Light Box Activity Guide Level Two, Large Print (7-08680-00)

The Child with Cortical Visual Impairment:Considerations for performing Activities with theLight BoxThe child diagnosed with Cortical Visual Impairment may notrespond to the activities suggested for the Light Box in thesame manner as a child whose vision loss is due to ocularabnormalities. The child whose vision loss is due to damageto the visual cortex and/or posterior visual pathways is saidto have Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) (Groenveld, Jan &Leader, 1990). Damage may be caused by cerebral hypoxia;other causes include cytoplasmosis, toxoplasmosis,meningitis, trauma, and conditions causing cerebraldegeneration. (Merrill & Kewman, 1986).The agent causing CVI may cause additional differences inthe functioning of the child’s brain and nervous system. Ithas been observed that many children with CVI are easilyoverstimulated, a difficulty which may be associated with aninability of the nervous system to selectively attend toimportant stimuli and screen out irrelevant stimuli in theenvironment. The child is flooded with many types of stimuliwithout a sufficient means to sort out and disregard theexcess. Overstimulation, it has been theorized, may triggerthe child’s withdrawal, which serves as a protectiveresponse, shielding him from further overstimulation and theresulting stress. (Groenveld, Jan & Leader, 1990; Morse,1990). For this reason, intense visual displays, or otherintense stimuli, should be avoided, as a child with CVI mayexperience discomfort and withdraw, even if he initiallyshows signs of visual attention.15