The kit is intended for visually impaired children between the ages of 0.5 years and 3.5 years.
The purpose of the assessment is to perform an examination of the child's functional vision while addressing the main vision skills: awareness of visual stimulation, focusing on gaze, follow-up, scanning, decoding.
For more information, lectures and training, please contact Yael Raoch Pora, Director of Training and Development of THEA
The information obtained from this assessment will enable the development of a personal learning program in the field of vision, tailored to the child.
- How to perform the assessment:
- When will we perform the evaluation with the child during the daytime?
Assessment times depend on the child. Must be performed at times that are good for him, usually in the morning. It is advisable to have observations about the child in good times and at lesser times.
During abnormal sleep disturbances in children, it is necessary to think about the times of performing vision assessments.
- Where are we going to do the visual evaluation?
In and out of the dark room, in the garden environment and in a familiar and unfamiliar environment.
- What objects will we use to evaluate our vision?
In unfamiliar and unfamiliar objects. It is important that there be a variety of tools and objects for evaluation, so that they do not legislate the use of objects that are accustomed and that exist daily in the garden. It is necessary to check the ability and not the habit, that is: that we will not do a specific study of the game but that there is an inclusion of the ability. For example: a lottery game with pictures from the green binder at a light table – try with the child other lottery games with the use of other images to check that there is no imitation but that the ability has been learned and there is inclusion in execution even in accessories that are similar to what he learned.
- Will we do the visual evaluation with or without an eye retinal?
We will perform with the eye and without the restoe unless the restoy interferes with the child's functioning at such a level that it is not possible to perform the evaluation with it. It is not advisable to get into power struggles with the child.
- The importance of the child's facilitators when performing the visual evaluation:
It is important to take care when performing the assessment of an optimal facilitative condition for the child both physically and visually. The child should be allowed the stability and position of the comfortable and correct angle to see for him. It is important to note this with appreciation!
- Will the evaluation be done with another member of staff?
It is not necessary to carry out the assessment accompanied by another member of staff. Consider performing with another member of staff if another staff member has a better familiarity with the child in terms of vision function. Performing an assessment together enables joint learning, inquiries to perform an assessment rather than documentation, observation of another person and deliberation and reasoning during confusing and inconsistent situations in the child's visual functioning.
- Gathering developmental information
It is important to look at developmental norms in the field of vision and other areas of development, in order to understand what normative functioning is and the comparison between it and poor functioning.
- Meaning of the following sections in the evaluation:
- The differences between light perception awareness and light direction awareness
Space and directionality indicates a higher cognitive level of visual use. It is a visual system, perceptually ripe and useful. Because the child knows where he is and that he knows that there is space, this is a functional aspect (how does my vision lead me in the world?).
- Close in-depth vision – the need to determine/ hold the rod, container or tool by another party other than the child
In order to check (when using depth or 3D vision) if the action is carried out using only vision or hands, the rod must be fixed or held by someone other than the child.
In order to check that the ability exists, it is possible to choose a relatively large tool and not the smallest, that is: an easy assessment to perform, and in order to check the quality of the existing ability, it is possible to make it difficult and increase the level of execution.
- Identify visual symbols (a property of the object such as color, shape, familiar…) In which the child is assisted in decoding an image/ object/figure
Many objects have very important lines or main identification points, which are important to teach our children, in order to improve the brain's ability to decipher what the eyes convey.
- Spontaneous scanning vs. intentional scanning
Spontaneous scanning– The child used vision as a tool to "perceive" the world (the information received through the senses is encoded in memory and cognitively processed, with the aim of giving meaning to the environment) and not as a tool to absorb. For example: I consciously search for the dog or I see it and then I am awake to it. Spontaneous scanning is functional and is an active tool for learning.
Deliberate scanning – an action in which we give guidance to the child.
- Completing a missing image (developing the visual imagination)
Completing missing information is one of the learning assessments. We're actually testing the child's visual imaginative ability.
It's a learned vision skill, a method of work.
- The ability to draw an imaginary line between two points
The child's ability to create in his imagination is examined in a world that consists of two points and the understanding that there is a connection between them. This is a spatial examination of the worldview. Using vision to build a richer, higher spatial world in the brain.
Our rich experience in space creates the shape in the imagination, for example: creating 4 points in space that creates the square shape.
- Visual Supervision in Eye Contact – Hand
is the added and important value, adding to the quality of motor operation and the quality (and improvement) of visual acuity. - Combining multiple skills at the same time
The integration of systems is important and necessary since there is no functioning without a combination of the senses. There are hardly any tasks in everyday life that require one single sense.
