Eyetracking problems?

[SealLullaby]

DD is 8, above average at school, no problems have been flagged up. The thing that's concerning us is that her reading seems to have got stuck at the same level for the past year and she's now very reluctant to read anything at all. Her 2 classteachers have said they don't think there's a problem, as she has very good comprehension and her writing speed has improved. (Used to be very slow at writing, but she's left handed and very conscientious!)

DH and I have noticed that she often loses her place, muddles small words, takes words from above/below the line she's reading or repeats a line. I have googled this (bad idea, I know!) and the thing that came up was eyetracking problems.

So....any experiences/advice/suggestions gratefully received!

[IndigoBell]

OriginalDH - you've hit the nail on the head.

Many kids with eyesight problems are wrongly diagnosed as dyslexic.

Some know they have eyesight problems, but because those eyesight problems effect their ability to read, say they have dyslexia.

And some don't know they have eyesight problems.

I think it's very, very unhelpful to call people who have difficulty with reading due to eyesight problems 'dyslexic'.

There are a myriad of diagnostic criteria for dyslexia. For example my DD qualifies for a dx of dyslexia because 'she is unable to learn to read despite adequate tuition'.

In actual fact I have now found 3 underlying problems (including vision problems) which were stopping her from learning to read. I am curing them all - and she is now learning to read.

So I don't think she has dyslexia. And I think labelling her as dyslexic has been very unhelpful for her (and me).

I don't think dyslexia exists at all. I think everyone who can't learn to read, can't learn for a specific reason. And that reason isn't 'dyslexia' but is something else like vision or hearing (or lack of teaching). And by telling those people they are dyslexic and there is no cure for dyslexia we make it harder for them to find and fix the underlying problem(s).

[TheOriginalDesperateHousewife]

I'm trying to figure this out...it maybe a a very stupid question.

But if a child is having problems with eye sight which can be discovered and sorted by a behavioral optometrist, and these problems are found in children who are dyslexic, does this mean a child with these eye problems is dyslexic, or would be diagnosed (rightly or wrongly) as dyslexic?

[FaultyGoods]

My DS1 (8) is the same, OP. I took him to a behavioural optometrist but they didn't find anything of particular note, except that he was slightly longsighted. Despite glasses for this, he still has problems tracking sentences, missing out or misreading small words, adding in words that aren't there, losing his place, etc. He often 'reads' sentences aloud that don't make any sense but doesn't seem to see that. If the word is too long, he doesn't even attempt to break it down but just plucks a word out of the air that has the same letters at the beginning (whether it makes sense or not). Strangely though, his comprehension is fine. His reading is improving (slowly and steadily) and he is now a free-reader.

It is worth taking your child to the behavioural optometrist, even if it is just to rule out certain things but it won't necessarily give you any specific answers either.

[jenniec79]

My odd squint (divergent alternating partial strabismus - now there's some scrabble words, but effectively untreated lazy eye) was picked up when I was 12 and getting headaches with homework. To be fair I was aware of it, but didn't know it wasn't normal iyswim. If it had been picked up earlier it would have been treated with patching; as it was; years of exercises and now reading specs at 32 - not the end of the world, but only as mild as it is because by reading in bed at primary age I was effectively patching my stronger eye myself - still have a tendency to read one-eyed if lying down! Mum still swears I don't really have a squint

[IndigoBell]

These are the things the behaviour optometrest tested DD for:

Vision problems (long / short sighted)
Convergence
Tracking
Pursuits
Vergences (positive / negative)
Accommodation
Accommodation rock
Stereopsis
Colorimetery
Primitive reflexes


So, it really is totally different to an optician.

[mrsbaffled]

Hello, we have recently been to a behaviour optometrist ourselves (posted on SN board). Our initial assessment was only £35 (would have been more, but NHS voucher covered part of it), and the glasses were entirely on the NHS.
As I understand it (done LOTS of reading) prism glasses only work sometimes. DS's are just normal reading glasses. He doesn't really 'need' them (has perfexct sight according to high-street opticians), but they help with his binocular vision (convergence insufficiency) and focusing issues. they won't deal with his major tracking problems - this is where the vision therapy will come in for him.

It's really hard to tell if the glasses are helping, but he has written a few things because he's wanted to, and not because I am making him!

I have posted elsewhere about being in 2 minds about taking up the therapy as it's very expensive and not a widely accepted therapy. NHS friends have advised me to follow up through GP's referal to hospital.

However, it's niggling at me I should still go with it. DS is really really bright and his writing problems are a potentially huge problem for him. He gets so cross and frustrated he can't get down all the greta stuff going on in his head.

School have referred him for dyslexia assessment, but Mummy Insticts tell me it's not that, but possible dyspraxia plus vision problems.

