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Abstract
Bilateral motor coordination is a key component of motor and academic performance in middle childhood and can be stimulated through rhythmic and contralateral tasks characteristic of dance-based aerobic exercise (bailoterapia). To evaluate the effect of a dance-based aerobic intervention (bailoterapia) as a teaching strategy to develop bilateral motor coordination in 7–8-year-old children. An experimental, quantitative, longitudinal study with repeated measures (T0 week 0, T1 week 12, T2 week 20) in N = 110 schoolchildren from the “5 de Junio” Educational Unit in Loja Province, Macará Canton, randomly assigned to an experimental group (bailoterapia, n = 55) and a control group (usual physical education, n = 55). The intervention lasted 12 weeks (2 sessions/week, 60 min) with progression from symmetric to asymmetric and contralateral patterns. Bilateral coordination was measured with the BOT-2 Bilateral Coordination subtest (scaled score). A linear mixed model with a Time×Group interaction was applied. The Time×Group interaction was significant at post-test (? = 2.55; p < 0.001) and at follow-up (? = 1.73; p = 0.009). The experimental group increased from 10.71 ± 4.43 (T0) to 14.98 ± 4.49 (T1) and 14.51 ± 4.50 (T2), whereas the control group increased from 10.04 ± 4.00 to 11.76 ± 4.16 and 12.11 ± 4.44. Didactic bailoterapia showed greater and partially sustained improvements in bilateral motor coordination, making it a viable strategy to enhance motor learning in school physical education.
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