Small and school-aged children who have vision issues are often hard to diagnose without professional help. What may appear to day care providers, teachers, and parents to be a learning disability or problem might be something as simple as a vision issue. Colorblindness can be even more difficult to detect than near or farsightedness, so these signs should be a trigger to schedule your kid’s eye exam.
Learning Via Color Coordination
Possibly the most obvious sign that you may have a child who is colorblind is when he or she is learning their colors and shapes. If asked to choose a green item and instead the child selects the red item, the child may be seeing both shades identically. When color identification is used as a learning tool for principles, a colorblind child may suffer frustration and embarrassment when they’re unable to isolate the right color. Colorblind children often need significantly different learning methods, so if you’re seeing these signs, get a kid’s eye exam for your child right away to start discussing educational needs.
Trouble with Sports or Activities
Imagine an orange line painted on the field to indicate out-of-bounds. A colorblind child may not be able to see that line, and keep heading out of bounds without explanation. Jersey colors might be hard for your child to differentiate, so he or she may be confused as to who their team members are as well.
Avoidance
Many colorblind children become frustrated by the fact that they can’t see how they are expected to see, or experience bullying as a result of their colorblindness. The result can be a withdrawn child who tries to avoid participating in activities, especially if they involve heavy reliance on color use or the need for color differentiation. They may not want to use a coloring book, or avoid certain subjects in school.
The symptoms of colorblindness in a child can be very subtle. If you notice any of the above signs, take your child for their kid’s eye exam right away to prevent learning and social delays that may potentially result from this condition.
