If your child is new to wearing glasses or you are looking for ways to promote more independence in eyewear care, you’re in the right place. Glasses can be an investment, and it’s essential to teach children to take proper care of them at a young age.
Here are some tips to help you prepare your kids for how to take care of their glasses as you teach them proper eye care and protection.
Encourage Self-Expression
When your child picks out their glasses, it’s a big step toward becoming a responsible glasses wearer. They will naturally care more about the glasses if it’s a pair they love. They’ll want to keep them safe and in good shape. So, you should encourage your child to be excited about these eye care accessories.
Understand Your Child’s Needs
Glasses must fit comfortably while your child plays, learns, reads, and participates in extracurricular and daily activities. So, ask your child to look down, lay down, twist around, and bend over to test how their glasses fit and feel.
When the glasses are comfortable and easy to wear, your child will be likelier to wear them. They’re also more likely to take care of their glasses, particularly as they notice how much easier it is to see, read, and participate in their normal activities with the help of glasses.
Of course, those activities might also require special consideration. So, talk to our team at Eyes of Lubbock to see what materials we suggest for your child’s regular activities. We may recommend a sports band and heavy-duty case to keep those glasses safe and in place.
Give Them Age-Appropriate Instructions
Your child may be more (or less prepared) to take care of their eyeglasses depending on age, attention span, and motor skills. If your child is aged 4+, they’ll probably be able to follow basic instructions and be able to take care of their glasses:
- Remove their glasses with two hands, one on each ear stem to prevent uneven frame wear
- Rinse their glasses in water
- Dry them with an eyeglass cleaning cloth
- Store them in a hard eyeglass case to prevent damage in backpacks.
To help your child get used to wearing glasses, you can get them to practice with prescription-free (fake) glass frames. Depending on their age and readiness, you can also try rewards or even use a sticker chart to track how they’re doing with wearing their new glasses.
Stress the Importance of Proper Glasses Care
Overall, stress the importance of glasses as a tool to promote and protect their vision. They must learn how to properly care for and protect their glasses to continue to benefit from better vision. Depending on their vision level and age, you can also offer incentives to encourage proper care.
Eyes of Lubbock Can Help Your Kids Understand Eyeglass Care
Our eye care team at Eyes of Lubbock can offer special tips and suggestions to your child to help them better understand the importance of proper eyeglasses care. Schedule your appointment to get all your questions answered by our experienced Lubbock optometrists as we work together to achieve better eye care and vision protection for you and your family.