Gross Motor Skills Profile of 5–6 Year-Old Children at Pembina Sumbul State Kindergarten

Abstract

Gross motor development is a fundamental aspect of early childhood education because it forms the basis of children's physical readiness and participation in learning activities. The problem in many early childhood education units is the lack of standardised gross motor skills assessment tools as a basis for planning stimulation. This study aims to describe the gross motor profile of 5-6-year-old children at Pembina Sumbul State Kindergarten based on the Test of Gross Motor Development-2 (TGMD-2) instrument. The study used a descriptive qualitative approach supported by quantitative test data. There were 98 children in the study. The results showed a mean raw score of 37.9 for locomotor skills and 36.8 for manipulative skills, with a mean Gross Motor Quotient (GMQ) of 101.3. A total of 89.8% of children were in the average ability category, 5.1% in the excellent category, and 5.1% required support. Locomotor skills showed more stable achievements, especially in the indicators of running (92%) and horizontal jumping (88%), while manipulative skills with object control such as dribbling (69%) and overhand throwing (70%) were relatively lower. The important findings of this study confirm that the TGMD-2-based profile provides an objective basis for planning more targeted gross motor stimulation programmes in early childhood education.