Empowering Motor Skills: LSU Research Team Expands App for Autistic Children

A research team at LSU is making important strides in making motor skill development more accessible for autistic preschoolers.

With a $50,000 grant from the Healthy Weight Research Network, LSU assistant professor Nicholas Fears and the Human Development and Daily Life Lab in the LSU School of Kinesiology are adapting the Mission Play app to meet the needs of autistic children and their families.

Designed for Everyday Life

Featuring space-themed games, the app helps enhance motor skills such as jumping, kicking, throwing, and catching, ensuring that the activities are not only enjoyable but also aligned with each child’s unique developmental needs. 

The Mission Play app, created by Amanda Staiano, associate professor of pediatric obesity and health behavior at Pennington Biomedical Research Center, and Kip Webster from the University of Tennessee, partnered with Fears to adapt this app for autistic children.

“In our prior randomized controlled trial funded by the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Webster and I found that this app delivered to parents of preschoolers was effective in helping children improve their motor skills, jumping nearly 20 percentile points from ‘below average’ to ‘average’ on a standardized assessment of motor skills. Expanding this app to children with autism will increase its reach to families who are looking for ways to build confidence and competence among their children especially in the important years leading up to kindergarten,” Staiano said.

While not a replacement for professional therapy, Mission Play serves as a supportive tool. Traditional therapies can place a heavy burden on families from frequent travel, fixed schedules, and high costs.

“It doesn’t require the families or individuals to travel to a therapy center at a specific time, which can reduce the burden on families and autistic individuals,” Fears said.

What’s Next: Testing and Clinical Trials

The team will wrap up community interviews this summer and begin testing the adapted app in fall 2025. They've also received new funding from the U.S. Department of Defense to conduct a clinical trial and evaluate the app’s impact.

“The goal is to provide the evidence-based support that caregivers need to feel comfortable and confident in working with their children, to help develop their children’s motor skills, and experience the joy of their children’s development,” Fears said.

Community Engagement & App Adaptation

Since receiving the Healthy Weight Research Network grant in July 2024, the team has focused on community engagement and adaptation, interviewing autistic adults and caregivers to better understand their experiences with motor skills and needs in a home-based intervention. 

“We are working with Pennington Biomedical Research Center’s Greaux Healthy initiative to expand access to the app throughout the state of Louisiana. We look forward to integrating Dr. Fears’ adaptations so that families can access the app anytime, anywhere to help bolster their children’s motor skills,” Staiano said.

Fears said community input will help to shape how the Mission Play app is adapted to be more accessible and truly useful for autistic users.

Fears said the early feedback from those who previewed the app has been overwhelmingly positive. Autistic adults expressed excitement about the opportunity to use the app to support autistic children. Many commented on how helpful it would have been for them as children. Parents who previewed the app also responded especially positively to its flexibility. They appreciated being able to choose the timing that works best for their family, as well as the clear, step-by-step instructions and videos that support them in working with their children at home.

Beyond the Lab

Fears’ work is part of a broader mission at LSU to serve the community through impactful research.

“My research is committed to improving the lives of autistic individuals and, more broadly, neurodivergent individuals by providing the support they need to achieve their goals,” he shared.

LSU’s continued support—through the College of Human Sciences & Education and the School of Kinesiology— has helped make more community engagement possible. Fears and his students have participated in events like the Families Helping Families Active for Autism 5K Run & Fun Walk and Our Lady of Lake Health’s No Such Thing as Impossible adaptive bike ride, helping to take their work beyond the lab.

The team is also proud to host the Special Olympics Powerlifting team in the new Ochsner Wellness Center, located in LSU’s Huey P. Long Field House.

Inspired to Make a Difference

Fears began his research exploring how children learn to move and interact with the world. While mentoring an autistic teen, he saw firsthand how challenges with movement could affect everyday activities—whether it was drawing, playing mini-golf, or simply eating without spills. These experiences, along with conversations with autistic individuals, caregivers, and therapists, revealed many unanswered questions about motor development.

 “Many were asking questions that I didn’t have answers for, so I set out to try to find answers and solutions for autistic individuals and their families,” Fears said.

From Awareness to Acceptance

Each April, advocates work to shine a light on autism in what many call Autism Awareness Month but Fears would like to see shifted to Autism Acceptance Month.

“I have moved away from Autism ‘Awareness’ Month to Autism ‘Acceptance’ Month. They may excel, act differently, or need support in certain areas, but we should accept them as they are and listen to their needs to make our community accessible to them, ensuring a better, more vibrant society for all of us,” he said.

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