Many children are labeled as having behavioral or attention
deficit problems. Sometimes this is a misdiagnosis and what is actually causing
their inability to concentrate on schoolwork is a vision related learning
issue.
I was surprised to learn that less than 15% of kiddos get
their eyes examined before starting school, especially since 80% of what they
learn is visual – it’s through their eyes! One out of four kids struggle
academically because of undiagnosed vision problems. The majority of these problems
are very treatable and can allow these kids to perform at their full potential.
Just because your child passed the vision screener at school
or at the pediatrician’s office and was told they have perfect 20/20 vision,
doesn’t mean they still can’t be struggling with visual problems. Even with
20/20 vision, it may not be enough to sustain concentration and process
information. There are 17 visual skills (see below) that are required to
succeed in school and in sports. It is important that every child have a visual
health examination by an Optometrist to look for these skills as a simple
vision screening may fail to pick up.
Dr. Lyons and myself are proud providers of the InfantSEE
program, where kiddos between 6-12 months are given a FREE comprehensive eye
examination to ensure everything is developing properly. Check out http://www.infantsee.org/ for more
information!
According to the American Optometric Association (AOA),
infants should have their first comprehensive eye exam
around 6-12 months of age. Children then should have additional eye
exams at age 3, and again at age 5.
Call our office if you have questions. Thanks for reading!
Sincerely,
Dr. Brewer
Here is the list of those 17 skills! (Courtesy
of COVD.org)
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1
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Eye
Movement Control
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The ability to move both eyes together to point at
an intended target or follow along a path, like a line
of text
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2
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Simultaneous
Focus at Far
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Forming a clear image of something
in the distance
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3
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Sustaining Focus at Far
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Keeping an image of something in the distance clear
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4
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Simultaneous
Focus at Near
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Forming a clear image of something
close to the eyes
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5
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Sustaining Focus at Near
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Keeping a clear image of something close to the eyes
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6
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Simultaneous Alignment at Far
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Lining up both eyes at the same point the
distance
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7
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Sustaining Alignment at Far
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Holding both eyes lined up at the same point in the
distance
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8
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Simultaneous Alignment at Near
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Lining up both eyes at the same point up close
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9
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Sustaining Alignment at Near
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Holding both eyes lined up at the same point up
close
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10
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Central Vision (Visual Acuity)
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This is where "20/20" vision comes in!
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11
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Peripheral Vision
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Being able to see what's on either side of you while
your eyes are pointed forward
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12
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Depth
Awareness
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Being able to tell that things are
further away or closer up than each other (also know as depth perception)
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13
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Color Perception
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Being able to tell different colors apart (if you are
not color-blind)
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14
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Gross Visual-Motor
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Moving yourself through space without bumping into
things by using information from your vision
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15
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Fine Visual-Motor
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Writing, sewing, texting, and doing other small and
close-up activities with accuracy by using information from your vision
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16
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Visual Perception
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Being aware of your environment and what is going on
around you in your visual field (the area you can see)
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17
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Visual
Integration
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Bringing together your vision and your other senses
to accomplish complex tasks, like
reading while walking a balance beam
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