Children’s Vision and Learning

Statistics about children’s vision show:

1. Up to 25 Percent of School-Age Children May Have Vision Problems that can Affect Learning.
2. Only 14 percent of children have received a comprehensive eye examination before entering school.
3. As a result, nearly 10 million children suffer from undetected vision problems—the number one handicapping condition for them, according to the National Parent Teacher Association.

“Good vision is essential for effective learning,” says Dr. Lisa Mayes, Eye Care Oklahoma. “Unfortunately almost one child in four has vision problems that are significant enough to affect academic performance.”
For some children, their vision problems can result in misdiagnoses: they may be mislabeled as having learning disabilities or attention-deficit disorders or assigned to special classes.
Children often do not know that they are not seeing as well as they should, so they are unable to articulate their frustrations to an adult. Even parents and teachers can often overlook the sometimes subtle symptoms of learning-related vision problems.

"Vision problems can also go undetected when it is assumed a child has perfect eyesight because they have passed the standard ‘20/20’ eye chart test," says Dr. Mayes. "But this test does not measure how well a child can see at near distances, nor does it evaluate other visual skills necessary for learning such as depth perception, eye coordination, or eye focusing. This is why it is so important to have the child undergo a comprehensive vision exam by a qualified eyecare professional.”

• Frequent loss of place when reading
• Confuses similar looking words
• Poor reading comprehension
• Sloppy handwriting
• Failure to recognize the same word in next sentence
• Complains of eyes hurting or headaches after reading
• Frequent blinking or rubbing eyes

Call Eye Care Oklahoma at 405/799-7510 to schedule a complete eye examination. Dr. Mayes also offers free vision screenings for children of all ages.

Review the following checklist for any symptoms your child may have. If the response to one or more of the following is “yes,” your child may have a correctable vision problem.

CHECKLIST FOR POSSIBLE VISION PROBLEMS

Physical Signs

• One eye turning in or out
• Squinting, eye rubbing or excessive blinking
• Blurred or double vision
• Headaches or dizziness after reading
• Head tilting, closing or blocking one eye when reading

Labeled

• Lazy
• Dyslexic
• Attention Deficit Disorder
• Slow learner
• Behavioral problem
• Working below potential

Performance Signs

• Avoids “near” work
• Frequent loss of place when reading
• Omits, inserts, or rereads letters/words
• Confuses similar looking words
• Failure to recognize the same word in the next sentence
• Poor reading comprehension
• Letter or word reversals after the first grade
• Difficulty copying from the chalkboard
• Poor handwriting; misaligns numbers
• Book held too close to the eyes

Secondary Symptoms

• Smart in everything but school
• Low self-esteem, poor self image
• Temper flare-ups, aggressiveness
• Short attention span
• Fatigue, frustration, stress
• Irritability

For more information on learning related vision problems, contact Dr. Lisa Mayes at Eye Care Oklahoma, 405/799-7510 or www.eyecareok.com.

** Dr. Mayes offers free vision screenings for children of all ages.**