School-age Children

A school-age child’s eyes are constantly in use in the classroom and at play. For school-age children, several different visual skills must work together so they can see and understand clearly. If any of these visual skills are lacking or impaired, your child will need to work harder and may develop headaches or fatigue. Increased visual demands at school can point out a vision problem that was not apparent before school. The child may not realize they have a vision problem; they may simply assume everyone sees the way they do.

Vision-related problems may cause some of the following symptoms:

• headaches or irritability
• avoidance of near or distance work
• covering or rubbing of the eyes
• tilting of the head or unusual posture
• using a finger to maintain place while reading
• losing place while reading
• omitting or confusing words when reading
• performing below their potential

An eye examination of your child will include:

• A review of your child’s health and vision history
• Tests for nearsightedness ,astigmatism, amblyopia (lazy eye), crossed eyes, eye coordination, depth perception, and focusing ability
• An eye health examination