Visual memory problems are woefully underrecognized as the source of school underachievement. If a child has IQ testing by the school district, visual memory problems might appear as lower Performance IQ scores, or a 'non verbal learning disorder' pattern.
It's hard to put yourself into the perspective of a child with visual memory problems, because we usually take our visual memory activities for granted. If we study a picture on the board, then look away, we can talk about it because we remember it. Children with visual memory problems can't do this, though, and even though them may study it carefully (non inattentive), it may be a blank or all jumbled within moments.
Children who have difficulty remembering whether a 'b' looks lik 'b', 'd', 'p', or 'q', may translate what they see into words ("ball stick") to make up for their visual memory problems, but then find that these words can't tell them orientation. Other children may have no trouble with letter recognition, but stumble when it comes to visual landmarks and surroundings, so that they're constantly getting lost, and being overwhelmed by visual material.
Dysgraphic children with visual memory problems may be able to copy sentences well, but draw a blank or tear up their paper when asked to write on their own. Also because some of the pathways that carry visual information in the brain appear to split up into 'where' and 'what' regions, it's possible to have selective memory problems in spatial information and object recognition. Then children might present with curious visual rotation errors while writing or drawing, or disproportionately low scores on IQ or achievement tests that examine picture recognition or memory.
Sometimes visual memory difficulties are more subtle, and only begin to present with problems as a child enters his or her upper elementary or middle school years. Then the increasing amounts of visual information - flowsheets, diagrams, graphs, and graphic figures can be overwhelming. Science class and multi-stepped mathematics can be particularly tough because of the need to remember both detail and spatial organization.
Visual Memory Problems and Dysgraphia
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