In the first 12 years of life, approximately 80% of all learning comes through the visual system.

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Nearly all of what happens in the average classroom is visual. Students could spend up to 5 or 6 hours doing visual work – e.g. reading and computer work. While most of them do well, there is a huge number who struggle.

Observant Teacher

When I was 8 years old, my elementary school teacher told my parents that I was constantly talking to the student next to me. She went on to tell them that she had noticed me squinting frequently when looking at the blackboard. So, she advised them to take me for an eye examination. I’ve been wearing glasses, since then.

While teachers play a crucial role in their students’ lives, and many times, they are the ones who alert parents of an irregularity in their child’s performance, I’m telling you, parents – your child’s success is your responsibility.

Why does a brilliant student struggle to read and even fail in school?

Little Johnny speaks well and excels in so many areas of life. Why can’t he read?

You’ve taken Susie for all of her screenings, she doesn’t have any childhood ailments. Why is she always trying to escape whenever it’s time to read?

Most parents are conscientious in keeping all their children’s doctors’ appointments on schedule.

Did you know that…

A child may have 20/20 vision and still have visual issues that impede their learning.

Visual information must be processed first in order to be useful. Just like a computer, it has to be coded  and assimilated, compared with prior information and analyzed.

We actually see with your brain, not our eyes.

During the learning process, the student has to scan, focus, and make their eyes converge on written material in front of them.

If a child is unable to do all these things, he will be missing pieces of his instruction. He will not be able to piece together what he is being taught.

There is a critical relationship between vision and learning.

So, if your child has difficulty reading, here are three secrets – 3 steps, you MUST take immediately, to put them on the path to success.

Step #1 – Pay Attention To Your Child’s Complaints At Homework Time

• Complains of eye pain
• Says he feels tired soon after beginning to reading his work
• Complains of headaches
• Complains of blurred or double vision
• Loses the place on the page and says they are confused by the words on the page

Step #2 – Observe Physicals Signs

• Demonstrates poor hand-eye coordination (can’t catch a ball, copy from a board to his paper, building puzzles)
• Sits too close to the television
• Taking a long time to complete homework
• Has a short attention span
• Squints to see in the distance

Step #3 – Get Your Child A Thorough / Comprehensive Vision Test from an eye doctor who knows about vision development, that is, a Developmental Optometrist

• Visual acuity – clear vision/ sharpness of sight “20/20 vision” – (required to see the details of a book, computer or a board in class)
• Eye Focusing – maintaining clear vision at several distances (necessary for looking at the board then at a notebook on a desk and vice versa.
• Eye Tracking – fixating on an object and following it precisely, smoothly and quickly (essential  for following a line of text on a page)
• Eye Teaming / Convergence – both eyes working together to focus on near objects easily (needed for reading the page of a book or the television)
• Eye-hand Coordination – using visual information to direct the hands (important for drawing a picture or hitting a ball)
• Visual perception – recognize, correctly identify, and interpret visual information (critical for organizing images on a page into letters, words, and ideas and crucial for comprehending and recalling text)

Children with reduced visual skills experience academic and behavioral difficulties in school including reading, spelling, and handwriting.

These challenges are similar to those experienced by children identified as dyslexic. It is important to find the cause of your child’s difficulties, or he may be given interventions that yield little or no results.

Approximately 80% of all learning comes through visual pathways, therefore, strong visual skills are fundamental for learning.

Consequently, your child’s visual system must be ready to access the academic experience.