posted from: http://www.paceyemd.com/blog/why-you-should-schedule-an-annual-back-to-school-eye-exam/

With everything that needs to be done before you send your kids back to school, it’s easy to overlook an important aspect that many of us take for granted—good eyesight!

The vision of your children is essential to their academic performance, so getting them in for a back-to-school eye exam before class begins will help set them on the track to success.
Vision Evaluation
Making sure your kids are seeing clearly is the biggest reason to bring them in for a checkup. If they can’t see the board or read comfortably from books, they’ll struggle to retain information and keep their grades up. This especially applies to younger children who may not even be aware that they’re not seeing like they should.

Many schools offer vision screenings to detect eye problems, however these aren’t always performed by eye doctors and may not be as comprehensive as a full eye evaluation is. Instead of relying on the school, bring your kids to a licensed eye doctor to ensure that they get the correction that will help them perform at their best.
Health Concerns
Many people think eye doctors are just for getting eye glasses, and that if you can see fine you don’t need eye exams. However, this is untrue, and neglecting your eye health could have a negative long-term impact.

A regular part of eye exams involve eye doctors evaluating the health of your eyes, both inside and out. They can check for irritations, infections, or even serious eye diseases that develop over time, such as glaucoma. Even if your child doesn’t need glasses, early childhood eye exams are important to make sure their eyes stay healthy and give them the vision they need to excel in school.