Visual perception means understanding what you see with your eyes. Good visual perceptual skills help children do things every day, such as reading, writing, cutting with scissors, getting dressed, playing sports, and moving around safely. These skills are important for finding objects, copying from the board, and knowing how to use things the right way.
What you may see
Children with visual perceptual difficulties may have difficulties completing their daily activities. For example, they may not be able to recognise which way round their t-shirt goes. They may also have difficulties copying from the whiteboard or may struggle to find their belongings in their bags.
To develop general visual perceptual skills there are a range of activities that your child can complete.
General strategies and advice
Games to help develop visual perceptual skills
- Lego and construction games. Can your child build independently and copy a design of yours?
- Finding a specific object amongst others in a see-through bag.
- Spot the difference games, such as can your child find a pencil amongst lots of felt tips?
- Go on a shape hunt. Find objects around your house and classroom that are a specific shape, for example a rectangle, diamond, sphere or cube.
- Sorting and matching games. Play snap, dominoes, sorting socks in the wash basket.
- Painting by numbers and mindfulness colouring books and ‘Where’s Wally’ style books.
- Play memory games such as Kim’s game, flashcard and matching card games.
- Play Simon Says and Imaginary Mirror (children work in pairs and pretend there is a mirror between them). One makes a pose and the other copies as if they are the reflection.
- Pick up sticks game
- Jenga game
- Dobble card game
- Rush hour game
- Word searches and cross words
- Practice using maps, mazes, and simple orientation games around your house or school.
- When reading, occasionally cover part of the picture or word and ask the child to predict what that picture or word might be.
School learning strategies
- Keep visual information to a minimum. Make sure the whiteboard is regularly cleaned and that only the information needed is written up.
- Use whiteboard markers or pens in colours that clearly stand out and pens that make clear lines.
- Minimise wall displays or visuals surrounding the whiteboard.
- If using worksheets, keep them clutter free.
- Make sure photocopies of handouts are good quality so that children can clearly read the text.
- Identify important words or letters in a text of writing and mark them with a highlighter pen.
- Encourage the child to keep their workspace clear of clutter, tidying away each piece of work as it is finished before moving onto the next task. Use coloured margins or marks on the page. For example, a green dot could signal ‘start here’ and a red dot could signal ‘don’t write beyond this point’.
- Direction arrows may help with starting positions for letter formation. Graph or squared paper can support with the spacing of letters and numbers when writing.
- Consider the position of the child’s desk within the classroom. If sat at the front of class they will be less visually distracted by others.
Last reviewed November 2025