Vision impairment

Vision impairment can occur at any age and can be from a number of factors.

There are many conditions and factors that can affect or potentially hinder a child’s learning and success at school. One is vision.

Vision problems along with asthma and allergies are the most common long term health disorder in childhood.

Vision impairment can be limited or low vision right through to being what is considered legally blind.

The statistics are 1 in 10 children that suffer from a long term eye disorder.

This statistic is key to note especially if your child is showing signs of being distracted at school or is having some problems it may not automatically be their behaviour as the cause.

It is important to look at all avenues and to look deeper into potential other root causes.

Short sightedness where the vision is blurred at distances. So if you child is not close to the teacher and the whiteboard they may struggle.

Long sightedness which where one has difficulty seeing up close.

Astigmatism which is a distortion of vision.

These are the main conditions and are once recognized relatively easy to address and correct.

There are other conditions such as lazy eye which are harder to detect. Early detection is the key to all vision conditions.

• Frequent blinking
• Sensitivity to light
• Red or watery eyes regularly
• Complaining of headaches or sore eyes and even sore head frequently
• Poor eye hand coordination
• Tilting head constantly and noticeably
• One eye turning in (or out) while the other eye is pointing straight ahead
• Rubbing of their eyes constantly
• Commenting of noticing double vision and/or blurred vision
• Holding their reading material very close to their face or moving themselves real close into something to read it
• Difficulty learning to read
• Squinting
• Leaving words out when reading
• Showing complete disinterest to any literacy tasks.

Given  up to 80% of what a child learns is through visual cues a child’s learning capacity will be affected if they have a vision impairment.

To assist a child in a learning environment and accommodate their need there are some strategies that can be supportive.

Providing access to seating or activities that accommodates them to better see such as distance to the whiteboards, etc.

Being alert to the need for a child to wear glasses, use magnifiers, or use of extra or good  lighting to be able to participate well.

A child may require additional resources such as large printed materials or additional support

In a school environment a child may need voice-activated computers or other assistive technology.

A child may need extra time to complete or engage with experiences.