Movement Assessment Battery for Children | Third Edition
Movement ABC-3
The Movement Assessment Battery for Children, Third Edition (Movement ABC-3) provides an objective measurement of gross and fine motor coordination difficulties in children and young adults aged 3 – 25 years and 11 months.- Publication date:
- 2023 (print) and 2024 (digital)
- Age range:
- 3 to 25 years and 11 months
- Scores/Interpretation:
- Task-level scaled scores, domain-level t-scores, Total Motor Score, percentile ranks
- Qualification level:
- B
- Completion time:
- 30-45 minutes
- Administration:
-
Test: Individual; paper and pencil
Checklist: Individual or group paper and pencil or via Q-global - Scoring options:
- Hand scoring or digital scoring via Q-global
- Report Options:
- Score summary report
- Norms:
- The Movement ABC-3 norms are based on an all-new sample of 1279 children and young adults who were tested between August 2021 and February 2023 in the UK, Australia and New Zealand
The Movement Assessment Battery for Children, Third Edition (Movement ABC-3) provides an objective measurement of gross and fine motor coordination difficulties in children and young adults aged 3 – 25 years and 11 months.
Movement ABC-3 Benefits:
- Identify delay or impairment in motor development
- Plan intervention
- Measure change and monitor progress over time
- Widely known and respected for use in research related to motor development
- Gain a holistic picture of motor performance using the Checklists to complement observational assessment
The Movement ABC-3 updates include:
- Revised and updated test content and items
- New manipulatives
- Extended age range down to 3 and up to 25 years and 11 months
- Co-collected sample between the UK and ANZ
- Unified constructs across ages
Three Movement ABC-3 subtests:
- Manual Dexterity
- Aiming & Catching
- Balance & Locomotion
Separate Checklists for each age band:
- Parent/Teacher/Other
- Self (age band 3 only)
Test content and structure
The test contains 10 tasks for each of 3 age ranges: 3 – 6 years (3-year-olds complete 7 tasks); 7 – 11 years and 12 – 25 years and 11 months. The tasks cover the following 3 domains:
- Manual Dexterity
- Aiming & Catching (ball skills)
- Balance & Locomotion
Task, domain and Total Motor scores are provided. A profile of a child’s performance over the different sections of the test can be examined and a ‘traffic light’ system helps map areas of strength and concern.
The assessment is paralleled by an observational approach to perceptual-motor aspects and emotional and motivational difficulties the individual may have in relation to motor tasks.
Features
- Norms based on a sample of 1279 collected jointly in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand
- Extensive international research built over the previous version of the assessment and this version - featuring in over 500 studies
- Numerous translations worldwide
The Movement ABC-3 Checklists
The Movement ABC-3 Checklists provide a means for assessing movement in everyday situations in which the child or young adult participates.
Use the checklist to:
- Assess groups of students in classroom situations
- Obtain parents’ or teachers’ views on an individual’s movement in everyday settings
- Measure the extent to which a young person’s attitudes and feelings about motor tasks are situation specific or more generalised
- Ascertain the impact of motor difficulties on an individual’s participation in everyday activities
Digital administration and scoring options
The Movement ABC-3 can be administered using either paper or digital record forms. Online scoring is available via Pearson's Q-global® online assessment platform.
Top-Down vs. Bottom-Up: What’s Best for Motor Skill Assessment?
Different approaches yield different insights when assessing motor skills. But how do you know which approach to take?
Melinda Cooper, Occupational Therapist and Senior Product Manager, explains when and how to use each approach effectively.
The following resources are available for Movement ABC-3.
-
The tennis ball, bean bag, pegboard and pegs, yellow threading beads, lacing board, triangle test, blue coin bank and coins have all been carried over from the previous edition.
New manipulatives that have been introduced in the Movement ABC-3 kit include a larger ball, updated balance board and mats, new target, line walking mats, and two additional sets of threading beads for age bands 2 and 3.
-
Some of the manipulatives are the same in the 2nd and 3rd editions of the test, but the majority of items in the Movement ABC-3 are new, for example, the Test manual, Checklist manual, record forms, Checklists, drawing circles sheets, and the additional or updated manipulatives. It is therefore not recommended to try to upgrade an old kit. Manipulatives that have been carried over from the Movement ABC-2 can be kept as spare parts.
-
The items in the plastic bag are dividers to help you organise your kit bag if you wish. There is also a storage bag for the walking line mats. They aren’t required for any of the assessment tasks – you can discard them if you don’t want to use them.
-
For Q-global users, a link to the videos is available in a PDF document in the Q-global resource library. Test users who don’t have access to Q-global should contact customer support to request a copy of the PDF.
-
The Movement ABC-3 is designed for children and adolescents aged 3 to 16 years.
-
Yes, the Movement ABC-3 includes digital resources via Q-global, allowing users to access manuals and demonstration videos online.
-
The Movement ABC-3 includes updated tasks, additional manipulatives, improved balance tasks, and new digital resources compared to Movement ABC-2.
-
No, the Movement ABC-3 requires hands-on administration and observation of motor tasks, so it is not designed for remote assessment.
Complimentary assessment overviews and training
Learn more about MABC-3 and how to use it with fidelity.
Whether you’ve purchased this assessment or need additional information to help make your purchase decision, we’ve got complimentary on-demand, introductory training to help guide you. This training runs for approximately 35 minutes.
Register for Brainshark to access the brief assessment overview, including a description of the components, types of scores provided, and applicable clinical populations.
New Brainshark users |
Existing Brainshark users |
Next Steps
Once you are logged in*, you will find the complimentary training in the Content Portal. If you do not see Complimentary Training group, contact Customer Support and we will add it to your profile.
*If you are a new registrant, you will receive an email with the subject line, “Your Brainshark Username and Password” from noreplies@brainshark.com. This email will contain your username and temporary password. You will be prompted to reset your password when you log in for the first time.
