When children struggle with reading and learning despite all the best efforts to help, the end of the school year, is often a time for reflection. Did we miss anything? Is there anything else we can do to help our child succeed?
What if the problem is something that everyone assumed was fine and perhaps a doctor even told you it was fine? Many children who struggle in school are bright, motivated kids who don’t seem to be living up to their potential. When it comes to reading, they prefer playing video games or doing anything else other than reading.
What often goes unexamined is vision — not whether a child can see the board in school or the letters on the eye chart
clearly, but how long the child can see clearly enough to support reading, writing and learning.
Most eye exams include tests to determine the overall health of the eyes and how well one can see the letters on the eye chart (which is typically 20 feet away). Most of the children we see have been told their vision is fine because they can see the letters on the eyechart, but that is just one of the 17 visual skills vital for reading and learning.
❝ Many children who struggle in school are bright, motivated kids who don’t seem to be living up to their potential. ❞
Have you ever given any thought to how long it takes to actually read the row of letters on the eye chart? Now think about how long you or your child has to read – do you think a test that takes seconds (or even minutes) would tell us how well one can see for the length of time required to read or function in the classroom?
Common signs that vision could be contributing to the reading challenges include poor reading comprehension, difficulty remembering what was read, losing place while reading, skipping or re-reading lines, avoiding reading altogether, difficulty copying from the board, complaints of blurry or double vision, and fatigue after short periods of schoolwork.
Many children we see in our office can start reading just fine, especially if they are reading out loud, but as they continue to read, they start struggling. It is easy to assume that their vision is fine, because it seems like they can see the words. But what most people miss, is the amount of work it takes for the child to be able to see the words.
Often children will say “words move on the page.” This occurs when the eyes don’t work together the way they should. This has no impact on how well they can see the letters on the eye chart but can cause incredible difficulties when a child has to read. In order to be sure if vision has been correctly ruled out, a Developmental Vision Evaluation is required, which is typically performed by a Developmental Optometrist. This is much more in-depth testing rather than the short eye exam. It is designed to evaluate your child’s ability to see well (without the words moving, etc.) for long periods of time, such as throughout the school day.
To find a Developmental Optometrist near you visit: www.visiontherapycanada.com. You can visit our website for a more in-depth symptom checklist; just click on the “Visions Symptoms Survey” on the home page.
Dr. Matthew Anderson, Developmental Optometrist, provides vision care for the entire family and also provides specialized services in the diagnosis and treatment of vision problems that interfere with reading and learning. Dr. Anderson is a popular speaker with parents and professional groups and may be reached at (204) 633-5566. For more information visit his website: www.grandvisioninstitute.com
