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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health

Sec. Children and Health

Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1525824

This article is part of the Research TopicNeuromuscular and Kinematic Dynamics in Human Movement AdaptationView all 6 articles

Study on the Motor Development and Biomechanical Characteristics of Children Aged 3-5 Years

Provisionally accepted
  • 1College of Physical Education and Sport Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
  • 2Sport Coaching College, Beijing Sport University, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China
  • 3College of Physical Education and Health Science, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, Zhejiang Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Objective: This study analyzes changes in gait biomechanics in children aged 3 to 5, exploring motor development patterns during this critical period.Methods: Using the BTS SMART DX infrared system and Kistler 3D force plate, three-dimensional gait motion and ground reaction forces were collected from 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds during walking.Inverse dynamics analysis with Anybody 7.4 software provided detailed joint moments, muscle forces, and joint angles. Coordination patterns of joint angles and moments, Lyapunov exponents, muscle force data, joint energy absorption, and power were further analyzed.Results: Joint angle coordination patterns remained consistent across ages, while joint moment control patterns simplified from three to two with age, indicating progressive joint control development. Muscle strength, joint power, and gait stability improved with age, reflecting enhanced movement efficiency and adaptability to complex motor tasks.Conclusion: Gait control in 3-year-olds is immature and mainly hip-and knee-dependent. At 4 years, children show significant joint coordination changes with increased ankle involvement, marking a transitional phase. By age 5, children exhibit more complex and stable gait control, though still developing. Overall, gait stability and coordination increase with age, with 4 years as a critical developmental period and 5 years showing more refined control characteristics.

Keywords: : Gait, Coordination pattern, Preschool children, Child Development, Human simulation

Received: 10 Nov 2024; Accepted: 18 Aug 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 HOU, Zhao, ZHONGQIU, Jiang and Song. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Zhanbing Song, College of Physical Education and Sport Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China

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