Visual Perception

What is visual perception?

Visual perception refers to the brain’s ability to make sense of what the eyes see. This is not the same as visual acuity which refers to how clearly a person sees (for example “20/20 vision”). A person can have 20/20 vision and still have problems with visual perceptual processing.

Why is visual perception important?

Good visual perceptual skills are important for many every day skills such as reading, writing, completing puzzles, cutting, drawing, completing math problems, dressing, finding your sock on the bedroom floor as well as many other skills. Without the ability to complete these every day tasks, a child’s self esteem can suffer and their academic and play performance is compromised.

What are the building blocks necessary to develop visual perception?

Accurate registration, interpretation and response to sensory stimulation in the environment and the child’s own body.

The ability to focus on important visual information and filter out unimportant background information.

The ability to determine differences or similarities in objects based on size, colour, shape, etc.

The ability to recall visual traits of a form or object.

Understanding the relationships of objects within the environment.

The ability to recall a sequence of objects in the correct order.

The ability to locate something in a busy background.

The ability to know that a form or shape is the same, even if it has been made smaller/larger or has been turned around.

The ability to recognise a form or object when part of the picture is missing.

How can I tell if my child has problems with visual perception?

If a child has difficulties with visual perception they might have difficulty:

Completing puzzles or dot to dots.
Planning actions in relation to objects around them.
With spatial concepts such as “in, out, on, under, next to, up, down, in front of.”
Differentiating between “b, d, p, q”
Reversing numbers or letters when writing.
Losing place on a page when reading or writing.
Remembering left and right.
Forgetting where to start reading.
Sequencing letters or numbers in words or math problems.
Remembering the alphabet in sequence,
Coping from one place to another (e.g. from board, from book, from one side of the paper to the other).

Dressing (i.e. matching shoes or socks).
Discriminating between size of letters and objects.
Remembering sight words.
Completing partially drawn pictures or stencils.
Attending to a word on a printed page due to his/her inability to block out other words around it.
Filtering out visual distractions such as colorful bulletin boards or movement in the room in order to attend to the task at hand.
Sorting and organizing personal belongings (e.g. may appear disorganised or careless in work).
With hidden picture activities or finding a specific item in a cluttered desk.

Concerned about Visual Perception?

What other problems can occur when a child has difficulties with visual perception?

When a child has visual perception difficulties, they might also have difficulties with:

Academic performance: The ease and skill with which they can complete academic tasks.
Attention and concentration: Sustained effort, doing activities without distraction and being able to hold that effort long enough to get the task done.
Self regulation: The ability to obtain, maintain and change one’s emotion, behaviour, attention and activity level appropriate for a task or situation in a socially acceptable manner.
Behaviour: They may avoid or refuse to participate in activities that require visual perceptual skills.
Frustration: With precise eye and hand tasks.
Avoidance: They may prefer to get others to perform tasks for them under their direction, rather than actually doing themselves (e.g. “Daddy, draw me a house”, or “build me a rocket”, with refusal to do it themselves).
Organisation: They may have difficulty keeping track of and organising belongings.

What activities can help improve visual perception?

Hidden pictures games in books such as “Where’s Wally”.
Picture drawing: Practice completing partially drawn pictures.
Dot-to-dot worksheets or puzzles.
Review work: Encourage your child to identify mistakes in written material.
Memory games: Playing games such as Memory.
Sensory activities: Use bendable things such as pipe cleaners to form letters and shapes (because feeling a shape can help them visualize the shape). The letters can then be glued onto index cards, and later the child can touch them to “feel” the shape of the letter.
Construction-type activities such as Duplo, Lego or other building blocks.
Flash cards with a correct letter on one side and an incorrectly formed letter on the other side. Have the child try to draw the letter correctly, then turn over the card to see if it is right. (Have them write in sand or with finger paint to make it more fun).
Word search puzzles that require you to look for a series of letter.
Copy 3-D block designs
Identify objects by touch: Place plastic letters into a bag, and have the child identify the letter by “feel”.

What can be done to improve visual perceptual skills?

For example, use a coloured dot or sticker to show what side of the page to start writing on or reading from, or place a texta mark on stick on the inside of the child’s shoes so they know which foot to put them on (dots face inwards).

To help with direction or starting position (e.g. for letter formation).

To help with word spacing and sizing.

To encourage correct line alignment.

Provide the child work that is to be copied on a piece of paper to put on their desk, rather than asking them to copy it from the board.

Place on the child’s table that they can refer to for correct letter formation.

Encourage the child to keep their desk clear of distractions and clutter.

Sit the child’s desk in an area closer to the front to avoid the distractions of other students.

Remove as much of the visually stimulating classroom wall decorations as possible, especially near the child’s desk.

Avoid unnecessary decorations (e.g. place only one activity on a page, remove pretty borders on worksheets).

Use a red marker to outline the boundaries for coloring, mazes or cutting tasks.

When working on puzzles, present one piece at a time and cover unneeded pieces of the puzzle.

Why should I seek therapy if I notice difficulties with visual perception in my child?

Therapeutic intervention to help a child with visual perception difficulties is important to:

Improve ability in and persistence with visual tasks.
Ensure the child is able to engage in/complete academic tasks.
Help the child to complete self care tasks, such as putting shoes on the right feet.
Avoid the child becoming disengaged in an academic environment due to difficulties completing visual activities (e.g. writing, cutting, drawing).
Avoid frustrations experienced by parents, teachers and children when a child is struggling to remain engaged in academic activities.
Help maintain and develop a positive sense of well being.
Ensure that the child doesn’t fall behind their peers in development of skills such as handwriting, spelling and maths.

If left untreated what can difficulties with visual perception lead to?

When children have difficulties with visual perception, they might also have difficulties with:

Anxiety and stress in a variety of situations leading to difficulty reaching their academic potential.
Difficulties completing busy work sheets or following visual instructions.
Difficulties accessing the curriculum because unable to attend to the appropriate visual information.
Difficulties dressing independently and managing other self care tasks independently.
Difficulties completing exams due to difficulty blocking out unimportant visual information.
Poor self esteem when a child compares their abilities with their peers.
Poor handwriting skills.

What type of therapy is recommended for visual perception difficulties?

If your child has difficulties with visual perception, it is recommended they consult an Occupational Therapist.

If there are multiple areas of concern (i.e. beyond just visual perception) both Occupational Therapy and Speech Therapy may well be recommended to address the functional areas of concern. This is the benefit of choosing Kid Sense which provides both Occupational Therapy and Speech Pathology.