Effects of a laterality exercise program on lateral consistency in children with dyslexia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v80.119323Keywords:
Adapted physical education , dyslexia, educational intervention laterality, physical exercisesAbstract
Objective: To evaluate the effects of a laterality exercise program on the consistency of lateral dominance in children with dyslexia at a specialized foundation in Cartagena, Colombia.
Method: A controlled quasi-experimental study was conducted with 20 children diagnosed with developmental dyslexia (M age = 9.2 years, SD = 1.4), assigned to a control group (n = 10) and an experimental group (n = 10). The experimental group received a structured laterality exercise program for 12 weeks (3 sessions/week, 45 minutes/session), while the control group maintained their usual activities. The consistency of general and specific laterality (hands, feet, eyes, ears) was evaluated.
Results: The experimental group showed significant improvements in the general laterality index between the pre-test (M = 0.848, SD = 0.087) and post-test (M = 0.929, SD = 0.043), t (9) = -2.656, p = .026, d = 1.19. The control group showed no significant changes (p = .966). Post-intervention comparisons between groups revealed statistically significant differences favoring the experimental group in general laterality, t (18) = 3.086, p = .006, d = 1.38, with a mean difference of 0.152 (95% CI [0.049, 0.255]). No significant differences were observed in foot laterality (p = .052, after Bonferroni correction).
Conclusions: The laterality exercise program showed positive effects on the consistency of lateral dominance in this sample of children with dyslexia. These preliminary findings suggest that structured motor interventions may contribute to improving the definition of laterality in a population with dyslexia.
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