Effects of Motor Stimulation Programs on Children with Down Syndrome Development

Abstract

The paper brings forward the issues of motor activities importance in the psychological development, and especially mental development of children with disabilities, from the embodied cognition theory perspective. In the context of embodied cognition approach, we expanded variable "any age" (meaning chronological age) to variable any mental age, and we assumed that if the cognitive system includes body and his conditions, than improvement of sensorimotor skills contribute to an improvement in cognitive functioning in children with development delay. This study presents some results of motor stimulation activities for 16 children with Down Syndrome, beneficiaries of the project "Development of motor skills in people with Down syndrome" implemented by Special Olympics Romania in partnership with other educational institutions. The aim of the study was to identify cognitive development valences of motor stimulation program for children with Down syndrome. Hypothesis: we suppose the motor stimulation program contributed to improvement of cognitive functioning in children with Down Syndrome. The study was conducted on two groups, one of 10 children (ages 5-8 years), and the other of 6 children (aged 9-14 years). Research showed improved cognitive functioning in both groups, but to a greater extent in children from the first group, which underscores the importance of early intervention in the recovery of children with retarded development. The study values embodied cognition theory for the opening of new directions for designing educational programs for children with Down syndrome, in particular, but also for other categories of children with intellectual disabilities.

Sports Education And Its Impact On The Health And Integration Into Society

“…Cognition is not independent of the brain and body, perception and action, but there is a relationship of interdependence between them; intelligent behaviour is the result of symbols processing operations at a given brain and body in a certain time and physical and social space. So, we can consider cognition not only being "incorporated/ contained in the body" (embodied) but contained (embedded) into a more complex system of the body located and "in service" in certain space and time" (Voicu & Chera-Ferrario, 2016).…”