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Page 2

Task Analysis: Ascending a Ladder to a Playground Slide

Component of the TaskSpecific Task Requirements
Mobility task with upper-extremity manipulation
  • Bilateral, reciprocal upper- and lower-extremity movements up each rung

  • Movement alternating between an open- and closed-chain activity

  • Bilateral coordination

Lower-extremity range of motion
  • Active hip and knee flexion to >90 degrees and ankle dorsiflexion beyond neutral during the open-chain portion of the task

  • Active movement into hip and knee extension and ankle plantarflexion during the closed-chain portion of the task

Lower-extremity muscle activity
  • Concentric muscle activity with strength minimally at 3/5 to move the extremity against gravity during the open-chain portion of the task

  • Sufficient muscle power of the hip and knee extensors and ankle plantarflexors to propel the body up the ladder during the closed-chain portion of the task

Upper-extremity function
  • Alternating grasp and release of the ladder with each hand while the body is moving forward in space

  • Moulding of the hands around the ladder

  • Sufficient strength to stabilize and support the body during movement

  • Scapulohumeral rhythm to allow for appropriate hand placement and maximal efficiency in the upper extremities

Trunk demands
  • Trunk maintained upright throughout the task

  • Lateral trunk flexion on the same side as the moving extremity during the open-chain portion of the task

  • Trunk elongation on the same side as the weight-bearing extremity during the closed-chain portion of the task

  • Slight rotation with flexion at the lower trunk during the open chain-component of the task

Sensory demands
  • Visual and perceptual skills to scan the environment for other children and obstacles

  • Awareness of body and extremity position in space (body schema / body awareness)

  • Touch and temperature awareness

Attentional demands
  • Potential safety concerns, such as other children on the slide, demanding a high level of attention

  • Divided attention (equal attention must be given to multiple factors simultaneously)25

  • Dual-task conditions created by the demand to attend both to postural control issues and to cognitive factors such as making safety judgements related to other children on the slide and social interactions with other children on the playground25,27,29