Abstract

Currently, lack of movement is one of the main causes of excess body weight in school-age children, reducing physical and mental health. The objective of this research was to compare motor coordination, perceived quality of life and Body Mass Index in school-age children who participate in extracurricular sports (GDEP) with those who only participate in physical education classes (GEFI). Two hundred and fifty-two school-age children (83 girls and 169 boys; 11.5±0.7 years) participated in this study. The evaluation of Perceived Quality of Life was evaluated with the KIDSCREEN-27. Motor coordination (MC) was assessed with the Körperkoordinations test Für Kinder (KTK). Furthermore, Height and body weight were measured. Body Mass Index (BMI) was calculated. The results showed that in MC, GDEP students have better performance than GEFI (p<0.05) effect size (ES) moderate (d= 0.28 to 0.45). In Perceived Quality of Life, there was a significant difference in the “Physical Activity and Health” dimension (p<0.01), ES moderate (d= 0.52). Likewise, better values for GDEX were observed for Body Weight (p<0.05) and BMI (p<0.01), with moderate ES (d= 0.30 and 0.28; respectively). Furthermore, GDEP students in the normal weight group presented better results in MC than those in the obesity group (p<0.05), and in GEFI the normal weight students obtained better values in balancing backwards, hopping for height, KTK total score and in the perception of “Physical activity and health” (p< 0.05). It is concluded that school-age children who participate in scholar sports have better MC, perception of physical well-being and health, Body Weight, and BMI. Furthermore, school-age children with obesity show a deficit in MC and lower levels of Perceived Quality of Life in physical activity and health. © 2025 Didactic Asociation Andalucia. All rights reserved.