MoveBoost: A model to stimulate motor control development in children through gamification in school environments

  • Maithe M. Mello Unisinos
  • Eduardo L. Scheffler Feevale
  • Débora N. F. Barbosa Feevale
  • Jorge L. V. Barbosa Unisinos

Abstract


Motor development is essential for children’s growth, but its stimulation in schools is often limited. MoveBoost complements a game called GameMove that stimulates children’s motor control, using gamification and exergames to promote motor skills such as balance and coordination. The application incorporates rankings, achievements, rewards, and goals to engage children in a playful way. In addition, it analyzes data on users’ actions and proposes personalized challenges to stimulate progress. A usability evaluation was conducted using the TAM model, involving GameMove experts, and indicated high levels of ease of use (92%) and perceived usefulness (88%).

References

Cerqueira, B. B., Barbosa, D. N. F., Mossmann, J. B., de Oliveira Cardoso, C., and Barbosa, J. L. V. (2022). Inhibitory control stimulation in elementary school children through digital games: A systematic mapping study. Applied Neuropsychology: Child, 11(3):541–552.

Costa, A. C. d. S. and Marchiori, P. Z. (2015). Gamificação, elementos de jogos e estratégia: uma matriz de referência. InCID: Revista de Ciência da Informação e Documentação, 6(2):44–65.

Cvetković, B., Janko, V., Gradišek, A., Luštrek, M., Kajtna, T., and Štrumbelj, B. (2016). Mobile application to stimulate physical activity in schoolchildren. In 2016 12th International Conference on Intelligent Environments (IE), pages 206–209. IEEE.

Dapp, L. C., Gashaj, V., and Roebers, C. M. (2021). Physical activity and motor skills in children: A differentiated approach. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 54:101916.

Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quarterly, 13(3):319–340.

Elliott, K., Norman, J., Wardle, K., Budgen, P., Callahan, H., Camilleri, M., Romeo, A., Trinh, K., Okely, A., and Kariippanon, K. E. (2023). Feasibility, acceptability and potential efficacy of a virtual physical activity program in primary and secondary schools in new south wales, australia: A quasi-experimental study. Health Promotion Journal of Australia, 34(1):70–84.

Gao, Z., Zeng, N., Pope, Z. C., Wang, R., and Yu, F. (2019). Effects of exergaming on motor skill competence, perceived competence, and physical activity in preschool children. Journal of Sport and Health Science, 8:106–113.

Julien, C., Castelli, D., Bray, D., Lee, S., Burson, S., and Jung, Y. (2021). Project smart: A cooperative educational game to increase physical activity in elementary schools. Smart Health, 19:100163.

Lau, P. W.-C., Wang, G., and Wang, J.-J. (2020). Effectiveness of active video game usage on body composition, physical activity level and motor proficiency in children with intellectual disability. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 33(6):1465–1477.

Marangunić, N. and Granić, A. (2014). Technology acceptance model: a literature review from 1986 to 2013. Universal Access in the Information Society, 14:1–15.

Moron, V. B., Barbosa, D. N. F., Sanfelice, G. R., Barbosa, J. L. V., Leithardt, D. R. F., and Leithardt, V. R. Q. (2022). Executive functions, motor development, and digital games applied to elementary school children: A systematic mapping study. Education Sciences, 12(3).

Palmer, K. K., Miller, A. L., Meehan, S. K., and Robinson, L. E. (2020). The motor skills at playtime intervention improves children’s locomotor skills: A feasibility study. Child: Care, Health and Development, 46(5):599–606.

Schneider, G. T., Berlese, D., and Barbosa, D. N. F. (2023). O uso dos jogos digitais ativos para o desenvolvimento das habilidades motoras de crianças no contexto escolar. Revista e-Curriculum, 21:1–1.

Triatmaja, Y. K., Aryotejo, G., Nugraheni, D. M. K., and Noranita, B. (2022). Gamification in e-learning for playgroup. In 2022 6th International Conference on Informatics and Computational Sciences (ICICoS), pages 146–151.

Wang, Y., Bian, Y., Song, Y., Huang, R., Gai, W., Liu, J., Yang, C., and Meng, X. (2020). Exer-learning: A new genre combines learning, exercise and fun for children. Procedia Computer Science, 174:735–745. 2019 International Conference on Identification, Information and Knowledge in the Internet of Things.
Published
2025-06-09
MELLO, Maithe M.; SCHEFFLER, Eduardo L.; BARBOSA, Débora N. F.; BARBOSA, Jorge L. V.. MoveBoost: A model to stimulate motor control development in children through gamification in school environments. In: BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON COMPUTING APPLIED TO HEALTH (SBCAS), 25. , 2025, Porto Alegre/RS. Anais [...]. Porto Alegre: Sociedade Brasileira de Computação, 2025 . p. 80-91. ISSN 2763-8952. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5753/sbcas.2025.6937.