Vision plays a critical role in a young child's cognitive, motor, language, and social-emotional development.

One out of five children, birth to age 5, has a vision concern.

Many childhood vision concerns are treatable when identified early.

Colorado supports just 25% to 50% of the families with very young children who have blindness or low vision compared to neighboring states with more consistent vision screening practices.1

Why Early Vision Screening Matters

Early vision screening helps identify children who may have vision concerns before those concerns significantly affect development. Early identification allows families to seek appropriate medical evaluation and, when needed, begin intervention during the years when a child's brain is developing most rapidly.

Vision concerns can affect overall development. Vision plays an essential role in communication, mobility, learning, social interaction, and exploration of the environment. Undetected vision concerns may influence every area of a young child's development.

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Early intervention improves outcomes. When vision concerns are identified early, children and families can receive specialized services and supports that help minimize the developmental impact of vision loss.

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Some vision concerns require prompt medical evaluation. Vision screening may identify ocular or neurological concerns that warrant timely evaluation by a pediatric eye doctor or other appropriate medical professional.

“Visual Screening Guidelines: Children Birth Through Five Years,” Colorado Department of Education, January 2005

Effective Vision Screening Looks Beyond the Eyes

Vision concerns do not always present in the same way. Some children have obvious eye abnormalities, while others have healthy-appearing eyes but demonstrate unusual visual behaviors, have significant medical histories, or exhibit subtle developmental signs that may indicate ocular or brain-based vision concerns. Caregiver observations often provide important information that may not be apparent during a brief screening.

For these reasons, effective vision screening relies on multiple sources of information rather than a single observation or screening test. A comprehensive vision screening considers family and medical history, appearance and movement of the eyes and eyelids, visual behaviors, and caregiver observations and concerns.

Using multiple sources of information helps professionals make more informed screening decisions and communicate recommendations with greater confidence and consistency.

The Vision Screening Protocol©

The Vision Screening Protocol© brings these evidence-informed principles together in a standardized screening system that helps professionals identify children who may need evaluation by a pediatric eye doctor.

The protocol combines caregiver information, objective vision testing, standardized scoring guidance, and structured communication with families to help professionals:

• Identify children who may need evaluation by a pediatric eye doctor
• Determine the appropriate referral urgency
• Communicate clear recommendations and next steps to caregivers

By standardizing the screening process, the Vision Screening Protocol© promotes more consistent decision-making while supporting earlier identification of both ocular and brain-based vision concerns.

Learn more about the Vision Screening Protocol© or register for training to begin implementing the protocol in your practice or program.

1 Children receiving early intervention vision services: benchmark study with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. Conducted by A Shared Vision, November 2019.

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