Contribution of neuromuscular maturity to the quality of performing graphomotor assignments

Abstract

The maturity of muscular tonus and visuomotor integration are recognized as the processes which could contribute to individual differences in adopting writing skills, thus the aim of this paper is to investigate their influence on graphomotor expression of preschool and early-school age children. The quality of performing graphomotor activity can be influenced by undeveloped motor coordination, unstable handwriting, constant changes of finger, hand and forearm position while writing, unequal pen pressure on the paper, getting tired while writing, but also by problems in perceptive synthesis, spatial perception, visuomotor perception. The target group consisted of 163 children divided into two groups - a group of hypotonic children (55,2%) and a group of normotonic children (44,8%). The tonic neurological organization checking was done, as well as the assessment of graphomotor expression by Lilien Lirsa and Laurette Bender tests. Since the immaturity of muscular tonus is present in about one half of the research subjects, it can be said that, at this age, it represents a physiological phenomenon. The children with less mature muscular tonus score lower average value in assignments which demand high level of coordination, the precision of strength regulation and deliberation in movement, which is connected to maturing of neuromotor structures. The results indicate the need for direct development of motor and visuomotor skills in children with writing difficulties.

Zrelost mišićnog tonusa i vizuomotorna integracija prepoznati su kao procesi koji bi mogli da doprinesu individualnim razlikama u usvajanju veštine pisanja, te je i cilj ovog rada ispitati njihov uticaj na grafomotorno izražavanje dece u predškolskoj i ranoj školskoj dobi. Na kvalitet izvođenja grafomotorne aktivnosti mogu uticati nedograđena motorna koordinacija, nestabilnost rukopisa, stalne promene položaja prstiju, šake i podlaktice pri pisanju, neujednačen pritisak olovke na papir, zamorljivost pri pisanju, a i problemi u perceptivnoj sintezi, spacijalnoj percepciji, vizuomotornoj percepciji. Ciljnu grupu sačinjavaju 163 deteta podeljenih u dve grupe. Grupa dece hipotoničara (55,2%) i grupa dece normotoničara (44,8%). Izvršen je pregled tonično neurološke organizovanosti i procena grafomotornog izražavanja testovima Lilien Lirsa i Laurette Bender. S' obzirom da se nezrelost mišićnog tonusa ispoljava u oko polovine ispitanika, možemo reći da je ona u ovom uzrastu fiziološka pojava. Deca sa nezrelijim mišićnim tonusom postižu niže prosečne vrednosti na zadacima koji zahtevaju visok nivo koordinacije, preciznost regulacije snage i odmerenost pokreta što je povezano sa maturacijom neuromotornih struktura. Rezultati ukazuju na potrebu direktnog razvijanja motornih i vizuomotornih veština kod dece sa teškoćama u pisanju.