Vision plays a critical role in a child’s development, but assessing visual function can be challenging, especially for children with learning disabilities or complex needs.
Introducing the Empower: Eyes Engagement Box
The Empower: Eyes Engagement Box—is a tool designed to help parents, carers, and educators understand what a child can see, at what distance, and under what conditions.
Inspired by the Bradford Visual Function Box, this tool offers a functional vision test that doesn’t rely on traditional methods, which can be difficult for children with severe learning disabilities to engage with. While the Empower Eyes Box doesn’t replace professional eye care or therapy, it provides valuable support for creating a more engaging, accessible, and tailored environment for children.
What’s in the Empower Eyes Box?
- Apron: Reduces distractions, helping children focus on visual stimuli in a calmer environment.
- The Black Box: Organises and stores props, reducing distractions and supporting observations.
- Varied Sized Objects: Assesses how a child responds to different visual stimuli, offering insights into visual coordination and focus.
- Music & Motivation Resources: Uses sensory stimulation through music to encourage engagement and maintain focus.
- Sensory Story Book & Props: Engages children with different levels of visual function using textures, colours, and props.
- I Am, Body Safety, and Identity Resources: Supports emotional development, self-awareness, and personal safety.
- Aroma Oil & Body Brush: Calms and aids sensory processing to create a comfortable environment.
- Vibrating Toy: Provides tactile stimulation, encouraging focus and engagement.
- Bean Bags: Offers tactile input to develop hand-eye coordination and improve concentration.
- Light Spinner & Visual Toys: Supports visual tracking and focus, providing valuable insights into cognitive processing.
The Importance of Visual Function Assessment
The Empower Eyes Box, based on the Bradford Visual Function Box, provides an inclusive way to assess vision. It uses observation of natural responses to visual cues, giving parents, carers, and professionals valuable insights into a child’s visual capabilities and needs.
‘People with learning disabilities are 10 times more likely to experience serious sight problems, and for children, that risk increases to 28 times higher. Traditional eye tests can be difficult for children with complex needs, leading to underassessed visual function.’
Elevating the significance of Vision
Distribution and Empowering Families
The Empower Eyes Box is especially important for families in underserved areas, like rural Thailand, where access to special education services is limited. By focusing on role modelling and observation, this tool helps build on a child’s strengths and fosters an environment where their needs are recognised and addressed.
Inclusion, Research and Action
Developed by Jamie Wong as part of Inclusion Studies and using her easy-to-use PEAS tracking system (PEAS – Pain, Engagement, Alertness, Scoring System), the Empower Eyes Engagement Box contributes to action-based research aimed at shaping inclusive practices and better supporting children with complex needs. It also encourages professionals to document their insights and findings, contributing to a better understanding of what works to improve the lives of children with complex needs.
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