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory and dynamic systems theory, our integrated model situates the parent–child dyad within broader socioeconomic, cultural, and environmental contexts. This model shows the dynamic, ever-evolving interplay between parents and children and demonstrates the importance of aligning parental cognition with targeted interventions to optimize motor development. By examining how cultural norms, individual experiences, and contextual factors converge, this paper offers both a theoretical framework and practical implications for supporting infants’ growth. This paper will inform future research by encouraging parent-focused developmental studies and guiding practitioners to design culturally informed interventions in the field of motor development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Children’s Motor Development: From Birth to Adolescence)
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