A movement and exercise program for preschool children with autism getting ready for school
Tests a 12-week movement program in children with autism aged 3 to 6.
Key facts
- Who runs it
- Peking University
- Where
- Beijing and Fuzhou, ChinaSee the 2 sites
- Trial code
- Registry title
- FMS-CrossFit Training Program (FCTP) to Improve School Readiness in Preschool Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Status
- Recruiting
- People taking part
- 184 people, planned
- Started
- 22 Nov 2025
- Expected to end
- 24 Apr 2027
- Type of study
- Interventional, 2 groupsOne group gets an existing treatment, for comparison.
- Treatments tested
- FCTP program
- treatment as usual (TAU) (Control Group)
- Record updated
- 20 October 2026
Who can take part
AI summary
From the trial's eligibility criteria. Machine-read from the registry text on this page, so it can be wrong. The registry text below and the trial team decide who can take part.
The trial is looking for children aged 3-6 years with autism spectrum disorder. It tests a 12-week movement and circuit training program against usual care.
- Age
- 3 to 6 years
- Sex
- All sexes can join.
- Disease stage
- Confirmed autism spectrum disorder (diagnosed by DSM-5 criteria or the ADOS-2 test).
- Earlier treatment
- Children cannot have taken part in a structured exercise program in the past 6 months.
Main reasons for not taking part
- Structured exercise program in the past 6 months
- Severe neurological disorder such as epilepsy, phenylketonuria, fragile X syndrome or tuberous sclerosis
- Major psychiatric condition such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder
- Visual, hearing or intellectual impairment that would get in the way of taking part
- Significant head injury or brain injury in the past, or a medical reason not to do physical activity
The registry criteria, word for word
Show all 9 criteriaShow less
Who can take part
- age 3-6 years
- confirmed ASD diagnosis according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) criteria or the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-Second Edition (ADOS-2)
- written informed consent from parent/caregiver
Who cannot take part
- comorbid severe neurological disorders (e.g., epilepsy, phenylketonuria, fragile X syndrome, tuberous sclerosis) or major psychiatric conditions (e.g., schizophrenia, bipolar disorder)
- history of significant head trauma or brain injury
- participation in structured exercise programs within the preceding 6 months
- visual, auditory or intellectual impairments that would interfere with participation
- medical contraindications to physical activity
- other factors deemed unsuitable for program participation by the research team
Check if you might fit
Answer for yourself. This is not a decision: only the study team can say whether you can take part.
- Are you between 3 and 6 years old?
Where in China
- Pku Care Brain HealthBeijing, ChinaContact: Yawen ZhouNot yet recruiting
- Fujian Provincial Maternity and Children's HospitalFuzhou, ChinaContact: Yanzheng Pan, PhD candidateTaking people
About the trial
What the trial wants to find out
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is an increasing public health concern, with preschool children often exhibiting persistent deficits in school readiness. However, targeted and developmentally comprehensive interventions remain limited. This randomized controlled trial will evaluate a 12-week Fundamental Movement Skills-CrossFit Training Program (FCTP) in 184 children with ASD aged 3-6 years, compared with a Treatment As Usual (TAU) control group. The program integrates progressive FMS training with CrossFit-style circuit training to improve motor competence, social interaction, and self-regulation. Primary outcomes focus on school readiness assessed by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), while secondary outcomes include motor development, executive function, social responsiveness, and biomarkers. Assessments will be conducted at baseline, mid-intervention (8 weeks), post-intervention (12 weeks), and follow-up (20 weeks).
The 2 groups in the trial
- FCTP intervention groupTreatment being tested
Participants in the FCTP intervention group will receive two supervised sessions per week of the novel Fundamental Movement Skills-CrossFit Training Program (FCTP), in place of traditional sensory integration therapy.
Treatment: FCTP program
- control groupExisting treatment, for comparison
The control group receives treatment as usual (TAU), allowing participants to engage in routine services of their choice, including sensory integration therapy, social skills training, language intervention, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), etc.
Treatment: treatment as usual (TAU) (Control Group)
Questions to ask the study team
- How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
- Are travel costs paid?
- Can I keep my own doctor?
- What happens if I want to stop?
Contact the study team: see the registry record → Contacts and Locations
Print a page for my doctorData and sources
- Registry record
- Listed on ClinicalTrials.gov.
- Official title
- A Randomized Controlled Trial of the FMS-CrossFit Training Program (FCTP) to Improve School Readiness in Preschool Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Plain-language title
- A movement and exercise program for preschool children with autism getting ready for schoolGenerated from the registry record. The registry title is the official one.
- AI summary
- From the trial's eligibility criteria. Read by machine on 13 November 2026.
- Fit questions
- Built from NCT07532395, who can take part
- Record updated
- 20 October 2026