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From:	Rod Everson (d16-214-rt4-bras.lax.centurytel.net)
Subject:	Please tell her to see a developmental optometrist soon
Date:	October 13, 2007 at 10:05 am PST

In Reply to: How to test for dyslexia and what to do about it?? posted by Amy on October 9, 2007 at 11:55 am:

Hi,

I run a private reading practice, and have for nearly ten years now. Over that time I have come to greatly respect the work that developmental optometrists do.

In fact, I now believe that "dyslexia" as we think of it (poor reading, an inability to deal with phonics information, often poor handwriting too) has a huge vision component linked to it. I'm definitely NOT saying that it's all vision, but in most cases of "dyslexia" I think that a developmental optometrist's evaluation will pick up significant vision skills deficits.

Those deficits can often be addressed with vision therapy, and once they've been addressed successfully, I find that the phonics instruction "sinks in" much more readily.

In fact, I've evaluated kids before vision therapy and then immediately after and have occasionally seen more than a full year's jump in reading ability over just a few months. This happens when the child going into vision therapy has a decent understanding of phonics on entry. During vision therapy, as their vision skills improve, they start to take advantage of the phonics knowledge they already possess.

On the other hand, many kids need to start over with phonics instruction following vision therapy, because they didn't retain much prior phonics instruction, or they never got much, or they got such a cluster of different reading approaches that they're hopelessly confused.

Anyway, please have her look for a developmental optometrist. Hopefully there's a good one nearby. The link below has a search function for finding one. If it doesn't show up, it's www.covd.org

Rod Everson

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