The Importance of Regular Sight Tests for Children

Monday 8 November 2021 heralds the start of Children’s Book Week which encourages a love of reading from a young age. BookTrust, which leads the campaign, is the UK’s largest children’s reading charity and is dedicated to getting children reading, helping millions of children across the UK with books, resources and support.

With this important week in mind, we focus today’s blog on the importance of your child’s vision and how to detect any signs that may prompt you to have their eyesight examined.

Vision and learning are extremely closely related. In fact, it is estimated that around 80% of what a child learns at school is information that is presented visually. Therefore, good vision is imperative so that students of all ages can reach their full academic potential.

If a child is experiencing problems at school – from learning to read to understanding fractions – it is vital not to rule out that eyesight problems may be the root cause of this. Common symptoms that would suggest a vision related problem can include:

• Headaches or eye strain
• Blurred vision or double vision
• Crossed eyes or eyes that appear to move independently of each other
• Dislike or avoidance of reading and close work
• Short attention span during visual tasks
• Turning or tilting the head to use one eye only, or closing or covering one eye
• Placing the head very close to the book or desk when reading or writing
• Excessive blinking or rubbing the eyes
• Omitting or repeating words, or confusing similar words
• Persistent reversal of words or letters (after second grade)
• Difficulty remembering, identifying or reproducing shapes
• Poor eye-hand coordination

The benefits of ensuring that your child has good vision are numerous. From the ability to fully understand what is happening in the classroom to being able to read with confidence and no issues – ensuring that your child’s eyesight is healthy is of great importance.

With fun activities, top 10 book suggestions and for more information on Children’s Book Week and how you can be involved, visit the BookTrust website.