I will never forget how surprised we were when we were told that Teagan needed glasses. I honestly had no idea she needed them but I am so thankful for that appointment. That has been over a year ago and we are finally finding our groove of having a preschooler, now a Kindergartner, wear glasses with ease and confidence. Today I am sharing some of our experiences with teaching Teagan about wearing glasses and also putting together a list of tips to get kids to wear glasses.
Encouraging Kids To Wear Their Glasses
Let me start at the beginning, glasses are expensive and a lot of times glasses have a stigma that some kids cannot handle. That being said, when we found out that Teagan needed to be wearing glasses all the time I really struggled with this because I was worried about her confidence and my checkbook. Well, we jumped in and found our groove and over one year later I am excited to share some of our favorite tips and tricks.
Tips For Getting Kids To Wear Their Glasses
1. Let the child pick out their own glasses.
This might be Teagan’s favorite part of this whole “wearing glasses” thing. She is our little fashionista so you better believe she has a lot to say about which glasses she picks out. When we do this we also take into consideration the type of frames and lens we order. While some of the kid proof options are a bit pricier we do them so we know they will be okay as she wears them every day.
2. Explain to your child the importance of wearing glasses.
For some kids this might not even need to be talked about because they enjoy seeing so much better with them on but it is still really important to discuss what wearing glasses does for your eyes. If your child does not have a very strong prescription, they may not understand why wearing glasses can be beneficial to them. Did you know that wearing glasses may prevent troubles in school, or with headaches? Awesome!
3. Find a Routine.
Adding this to your schedule might be a big change and if you are like us it took is awhile and through out this last year we have found days that we all simply forgot to get her glasses out of the case! Now she notices when they are not on so we have found a great morning and bedtime routine that works well for all of us.
4. Talk about other people who wear glasses.
Like I said, there seems to be a stigma of wearing glasses at a young age – the work nerd comes to mind and frankly I do not want my kids to feel bad about themselves. So, when we started talking about how Teagan will need to wear glasses we started pointing out all of our friends and family who wear glasses. We also started pointing out characters in movies and TV shows that wear them. She found some extra confidence in these discoveries.
5. Don’t let the glasses change their activities.
Do not limit their fun or activities just because of their glasses. Sometimes kids worry that they won’t be able to do all of the things they used to be able to do. This is definitely not true! Teagan still plays soccer, dances and rides bikes with friends with no issues. Continue this practice as they get older.
6. Have an extra pair.
Kids are kids, chances are you will need to have a spare pair on hand just in case. This will help with the stress if something happens to your child’s glasses. Be prepared!
7. Teach responsibility.
We talked about how expensive glasses can be, that being said it really is important to talk about this in hopes that the child will take more responsibility for their glasses. Part of that includes finding their daily routine and keeping them clean. This is a huge life lesson and I love that Teagan has learned some extra responsibility when taking care of her glasses.
8. Share their confidence.
Now that Teagan wears her glasses daily with little or no prompt it is exciting to see her confidence. When I see her rocking her glasses I always let her know how great she looks and how excited I am that she is able to see better. Glasses are not a bad thing, they are a great tool to help people have the gift of better sight!
Those are our tips for getting kids to wear their glasses. I would love to hear if you have any other tips that you have found helpful.
