Occupational therapists are trained to identify and treat difficulties with visual perception and control of eye movements. Visual perception is the ability to recognise and identify qualities of objects in order to make accurate judgments on the size and spatial relationships of the objects (Schneck, 2005).

 

    Ocular motor skills are the eyes’ ability to work together in a coordinated fashion. (It is important to note that occupational therapists do not address reduced visual acuity and the need for corrective lenses, as this is addressed by an optometrist).

 

    Visual perception and ocular motor skills are evaluated through standardised assessments, such as The Beery-Buktencia Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration, or The Test of Visual Perceptual Skills, and various clinical observations.

 

   Difficulties with ocular motor control and/or visual perception can impact many childhood activities, such as reading, writing, copying from the board at school, athletic performance and eye-hand coordination.

 

 

 

(Case-Smith, 2005)