The Impact of Gymnastics on the Development of Fundamental Motor Skills in Children Aged 5-6

This study aimed to compare the effects of an 18-week structured gymnastics program versus routine physical activities on the development of fundamental movement skills (FMS) in children aged 5–6 years. Employing a cluster randomized controlled trial design, 58 healthy children aged 5–6 years were recruited from the Gymnastics Club at Wuhan Sports University and Lantian Kindergarten. Participants were randomly assigned to an Experimental Group (EG, n = 26) or a Control Group (CG, n = 32). The EG participated in a 90-minute structured gymnastics session once a week for 18 weeks, while the CG maintained their regular physical education curriculum. FMS proficiency was assessed in all children using the Test of Gross Motor Development-3 (TGMD-3) before and after the intervention. Following the 18-week intervention, the EG demonstrated a 24.4% improvement in overall FMS scores post-intervention, with the increase in locomotor skills being significantly greater than that in object control skills and the total score ( P < 0.01). In contrast, the CG showed only a 4.6% improvement (Cohen’s d = 0.41). Between-group comparisons revealed that the EG significantly outperformed the CG in both overall FMS scores and all subdimensions ( P < 0.01, Cohen’s d = 1.91). An 18-week structured gymnastics intervention effectively promoted the holistic development of fundamental movement skills in children aged 5–6 years. Notably, the intervention yielded superior benefits for locomotor skills compared to routine physical activities, indicating significant potential for pedagogical application and dissemination.