In addition to the learning disabilities such as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and dyslexia there are other learning differences that can impair a single sense, such as visual processing disorders.
Visual processing disorders hinder one’s ability to make sense of information received through his eyes. This is different from a problem involving sharpness of vision or sight in that it is how the information is processed by the brain.
Spatial Relations
When someone has difficulty with spatial relations, they have problems perceiving objects in space relative to other objects. This issue is seen in reading and math because of the importance of accurately perceiving symbols (letters, numbers, punctuation, etc.) in reference to other symbols. A child may confuse similarly shaped letters or have problems seeing words or numbers as separate units. Because the only cues are often the spacing between symbols, math problems frequently assume a child has the ability to understand this.
Visual Discrimination
The ability to recognize an object as separate from other objects is the ability to discriminate individual characteristics. This can interfere with a child’s ability to collect information from graphs or charts and to use visually presented material productively. One example is being able to differentiate between an n and an m where humps is the only distinguishable difference.
There are other visual disabilities such as visual agnosia, the inability to recognize objects familiar via other senses, and problems integrating the relationship between parts and a whole.
There are a number of interventions teachers can use to accommodate children in a regular classroom. For reading, a teacher might use large print books. For writing assignments, sometimes making lines on a paper more distinct or using paper divided into large separate sections for math problems.
