Gross Motor Function Measure
What It Measures
The Gross Motor Function Measure asks how much of a motor task a child can complete — not how smoothly or how normally they do it. A child using an unusual movement pattern to get across a room still gets credit for getting across the room.
Eighty-eight items are grouped into five dimensions: lying and rolling, sitting, crawling and kneeling, standing, and walking, running, and jumping. Each is scored 0 to 3, from does not initiate to completes the task. Dimension scores are expressed as percentages of that dimension's maximum, and the five are averaged for a total from 0 to 100. Items were chosen to represent what a typically developing 5-year-old can do.
Further Reading
Additional Notes
Licensing Notes: The Gross Motor Ability Estimator (GMAE-2) scoring software, needed for GMFM-66 scoring, is free from CanChild. No certification is required, though CanChild notes training significantly improves scoring consistency.
Learn More: Choosing between the two versions matters. The GMFM-66 is a Rasch-derived subset producing interval-level scores, motor growth curves, and percentiles by GMFCS level — but it excludes 22 items from the early dimensions, does not permit orthoses, shoes, or mobility aids, and was validated specifically for cerebral palsy. Use the GMFM-88 for very young children, children at GMFCS Level V, anyone using aids or orthoses, or children with motor impairment from a condition other than CP, such as Down syndrome or acquired brain injury.