Vision is a sensory that goes far beyond the concepts of how well one can see. The information from the world around us is utilized and processed by our brain, not eyes. We all knew that, right? Of course! It was a well-taught fact when we learned about the five senses in grammar school.
Logic would lead us to the next question: how does our brain use the information it is receiving every second, of every waking moment, of every single day? Well, we use vision in everyday life for things such as visual motor skills and visual planning, visual memory, fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination.
WOW! Our eyes and brain do this all on their own, without us having to do a thing (other than look at the world around us). Sounds like another thing we “just do”, like breathing. We don’t think about how we see; our body just does it.
What are visual processing issues?
Understood.org breaks it down beautifully for us. I’ve summarized it here…with tidbits from my Ninja’s experiences with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) and visual processing issues.
There are a total of eight possible visual processing issues. No one is limited to just one, in fact, my Ninja has a few. Because this is a huge chunk of valuable information I’ve decided to cover the first four now and the remainder in a follow-up post. They are as follows:
- Visual Discrimination Issues: This means that a child will mix up letters or shapes, and the orientation of objects, i.e., “d” for “b”, left from right, and top from bottom. So a child might write a letter “d” in place of the letter “p”.
While Visual Discrimination appears to be dyslexia it is in fact not. Dyslexia is a language-based learning disability, that cannot be reversed. While Visual Discrimination can be greatly improved with vision therapy based exercises to help strengthen eye control and movement as well as visual processing.
- Visual Figure-Ground Discrimination Issues: Kids with this specific issue will have difficulty finding shapes or items on a page of information or maybe a specific toy from a large pile, as well as being able to pull a shape or character from its background. The “Where’s Waldo” books might cause more frustration than joy, and Waldo will probably remain lost.
Thankfully, this is not a big stumbling block for my Ninja. He will at times struggle, but that happens more often when he is tired. It’s also one of his sensory triggers that we have learned to avoid or work through.
- Visual Sequencing Issues: Children with this type of issue will have a difficult time seeing the order of symbols, words or images. They may skip lines when reading or writing and struggle to copy information from one source to another. They may also reverse or misread letters, numbers, and words.
- Visual-Motor Processing Issues: Children with this issue will struggle with writing, and their ability to coordinate the movement of other parts of their body. They may be clumsy and have difficulty copying text.
Before my Ninja received physical and occupational therapy he was very clumsy. As an infant, he crawled or walked right into walls and furniture. Sometimes, he would bump his head or hand on the object again before moving to the side to avoid his stationary roadblock. Can you even begin to imagine what a crowded room would do to him visually? It caused frequent toddler meltdowns.
Even though I’ve only covered four visual processing topics, we already get a clearer picture of how essential it is for our eyes and brain to work in tandem. The struggle for children with SPD and or any Visual Processing Disorder (VPD) is a compounded daily struggle.
I would like to encourage you, the next time you notice a parent struggling with a child, not to jump to conclusions. Please, keep in mind they might be facing challenges such as SPD or VPD. No matter how good a parent might be, children can express themselves in ways which present as “acting out”. It could be a coping mechanism; with parent and child doing the best they can.
I don’t have perfect children—all kids have bad moments. Either way, having perspective, and knowledge is a powerful set of glasses to help us all be a little more patient and kind to those around us.
photo credit: frank mckenna