Education about Comprehensive Eye Examination
When eye screening is done at school, a visual acuity chart is a great diagnostic tool for detecting myopia. Myopia is not the only vision condition a child could have, or the only one that can impact their education. Therefore, comprehensive eye examination with an optometrist is so important for children starting school.
Link Between Eyesight and Learning
80% of a child’s learning is linked to their vision. The ability to see clearly and effectively perform visual tasks is critical to a developing child’s social life, education and performance in sports. They spend a huge portion of their time at school reading textbooks, writing in notebooks, and reading off of whiteboards, which all require good vision.
Undetected Vision Problems
When a child has one of the many vision problems unrelated to myopia, there is a serious risk that it will not be diagnosed, whether it is hyperopia, color blindness, astigmatism, poor hand-eye coordination, poor visual perception, or an error in their binocular vision that impacts their ability to focus, track and cooperate. Any of these problems can make simple school tasks challenging and less enjoyable and have a major impact on their learning.
Impact of Undetected Vision Problems
Vision problems can be easily recognized when we are adults. Children in particular, may not notice the problem with their eyesight. Instead, they may think that they aren’t working enough to do well in school. Parents may also think the child has learning disorder instead of a vision problem.
Recognize Common Symptoms of Eye Problem
Some eye problems are extremely obvious. The most obvious one is that eyes are pointing in different directions. Other symptoms could be subtle. Watch for any of the following if you are a parent:
Difficulty with reading a book
Difficulty completing school work
A short attention span, especially for close work
A habit of covering one eye
Frequent headaches
Frequent blinking and eye rubbing
Fidgeting
If your child experiences any of these symptoms, make sure to rule out vision problems by scheduling a comprehensive eye examination before assuming the problem is a learning disorder.
Child’s Education Start with an Eye Examination
When we are able to diagnose and treat a vision problem in its early stage, whether through glasses, visual therapy or some other physiotherapy treatments, the less time it will have to hinder a child’s education, their social life, or any forms of activities they might otherwise excel at and enjoy. With school about to start, now is the perfect time to schedule your child’s comprehensive eye examination. We can diagnose or rule out the less obvious eye problems the school will miss with the visual acuity chart!