Development of catching by children in kindergarten to grade 8: a multicohort longitudinal study

The purpose of this study was to examine developmental change associated with catching by children in Grades Kindergarten through 8. Children's performance was tested on the Catching Subtest of the Ohio State University Scale of Intra Gross Motor Assessment (OSU-SIGMA). More precisely, four cohorts of boys and girls in Grades K-8 (N = 340) from 1992 to 2000: in 1992 Grades K-8, in 1994 Grades 2-8, in 1996 Grades 4-8, and in 1998 Grades 6-8. In 2000, the original Kindergarten cohort was tested again. Data, analyzed by hierarchical nonlinear modeling, yielded significant differences in mean initial status (intercept) of all three cohorts, in mean growth rate (slope) for the K-8 cohort only, in initial status of the K-8 cohort, and for participants in baseball and softball.