VISION LEARNING CENTER

Too frequently, evaluation of vision based solely on clarity of sight at a 20-foot distance is accepted as an adequate index of a person’s vision. This however, ignores the majority of functions in the complex visual system.

Vision allows us to obtain meaning from what we see. Vision is a set of skills and abilities, of which 20/20 eyesight is only one. Other necessary skills include eye teaming, focusing, eye movements, visual perception, visual information processing, and integration of vision with our other senses.

At the Bellaire Family Eye Care’s Vision Learning Center, we are committed to help children and adults obtain and strengthen the combinations of these skills needed for learning, work, and play.

During a comprehensive vision exam, Dr. Voss and her associates will assess the individual’s eye teaming, eye focusing, and eye movement skills. After the exam, a trained vision therapist will administer a series of visual skills exams, including eye movement recordings, visual perceptual assessments, and dyslexia screenings. A consultation with the doctor will be scheduled approximately one week later. During the consultation, she will discuss challenges and strengths of the individual with options for remediation.

COMMON SIGNS OF VISUAL DIFFICULTY

Many children who have problems adjusting to school demands may have underlying, undetected vision problems.

• Loses place and skips lines • Omits small words when reading • Exaggerated head movements while reading • Very close reading distance • Tilts head or closes one eye when reading • Confuses letters, numbers or words • Mis-aligns digits in columns of numbers • Writing is crooked or poorly spaced • Difficulty copying form the chalkboard • Rapidly tires when reading • Becomes easily distracted

• Avoids near, visually demanding tasks • Has emotional outbursts • Shows aggressive behaviors • Low comprehension of written materials • Poor concentration • Fails to complete assignments • Frustrated with school • Has no voice inflection when reading • Ignores punctuation • Subvocalizes

KEY VISION QUESTIONS

• Does your child seem to always lag behind in school, sports or social activities?| • Does performance decrease the longer the child works? • Does the child show a strong preference for one eye over the other if one is covered at a time? • Do you see an eye “wandering” or being “inconsistent” in its appearance?

HELPFUL DEFINITIONS

Amblyopia is a condition in which the clarity of vision with one eye is significantly poorer than the other with no identifiable eye health problem.

Strabismus is an extreme problem of eye-teaming in which the two eyes do not line up and work together in the normal manner. This condition may be either constant (turned all the time) or intermittent (occurs only at specific distances during certain activities).

Visual perceptual skills involve the ability to organize and interpret the information that is seen and give it meaning. These information processing skills include: form discrimination, spatial relations, figure ground, visual closure, form constancy, and visual memory.

VISION AND LEARNING WEBSITES: Vision Learning Center http://www.visionlearningcenter.com

Parents Active for Vision Education (PAVE) http://www.pave-eye.com/vision/indes.html

College of Optometrist in Vision Development http://www.covd.org

Vision, Learning and Dyslexia: A Joint Organizational Policy Statement http://www.aaopt.org/JointStatement.html

Scientific Studies on the Relationship Between Learning, Reading, Vision Therapy and Vision Disorders http://www.add-adhd.org/vision_therapy_studies.html