[roentgenium]

well to be fair on him he did say they were rather experimental in nature. Will consider behaviour optometrist, but suspect these problems respond better if treated rather younger.

[IndigoBell]

Roentgentium - if you can take your DD to a behaviour optometrist. Doesn't sound like the optician has quite got your DDs problems right if he's perscribed glasses that don't help.

Honestly a behaviour optometrist tests for a far wider range of vision problems than an optician is able to.

[roentgenium]

dd has problems in this area that were eventually picked up on by an ordinary optician when she was 15. I'd just thought her preference for large print books etc was her being eccentric so I felt rather guilty.

She does now have prismatic glasses, but she doesn't reckon they help at all much.

The optician seemed very pleased with himself to diagnose it - apparently it's rare and difficult to spot. It was the OXO test that highlighted it.

[minnisota]

I also took my son to a behavioural optomotrist due to problems with literacy. £155 for a 90 minute assesment. She said his eyes were above average but did have retained reflexes. We're now seeing someone for that and doing daily exercises. This is very expensive initially expensive but worth every penny

[plus3]

We paid £195 for the assessment, £170 for glasses & £45 per vision therapy session (7 in total)
Good luck.

[2Siobhan]

Thanks. There is someone very close to me.

[IndigoBell]

List Of Behaviour Optometrists

[cornsilx]

thanks Indigo - there are 2 near to me so I'll phone them both to compare

[LynetteScavo]

You don't need a referral, you can just make an apt.

I think IndigoBell has linked further down the thread to Behavior Optometrists. Just find one close to you.

I paid about £50 for the "test" I think...and then for the glasses on top, the frames were covered on the NHS, but not the lenses, so I think that was another £45.

[2Siobhan]

Sorry to hijack. How do you get referred to behaviour optometrist?
It was ds OT that spotted his difficulties. She did an visual perception test and he scored on the 4th percentile. She told met to take ds to the regular optician. I decided to ring the eye doctor he seen as a baby (he was discharged as there were no concerns) and she said she wouldn't see him as she would see him at school shortly for his reception eye test. He passed and I then took him to optician and he was given glasses as he is longsighted.

[IndigoBell]

Prices vary wildly. I only paid £75 for the assessment including glasses, and £50 per session. But I've heard of people paying £400 for the assessment.

We had about 6 sessions.....

[cornsilx]

thanks corriewatcher

[Corriewatcher]

I paid about £200 for the initial consultation, another £35 for the glasses, and now I'm paying £60 per 40 mins vision therapy session. So it is not cheap, although in terms of the effect it will have on DD's learning I feel it is money well spent. That said, I am hoping that she will only need the 6 weeks of vision therapy and no more - her assessment is in a couple of weeks. As well as the expense, it is a lot of hard work getting her to do the exercises properly every day!

[cornsilx]

Indigo really? How fascinating.

[cornsilx]

your dd's experience with reading sounds just like what is happening with my ds. Can only see 2 behavioural optometrists near me. How much did you pay if you don't mind my asking?

[IndigoBell]

Corrie - all children in Australia on reading recovery are reffered to a behaviour optometrist. It's a huge pity that doesn't happen here in the UK.

[Corriewatcher]

Well, on the first visit he prescribed bifocal glasses which made a huge difference straight away -it turns out she hadn't been able to see the white board at school properly all year! DD's had 4 vision therapy sessions, and her eye control has noticably improved in the past couple of weeks. And when she sees double now, she's sometimes able to correct it.

[cornsilx]

corriewatcher - how long did it take for you to see a difference after seeing the behavioural optometrist?

[Corriewatcher]

I was thinking twice about posting given the argument raging on this thread, but thought I ought to to back up Indigo Bell's experience as a mum of vision therapy. My DD is 8 too and also above average at school. She was always amongst the top 3-4 children on the top reading band in her class, but in the last year she had almost stopped reading for pleasure at home. It was her handwriting that alerted us to problems as she was having trouble finishing most of her work and having trouble writing on a line, so we were recommended to see an OT.

The OT noticed a possible eye-tracking problem, as well as recommending exercises to strengthen DD's hands - no indication that she was dyslexic. So she visited a behavioural optometrist in May, has glasses, and has been doing weekly vision therapy (and daily practice) over the summer holidays. We've still got a couple of sessions to go, but the effect on DD's love of reading has been quite dramatic - she's currently on her 14th book over the holidays.

As mentioned above though, please make sure you visit a behaviour optometrist. DD actually mentioned to me several months ago that she was having trouble with her eyes. I took her to a branch of a well-known opticians, and they told me her eyes were absolutely fine. I now know they don't even test for eye-tracking issues etc. The OT told me that it is estimated that 20% of children have such vision issues. Makes you wonder why they don't test for it if it could have such a positive effect on so many children's learning.