Forsight Vision's Summer Camp Checklist for Kids

School’s out—and parents everywhere are running around trying to wrap up all those pre-camp details. Medical forms? Check! Gallon of SPF 30 sunscreen? Check! New bathing suit? Check!

Make sure you’ve already updated their glasses or contacts with their latest prescriptions. The eye doctors at Forsight Vision in Long Grove want to offer you a few more tips to make their summer as safe and fun as possible:

Sport frames
Playing active sports like baseball, tennis and volleybul, put their standard frames at risk with every swing, serve and spike. It’s not too late to get a quality set of sport frames with scratch-resistant prescription lenses. Don’t wait until they break their everyday frames!

Straps and cords
No one wants to lose their glasses or sunglasses because they didn’t spend a few dollars on a strap or cord. Ideal for hiking, kayaking or any other activity where it might be difficult to retrieve a lost pair of glasses.

Cases
Forsight Vision provides a case with each pair of glasses or sunglasses sold by our office. Teach your kids to keep their glasses in the case whenever they are not wearing them.

Repair kit
No glasses-wearer should be without an inexpensive repair kit that includes tiny screws and a mini-screwdriver for reconnecting earpieces to frames.

Cleaning kit
Make sure they bring lens cleaner, and a microfiber or lint-free cotton cloth to keep those lenses clean.

Sunglasses
Even if you kids don't have prescription sunglasses, they do need UV protection for their eyes. Consider purchasing a few pairs of inexpensive shades. If they get lost or destroyed—you won’t care. Your teenagers might be responsible enough for top quality, designer sunglasses, but you might not want to send those to camp and opt for a less expensive pair.

Goggles
Our optometrists recommend sports goggles for kids who play basketball, baseball, softball or volleyball—even if they don’t wear glasses. Goggles protect eyes from hard balls and sharp fingers that can do serious damage. Scratched corneas are not fun.

Contact lenses and solution
Contact lenses can get lost with frightening speed. If your kids wear contacts make sure they have enough throwaway lenses or solution to get through their whole camp stay.

Book lights
Rainy afternoons, bedtime, breaks between activities—there can be a lot of downtime at camp, and some kids love to read books or magazines in their spare time. If reading is one of their downtime activities, be sure to send them with a book light and lots of batteries. Whether they wear glasses or not, they’ll enjoy camp even more if they’re not experiencing any eye strain!

If your kids need a last-minute eye exam or extra contact lenses before they leave, call us at 847-955-9393 and our optical staff will help you in any way they can. Now might also be a convenient time to schedule your kids’ annual eye exams before they go head back to school in August. Call us or schedule an eye exam online.