Motor Planning Abilities in Deaf and Hearing Children

Motor planning abilities of 45 profoundly deaf and 45 hearing children (5 to 13 years) were compared by means of four tests. Measures evaluating the children's memory of seven limb, hand, and body positions were employed, together with a drawing task. The younger deaf children were superior to the hearing children in measures of drawing and hand positioning. In later childhood, however, there were no significant differences between the groups. The findings are discussed, with implications for future studies predicting the abilities needed in learning to sign successfully at early ages.