If your child's preschool teacher has concerns about your child's ability to meet milestones, and your child isn't learning at the same rate as others, you should consider having their vision tested. As many as 10 percent of preschoolers have some type of impairment with their vision, and your child could be suffering.
The pediatrician can't give a vision test as thorough as an ophthalmologist, so you want your child to see a specialist to have a full vision screening. If they are displaying the following signs of concern, their vision may be holding them back.
Poor Motor Skills
Does your child have a hard time pointing to things, figuring things out with their hands, and picking up small items? If they aren't able to see things properly, or if they can't determine the depth of the items, it may be hard for them to perform daily tasks.
Intellectual Delays
Is your child struggling to recognize shapes, letters or numbers? Are they unable to recognize patterns, trace items on a page, or color in the lines? These are all concerns the preschool teacher may have about their learning abilities, but the real problem could be that they can't see all of the items clearly enough. You don't want your preschooler to fall behind any further, which could delay them starting kindergarten.
Athletic Issues
If your child fails to catch a ball that is thrown to them, or can't kick a ball back and forth with a friend, their balance may be off because of vision. They may not be able to see a ball coming at them, or be able to make contact with a ball because of poor sight. The vision could be holding them back from having fun with friends and being active.
Short Interest in Movies or Stories
A lot of parents think their child doesn't want to sit and watch television, or read a book because they have a poor attention span. Every child's attention span is different, but the issue could be they can't see the pages or the screen easily. These are things you want to tell the ophthalmologist.
If you have vision concerns and you are worried your preschooler has an impairment, make an appointment with an eye specialist like http://www.drgrantmdretinalspecialist.com to get accurate results. The condition that they have could be preventing them from developing like other kids around them, and it could affect them in the long term if it isn't corrected.
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