Motor skills

A motor skill is a skill that regards the ability of an organism to utilise skeletal muscles effectively. Muscles also depend upon the proper functioning of the brain, skeleton, joints, and nervous system and thus motor skills involve the proper functioning of such systems. Most motor skills are learned in early childhood, although disabillities can affect motor skills development.

Motor skills are divided into two parts, gross motor skills and fine motor skills. Gross motor skills include lifting one's head, rolling over, sitting up, balancing, crawling, and walking. Fine motor skills include the ability to manipulate small objects, transfer objects from hand to hand, and various hand-eye coordination tasks. Fine motor skills may involve the use of very precise motor movement in order to achieve an especially delicate task.

Disabilities affecting motor skills

 * Down syndrome
 * Cerebral palsy
 * Hypotonia
 * Catatonia