Assess visual-motor skills in children and adults that can lead to learning, neuropsychological and behaviour problems.
The sixth edition of the Beery VMI remains strongly focused upon early childhood education. It includes updated norms for ages 2 years to 18 years.
Adult norms are also included for age 19 years and above, but were not updated in this most recent edition. This edition also provides updated reports of medical, neuropsychological, international and other important advances in the use of the Beery VMI in recent years.
The Beery VMI helps assess the extent to which individuals can integrate their visual and motor abilities. The Short Format and Full Format tests present drawings of geometric forms arranged in order of increasing difficulty that the individual is asked to copy. The Short Format is often used with children ages 2 to 8 years.
The Beery VMI series also provides supplemental Visual Perception and Motor Co-ordination tests, which use the same stimulus forms as the Short Format and Full Format tests.
Application of the Beery VMI
The Beery VMI can be used by psychologists, occupational therapists, learning disability specialists, specialist teachers and other professionals to help:
- Identify individuals who may be encountering difficulties in visual-motor integration
- Make appropriate referrals for needed services
- Test the effectiveness of educational and other interventions
- Conduct research
- The Beery VMI is among the few psychological assessments that provide standard scores as low as 2 years.
- The Beery VMI 6th Edition Manual provides approximately 600 age-specific norms from birth to 6 years. These consist of basic gross motor, fine motor, visual and visual-fine motor developmental “stepping stones” that have been identified by research criteria. Many examiners find the age norm information to be useful in helping parents better understand their child’s current level of development. The manual also presents teaching suggestions.
- As a culture-free, non-verbal assessment, the Beery VMI is useful with individuals of diverse environmental, educational, and linguistic backgrounds.
The Short and Full Format tests can be administered individually or to groups. (Individual administration is recommended for the supplemental tests.).