vision in the classroom
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Understanding vision's role in learning.
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Summary of impacts...
Reading Comprehension
Letter Reversals
When the brain is working hard to focus the eyes due to binocular vision issues, it diverts energy away from higher-level cognitive functions. This can make it difficult for a child to comprehend what they’re reading, as their brain is too focused on the act of seeing to process and understand the material effectively.
Tracking Skills
Tracking skills develop as children use their eyes to follow moving objects or read. With binocular vision problems, the eyes don’t work together consistently, so tracking remains underdeveloped. Even if reading improves, they may still struggle to keep their place or follow text smoothly because their eyes haven’t learned to track properly.
Letter reversals, like confusing "b" and "d" or "p" and "q," happen when a child struggles with visual-spatial processing, which is the ability to understand where things are in space. Binocular vision issues make it hard for the brain to understand where things are because the eyes aren’t sending consistent information.
Handwriting Skills
Binocular vision problems can affect a child’s handwriting because their eyes aren’t working together properly. This makes it harder for them to control where their hand moves on the page. As a result, their writing might be messy, with letters spaced unevenly or lines not straight. It can be frustrating for the child because their eyes aren't giving their brain clear information to guide their hand while writing.
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Skipping lines or losing place while reading
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Messy handwriting with uneven letter spacing or misaligned writing
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Struggling to spell phonetically irregular words or miswriting familiar words frequently
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Frequent headaches during or after school
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Squinting, eye rubbing, or closing one eye while reading
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Slow reading speed or avoiding reading altogether
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Re-reading the same lines or needing to use a finger to keep track
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Difficulty understanding or remembering what was read
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