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Homework Battles and Vision Problems

Child Struggling to learn due to vision problems

If your child avoids doing their homework, procrastinates, or becomes frustrated, there may be a vision problem at the root of all of this.

If this sounds like what you are going through, please know we hear this all of the time in our office.

In fact, many people don’t realize that eye doctors are the first stop for any vision related issues. However, only a developmental optometrist can provide a true solution for reading struggles, because it may not be something glasses can correct. It may require vision therapy to help solve your child’s problem.

Here are some steps you might consider:

1. Assess the Vision Problem

●     Eye Exam:

○     The first step is to schedule an eye exam with a developmental optometrist.  Developmental optometrists are doctors who are experts in identifying vision problems that affect schoolwork.

○     This goes beyond just an eyeglass or eye health examination that an optometrist or ophthalmologist might do.

○     Let’s define some common terms:

○     Nearsighted means that someone CAN see at near.

○     Children who are near sighted typically do well in school because they CAN see at near.  They have unconsciously chosen to give up seeing clearly at distance, so that they can do well at near.

■     Most eye doctors will prescribe glasses for distance, but that only solves the problem for a short while.  The child continues to  become more nearsighted and the prescription gets worse.  The point is that just giving a higher and higher prescription doesn't solve the problem long term.

○     Farsighted means that you can see at distance, far, for example seeing the blackboard in school, or the eye chart at the pediatrician's office.

○     A child that is farsighted may be able to see at distance, like the blackboard, but they often have problems at near, like when reading or taking a test.

○     If you don’t test for how someone is seeing at near, how will you ever find the problem?

○     Think about it,  the school nurse or the pediatrician is typically testing distance vision, identifying individual letters on an eye chart at distance.

○     These aren’t words.

○     This isn’t at arm’s length where I am reading.

○     This is done with each eye individually rather than when using the 2 eyes, like you would do when reading.

○     That's why that test do not identify problems with reading.

○     If you don’t test for the right thing, how will you even identify the problem?

●     School Support:

○     Many people assume that the school will identify a problem, but think about it, TEACHERS are experts in teaching, not in identifying a vision problem.

○     They might provide additional support, like seating closer to the board or allowing more time for assignments, or even being pulled out for additional tutoring, but if the underlying problem is not addressed, the problem will continue and can even get worse.

○     These are NOT eye health problems, like conjunctivitis, or glaucoma, or cataracts,

○     These are VISION problems like not being able to use the 2 eyes together as a team or not being able to track well across a page.

○     If I can’t use the 2 together, then the brain is receiving 2 different pictures and that is confusing.  If the brain can't fuse these 2 different pictures into one, that’s confusing.

○     Wouldn't my child tell me?

■     Children assume that they see like everyone else does.  They figure that this is the way everyone sees.

What if there was a way to help this?

There is.  It's called vision therapy.

Vision Therapy has been offered by doctors that are specialized in this area, and they have beein doing so for about 100 years.

Developmental optometrists are doctors that offer vision therapy

Vision therapy solves problems that eyeglasses or contact lenses can’t fix.

Developmental optometrists solve problems that go beyond just 20/20, eyeglasses, or eye health problems.

General Optometrists are great if there is an eyeglass issue.

Ophthalmologist might be good if there is a surgical or medical problem.

Occupational Therapists are well intentioned, but are not experts in vision.

Developmental Optometrist help solve problems that impact homework and schoolwork.

 

2. It's important to Create a Homework-Friendly Environment

●     Good Lighting:

○     Make sure there is proper lighting to reduce eye strain while doing homework.

●     Ergonomics:

○     Make sure the workspace is comfortable and their screen or books are at the right distance from the eyes in order to minimize strain.

●     Reduce distractions:

○     Doing HW at the kitchen table has the benefit of you seeing your child while they do their HW, but it is often distracting.

○     If others come into the kitchen, looking in the refrigerator,

○     if you are preparing dinner, or answering the phone.

○     It can make it difficult to concentrate and sustain that  concentration.

○     Attention is sustained concentration.

3. Develop a Homework Routine

●     Consistent Schedule:

○     Establish a regular homework time each day to build a routine.

●     Breaks:

○     Encourage short breaks to prevent frustration and fatigue, especially if your child is dealing with vision-related discomfort.

●     We live in a world that requires multitasking. 

○     Answering the phone while making dinner and answering your child’s homework questions.  What takes priority?

○     Likewise, sometimes it’s hard for your child to concentrate on one thing for longer than 15-20 minutes.

○     On the one hand, it may be necessary to take frequent breaks, but on the other hand, that makes it difficult to create a condition that simulates school, such as  taking a test that lasts for an hour in school.

○     When you train for a swimming meet, you train going your fastest.

○     The point is that you want to set up a situation at home that will simulate a classroom situation.

4. Support and Encouragement

●     Positive Reinforcement:

○     Celebrate small successes to keep your child motivated.

●     Assist with Challenges:

○     Offer help when needed, but also encourage independence to build confidence.

5. Communicate with Teachers

●     Stay in touch with your child’s teachers to monitor their progress.

●     Speak with the teacher and find out if there are any ongoing struggles, so you can work together on solutions.

●     Sometimes, we rely too much on the teacher. 

