Developing Preschool Vision Skills

According to the American Public
Health Association, about 10% of
preschoolers have eye or vision
problems. However, children this
age generally will not voice
complaints about their eyes.

Things you can do at home to help your preschooler
successfully develop his or her vision include:

Practice throwing and catching a ball, balloon, or bean bag.

Read aloud to your child and let him or her see what is being read.

Provide a chalkboard or finger paints.

Encourage play activities requiring hand-eye coordination such as block
building and assembling simple puzzles.

Play simple memory or matching games.

Provide opportunities to color, cut and paste.

Make time for outdoor play including ball games, bike/tricycle riding,
swinging and rolling activities.

Encourage imagination skills when reading a story to your child by asking
if he or she can guess what happens next.

Provide play materials and dress-up clothes to act out imaginary parts.

Make large wooden or plastic beads available for stringing.

Parents Can Help Build
Vision Skills

Vision is learned. Children develop needed
vision skills through their everyday
experiences. But not all children have the same
opportunities to learn and practice these skills.

Children need opportunities through play to stimulate and enhance
their developing visual abilities. Many toys can provide a very useful
means of helping a child practice and enhance his or her vision skills.

To find out more, see the list of age-appropriate toys and games that
can help improve visual and thinking abilities.