Verbal, Visual and Kinesthetic Instructions for Preschool Children on Motor Skill Competence
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study designs: Randomized Controlled Trial, Clinical Trial
Abstract: Background: This study aimed to examine the influence of three different instructions on preschoolers during simple motor task learning. Methods: Fifty-eight children were randomly assigned to one of three practice groups: kinesthetic instruction, verbal instruction, or visual demonstration. The participants performed a novel gymnastics task that involved five upper limb movements in a specific order. Participants were instructed (through kinesthetic, verbal, or visual instructions) to perform the indicated positions. All three groups followed the same experimental design and performed three 5-trial blocks during six practice sessions. The practice sessions occurred twice a week for three weeks. Regardless of the group, all participants completed a total of 90 trials. For each trial, a gymnastics judge assessed the performance. Results: The kinesthetic group score was significantly greater than the verbal group score but not significantly different compared to the visual group score in the post-test. The visual and verbal instructions were similarly effective in the retention test. Conclusion: One of the most important findings from the present study was that the most effective instructions for learning simple motor tasks in preschoolers were not verbal or visual instructions, unlike kinesthetic instructions. It was also proven that the verbal and visual instructions did not reveal differences. The findings provide relevant information to the child development literature and suggest that differences in learners need not result in differences in learning fundamental motor skills.
Language: English
Subfield: Developmental and Educational Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7223186897