When should my children have an eye test after they start school? Why do some children have difficulty learning to read and write, or ongoing problems reading to learn? Most children do not complain so a full eye test with Catherine or Janine at Young Eyes will help to review their vision. We like to recommend an eye examination even if they have a preschool or Lions eye screening. Once the appointment is made a pre-assessment form is emailed to be completed, this is very important for our optometrists to gain information on how your child’s eye work. Sometimes the children will complain of tired eyes at the end of the school day, loss of interest or concentration in reading and learning to read. Occasionally children will tell their parents that the words move when reading on the page or they are bothered with the glare. Most children who live here in the country we test have very good distance vision. This was considered the normal sight until the last few years. Our changing lifestyle of lots of indoor screen time and not as much outside play has changed the way the brain is now seeing our world. Janine and Catherine recommend that we test the children as they start school and again in Year 2. A comprehensive eye test will assess the eye co-ordination, eye movements and how relaxed your children’s eyes are to cope with the extended load in the classroom. We then assess the risk of any longer-term issues with their vision and recommend the best ways to keep children’s eyes healthy. These include a minimum of two hours a day outside in the sunlight, reducing indoor screen time and trying to have a set time for no devices at night. A very common question we get asked is “Do coloured spectacles help children with reading problems?” These issues with learning are caused by many factors in combination and are rarely due to vision alone. It is very important that we test all aspects of vision and include the special tests on a Colourimeter to see if there is a positive response to the colours. Reading difficulties can range from mild to severe and include visual and other forms of dyslexia. Based on all the information Catherine and Janine will chat about the best options for your child before any spectacles or eye exercises are prescribed. Please look at our website Young Eyes for more information and book online. www.youngeyes.com.au.
