Movement Assessment Battery for Children, Third Edition
Movement ABC-3
With a normative sample that includes data collected in Australia and New Zealand, the Movement ABC-3 provides an objective measurement of gross and fine motor coordination difficulties in children and young adults aged 3-25 years.- Scores/Interpretation:
- Task-level scaled scores, domain-level t-scores. Total Motor Score, percentile ranks
- Publication date:
- 2023
- Administration:
- Individual; paper and pencil or digital via Q-global
- Age range:
- 3 to 25 years
- Qualification level:
- B
- Norms:
- The Movement ABC-3 norms are based on all-new sample of over 1000 children and young adults who were tested between August 2021 and February 2023 in the UK, Australia and New Zealand.
- Scoring options:
- Hand scoring or digital scoring via Q-global
- Report Options:
- Score summary report
Unbox the Movement ABC-3 Kit
What's in the kit? See the new kit contents, additions, and updates of the 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.
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
- Co-collected sample between the UK and ANZ
- Unified constructs across ages
The Movement ABC-3 has three subtests:
- Manual Dexterity
- Aiming & Catching
- Balance & Locomotion
Separate Checklists for each age band:
- Parent/Teacher/Other
- Self (Age Band 3 only)
Component Benefits:
- Identify delay or impairment in motor development
- Plan intervention
- Measure change and monitor progress over time
- Use in research
- Complement assessments with observational insights
Component Features:
- Norms based on a sample of 1279 collected in the UK, Australia and New Zealand
- Backed by 500+ studies and international translations
Test Content and Structure
The test includes 10 tasks per age range (3–6, 7–11, 12–25), across three domains:
- Manual Dexterity
- Aiming & Catching (ball skills)
- Balance & Locomotion
Scoring produces domain scores and a Total Motor score. A traffic-light system helps map strengths and concerns.
The Movement ABC-3 Checklists
The Checklists assess performance in daily settings using observations from caregivers, teachers, or the individual.
- Assess groups of students in classroom settings
- Gather views from parents/teachers/self
- Gauge emotional/motivational impact of motor challenges
Digital Administration & Scoring
The Movement ABC-3 is administered using paper forms. Checklists can be used in paper or digital format. Online scoring is available via Q-global®.
What’s New with MABC-3?
| MABC-2 | MABC-3 |
|---|---|
Ages 3:0–16:11 across 3 age bands
|
Ages 3:0–25:11 across 3 age bands
|
8 tasks per age band
|
10 tasks per age band
|
| UK norms | Normative data co-collected between UK, Australia, and New Zealand |
| Paper-and-pencil only |
|
| For ages 5–12 |
|
|
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 include a larger ball, updated balance board and mats, new target, line walking mats and additional threading beads for older age bands.
Some items are the same, but most are new. It is not recommended to upgrade. Shared items may be kept as spare parts.
These are dividers for your kit and a storage bag for the mats. They are not required and can be discarded if unused.
- 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.
Yes. Contact your distributor or check online for spare parts.
Norms were only available where sample sizes supported reliable scoring. Primary respondents:
- Age Band 1: Parents
- Age Band 2: Parents
- Age Band 3: Self-reports
The following webinars are available for Movement ABC-3
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