Up to 80 percent of all learning comes through visual pathways.
A person’s vision allows them to see items both close and far away. There are 17 visual abilities that are required for school, and they are all essential for learning.
According to the American Optometric Association (AOA), 25% of children have a major vision problem that affects their learning.
Learning and reading may be affected if your child has a problem with any of their 17 visual abilities, vision therapy will help your child.
Can visual problems impact the child?
Reading, writing, and spelling, as well as other elements of learning, can be affected by vision problems. Your child’s academic performance may suffer if their vision is impacted.
Any of the following can be affected by vision problems:
- Classroom performance
- Concentration and attention
- Homework completion
- Reading comprehension and fluency
- Visual arts
SEE RELATED: Guide to Vision and Learning Difficulties
If your child struggles in any of the above areas, schedule an eye exam with an eye doctor near you to determine if your child has a vision problem.
Vision therapy may be the solution you have been looking for.
Vision problems and learning difficulties
If your child is having trouble learning, it could be due to an undiagnosed vision problem.
Saccades and visual integration are two visual skills that are critical to a child’s ability to read.
Saccades is a skill that allows you to read fluidly. This ability allows you to move your eyes smoothly and in unison across a line on a page. Without it, words in a sentence may be missing, or a kid may make word assumptions that alter the meaning of the sentence or passage.
Visual integration is a skill that allows a child to accurately read words by perceiving the order and shape of each letter in the word. Without visual integration, a child may mix up letters like b and d, or words like ‘saw’ or ‘was’.
Vision therapy and learning
Vision therapy is a one-on-one treatment program that consists of a series of eye exercises aimed at strengthening the eye-brain connection, improving visual abilities.
It’s critical to address visual issues as soon as possible so that your child can get the best possible results and realize their maximum academic potential.
LEARN MORE: Guide to Vision Therapy
Schedule a full vision evaluation with a vision therapy eye doctor near you if you suspect your child has a vision problem.
The doctor will be able to detect any visual problems and will explain how vision therapy might help your child learn better.
There are 17 visual skills that are required for success school, these are all essential for learning and your child’s school grades.