The Relationship Between Vision Issues and Learning Difficulties

Children have no idea they have vision problems. They think the way they see is perfectly normal. How would they know the difference? Parents are usually the first to notice their child is having vision issues and understand the relationship between vision issues and learning difficulties.

Signs to Look for

Many times vision screening does not detect all the vision issues a child may have. They can be subtle and be missed by the school. Even if this is the case, parents can still be able to assess these problems by observing their child and paying attention to any complaints.

• Do they squint?
• Do they tilt their head?
• Are they rubbing one or both of their eyes?
• Do they get tired easily when reading?
• Do they sit extra close to the TV?
• Do they complain of headaches?
• Do they avoid reading?
• Is one of their eyes misaligned sometimes or all the time?

Any of these behaviors could indicate a problem. It would be wise to see a pediatric ophthalmologist like Pediatric Ophthalmology & Strabismus Associates for an evaluation in Newtown Square, PA and discover what might be wrong with his or her vision. Whatever it is could be causing your child to fall behind in school.

Common Vision Issues in Children

Unless your child has clear vision, it will be easy to miss things at school and fall behind.

Misalignment

This causes double vision, blurred vision, and difficulty with depth perception. Your child’s eyes must be able to work together to read and track words. One eye or both might be misaligned or crossed. It can be subtle and you might not notice, or it could only happen occasionally.

Focus Problems

Unless your child can automatically change focus when looking in the distance (like at the board at school) and then to a book they are reading, that helps to determine either a nearsighted or farsighted problem.

Visual Acuity

One of the most important skills your child needs is visual acuity. Clear vision at all distances is paramount to succeeding in school. Your child may need glasses to see clearly close up to read, mid-range to clearly see computer screens, or distance vision to clearly see the blackboard.

This can also affect hand and eye coordination in sports.