Effects of motor intervention programs on children's academic skills: a systematic review

Introduction: Child motor development is characterized by acquiring a spectrum of motor skills that enables children to control their bodies in different postures, explore the environment, and manipulate objects. Especially at the beginning of the schooling process, there is a significant increase in these skills linked to the development of body perception, space, and time, which constitute basic components of both motor learning and academic activities. Objective: The aim was to identify and describe, based on scientific literature, the effects of motor intervention programs on children's academic skills. Methodology: This systematic literature review is registered under protocol CRD42020203996 in PROSPERO. Studies were selected using the following databases: Scopus, Web of Science, SciELO, SPORTDiscus (EBSCOhost), and PubMed (MedLine). The selection process followed the PRISMA method. This review included intervention studies of clinical trials and randomized controlled trials with children aged 6 to 12 years old published in the last 10 years (2014 to 2024). Results: A total of 2,819 publications were identified, and after applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 8 articles were selected. Discussion: It was possible to observe the fundamental role of motor interventions in both motor skills and academic learning. Also, it was observed an impact on the executive function variables associated with academic learning. Conclusions: It was observed that motor intervention programs can play a facilitating role in the academic development of children, with positive impacts, especially concerning reading, writing, and mathematics.