●     The teacher has so many children in the class that they have to oversee

●     YOU want your child to succeed and you want to create situations so that that happens.

So, what kind of vision problems impact homework?
How can you help to overcome those struggles?
Here are some reasons why it is hard for a to complete homework effectively:

1. Difficulty Reading

●     Blurred Vision:

○     If a child has difficulty seeing clearly, reading textbooks, worksheets, or computer screens can become challenging, leading to frustration and avoidance.

○     If you look at a picture that is blurry, then it is hard to see the details.

○     If you can't see the details, then it's hard to remember them.

●     Slow Reading Speed:

○     If a vision problem makes it difficult to track across the page, then reading is slower.  The child may need to pause frequently to refocus or interpret blurry words.  Those frequent breaks make it frustrating to get through the homework.  When that happens time after time, then the child just leans to avoid doing that.

○     They may then get to the point of just saying “I can’t” even before trying.

○     When we read, we have to do at least 4 things simultaneously.  We call these the 4 F’s

○     Fixate:  this means locking on to the word or phrase you are looking at

○     Fuse:  this means that we have to put the two pictures we see from each eye, together so that they become one picture in the brain

○     Focus:  this is an optical term, like focusing a camera.  If the picture isn’t clear, you can't see the details.  You have to be able to physically focus before your can mentally focus.

○     Follow:  this is tracking across the page.  Your brain controls where the eyes go. Your eyes then bring information back into the brain.  That’s called a feedback loop.  When you can’t easily track across a line of print, then you can't get the information into your brain in order to make sense of what you have just seen.

2. Increased Eye Strain and Fatigue

●     Eye Strain: Struggling to see, can cause eye strain,

○     That leads to headaches, tiredness, and a lack of the ability to maintain concentration.

●     Fatigue: if a child has to constantly try to adjust their vision, that will make the child tired.

○     When they become more tired, it is then harder to concentrate and complete tasks.

3. Poor Attention and Focus

●     Distractions:

○     Vision problems can make it difficult for a child to maintain attention on their homework.

○     Distraction might be the things that are happening around the child as they are trying to do their HW.

○     A child will become distracted because their eyes feel strained.

○     It might be be due to the fact that their vision is double, or blurry, or that they can’t maintain physical focus of the lens in the eye.

○     When I can’t maintain physical focus, it makes it difficult to maintain mental focus.

○     Why wouldnt my child just tell me that’s happening?

■     Because that’s their normal and that’s how they think that everyone sees.

●     Shortened Attention Span:

○     Due to the extra effort required to see clearly, a child may lose the ability to concentrate more quickly, resulting in incomplete or rushed homework.

○     Often parents say: “my child can’t focus”  Focus is really an optical term, like focusing a camera.  What parents really mean is that their child can’t concentrate for a sustained amount of time.  That’s attention.

○     At times, parents are encouraged to give their children medication to maintain attention.  Often that doesn't solve the problem, but rather it masks the problem.

○     There are many medical problems and side effects of medicating a non-medical problem.

4. Decreased Comprehension and Retention

●     Misinterpreting Information:

○     Blurry or double vision leads to misreading, or re-reading, or misunderstanding instructions.

○     That leads to mistakes in homework.

○     If I can't easily fixate, or lock onto a word

○     If I can’t easily let go of that word and then jump to the next words

○     If my eyes go back and I have to re-read what i’ve just read

○     If i cant easily move my eyes from right to left, and my eyes move in the opposite direction, then i might read a “b as a d,  or a p as a q”

○     Those are called letter reversals.

○     I might read “saw as was” or “on as no”.

○     Those are called word reversals.

●     Poor Retention:

○     Struggling to see clearly and fusing the 2 pictures that we see out of each eye into 1 picture in the brain, makes it harder for a child to remember what they've read or learned.  That affects a child’s ability to remember what they have read.

○     That makes it more likely for me to avoid doing this.

5. Reduced Confidence and Motivation

●     Frustration:

○     When a child continuously struggles with homework due to vision issues, it causes the child to lose confidence in their abilities.

○     They then become reluctant to even try.

●     Avoidance:

○     A child might start avoiding homework altogether because it becomes a source of stress and discomfort.

6. Impact on Handwriting and Fine Motor Skills

●     Writing Challenges:

○     If a child can’t see well, their handwriting may suffer.

○     They may have trouble aligning their letters or writing within lines.

●     Difficulty with Visual-Spatial Tasks:

○     Tasks that require visual-spatial skills, like drawing or graphing, can be especially challenging.

○     Visual spatial problems can impact sports, like knowing when to start winging at a ball that is pitched to them, or judging the distance to the basket so I know how much energy I need to use to get the ball into the basket.

Addressing these vision issues can lead to significant improvements in homework performance and overall academic success.  This is how it benefits the child.

It also benefits you, the parent, because then you are less stressed, have fewer fights with your child.  It probably gives you pleasure because you see the happiness in your child as they succeed.

The family is happier overall, and the child is better able to succeed in life.

If your child is having difficulty with homework or with schoolwork, then a developmental optometrist can provide the necessary diagnosis and treatment.

At times it may be eyeglasses for near work, or other interventions, such as vision therapy.