You may think that getting your kids to wear eyeglasses is difficult.  It really is not IF they feel comfortable, confident, and stylish in their eyeglasses. They will love eyeglasses if you get the right ones that fit right and look good. A comfortable, correct fit is essential for children’s glasses.

Wohl Optics has introduced a new kid’s line of  eyeglass frames for babies 6 month children to age 5 years old.This line of eyeglass frames is custom fit for your child. Frames are fit to your child’s face, rather than your child fitting to the frame.

Did you know that 80% of your child’s learning is done with their eyes? Good vision is required to read, write, and use an iPad or other classroom materials. Without good vision, children will struggle with even the most basic tasks and fall behind.

We know that walking into an optical store can be daunting. You'll see plenty of children's eyeglass frames, but how do you figure out which ones your child is willing to wear and which ones will last longer than your ride home? 

Another issue we often hear is that parents are afraid their children will scratch, break, or lose eyewear; we are here to help you make the best choice.  This is why it is so important that we talk together in person. 

Let's take a look at what is important in getting eyeglasses for your children. Wohl Optics is here to help your family, but take a look at our guide - 10 Tips Buying Glasses for Children

Children under the age of 20 are the most susceptible to the damaging effects of UV light. We highly recommend sunglasses for children of all ages.  Talk with us about our new line of eyewear for children age 0-5.

One of the toughest parts about choosing suitable frames for children is that their noses are not fully developed, so they don't have a bridge to prevent plastic frames from sliding down. Metal frames usually are made with adjustable nose pads, so they fit everyone's bridge.

Most manufacturers recognize this difficulty with plastic frames and make their bridges to fit small noses.  Each frame must be evaluated individually to make sure it fits the bridge. If any gaps exist between the bridge of the frame and the bridge of the nose, the weight of the lenses will cause the glasses to slide, no matter how well the frame seems to fit before the lenses are made.

It is important that the glasses stay in place, because kids tend to look right over the tops of the lenses instead of pushing slipping glasses back up where they belong. As your optician, we know whether a frame fits properly.

Wrap-around Temples:  Temples that wrap all the way around the back of the ear help keep glasses from sliding down or dropping off your child's face completely.  Wraparound temples  generally are available on metal frames and are especially helpful to keep glasses in place on toddlers.

Babies and Toddlers:  Some frames have nose pads and cable temples that wrap snugly around ears to hold eyeglasses in place.

Head Strap:  Another option is a strap that goes around the head.

Part Time Eyeglass Use:  Eyeglasses with cable temples and/or straps are not a good choice for part-time eyeglass wearers because they are a bit more difficult to put on and take off.   For glasses that go on and off frequently, it is better to have regular, or skull temples that go straight back and then curve gently around the back of the ear.

Many of Wohl's patients, both adults and children, prefer spring hinges on the frame temple.. These special hinges allow the temples to flex outward, away from the frames, without causing any damage. Although they sometimes cost a bit more, spring hinges can be a worthwhile investment for children's eye wear.

Kids are not always careful when they put on and take off glasses; spring hinges can help prevent the need for frequent adjustments and costly repairs. They also come in handy if the child falls asleep with the glasses on or just has a rough day at play. Spring hinges are strongly recommended for toddlers, who sometimes get carried away playing with their new glasses.

Once you and your child agree on frames that you both like, we must then consider lens material:

• Children's lenses should be made of polycarbonate or a material called Trivex because these lightweight materials are significantly more impact-resistant than other lens materials.  Not only are they the safest materials, they also are lighter in weight than regular plastic lenses, a nice advantage for strong prescriptions.
• Polycarbonate and Trivex have built-in protection against potentially damaging Ultraviolet (UV) rays, and the lenses are scratch-resistant.
• The price for polycarbonate lenses generally is comparable to the cost for regular plastic lenses with UV and scratch-resistant coatings. Don't forget that with polycarbonate lenses, kids get that extra margin of safety to protect their eyes.  Keep in mind that Trivex lenses may cost a little more than polycarbonate.

This is when lifestyle comes into consideration. Are your children active in sports or rough in play? 

Polycarbonate is such a safe lens material that you may be tempted to let your child play sports in his regular glasses.  Here's the drawback: Although polycarbonate is the lens material used for sports eyewear, regular eyeglass frames do not provide enough protection from large objects such as balls and flying elbows. So if your child is involved in sports, a proper sports goggle with polycarbonate lenses will provide the best protection against eye injury.  Yes, we carry them for you.

To provide optimum protection, sports goggles must be fitted properly and it really helps to work with an experienced optician before making a purchase. Although it sounds counter-intuitive, a sports goggle should have a larger vertical eye opening, rather than a smaller one. If an impact should occur and the goggles are pushed toward the face, a large eye opening keeps the impact points far above and below the eyes. With a small opening, the goggle hits right at the edge of the eye socket, which can damage the globe of the eye.