MOUNT VERNON — Prevent Blindness Ohio and the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery’s Wild About Eyes educational kiosk will be featured during a reading hour Friday, Oct. 19, at 10 a.m. at the Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County, 201 N. Mulberry St.
The Wild About Eyes kiosk provides four learning stations providing hands-on, interactive vision experiences for children and adults. Using bowling balls, hand-held paddles that simulate eye diseases and an eye safety matching game, the kiosk lets participants see for themselves how the eye works.
Wild About Eyes was developed by Prevent Blindness Ohio and the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery in Dayton. It is funded by the Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Child and Family Health Services, Save Our Sight Program. The Save Our Sight Fund is supported by donations at the time of motor vehicle registration to support eye health and safety programs for kids www.saveoursight.org.
Vision problems affect one in four school-age children and one in 20 preschoolers. Eighty percent of what a child learns is visual — good vision is critical to learning. Undetected vision problems can affect how well a child performs in the classroom. An estimated 47,300 Ohio preschool children (1 in 20) have a vision disorder including amblyopia (lazy eye) and strabismus (crossed eyes) that can lead to loss of vision. Many eye problems in children can be effectively treated and corrected if diagnosed early. Prevent Blindness Ohio recommends a continuum of eye care for children to include both vision screening and comprehensive eye examinations. All children, even those with no signs of trouble, should have their eyes checked at regular intervals.
Prevent Blindness Ohio, founded in 1957, is Ohio’s leading volunteer nonprofit public health organization dedicated to preventing blindness and preserving sight. Prevent Blindness Ohio serves all 88 Ohio counties, providing direct services to more than 800,000 Ohioans annually and educating millions of consumers about what they can do to protect and preserve their precious gift of sight.
Prevent Blindness Ohio is an affiliate of Prevent Blindness America, the country’s second-oldest national voluntary health organization. For more information or to make a contribution, visit website at www.pbohio.org or call 800-301-2020.
Published on October 15, 2012
