Visual Performance System™
One clinical system for visual performance.
A child can pass an eye exam and still struggle to read, write, and pay attention. This system helps you find out why, and what to do about it – step by step.
Sign in / create accountHow it works
See it
Check it
Do it
What it looks like
Start here
Most people start with one screen and one student.
Assessment tools
Intervention tools
More
Free · No sign-up
Loses his place. Can't copy from the board. Writes off the line.
Everyday tasks, not a specialty topic. Pick what you're seeing and get what it may mean, two or three supports to try tomorrow, and a clear line for when to refer.
Helping professionals see learning differently.
When 20/20 vision isn’t enough.
The Visual Performance System™
A child can pass an eye exam and still struggle to read, write, and pay attention. This system helps you find out why, and what to do about it – step by step.
The Visual Performance System™ helps occupational therapists identify visual performance barriers, assess functional impact with the VPA™, generate intervention plans, and improve participation in learning.
Jeff Foster, MS, OTR/L, EdD(ABD) · 26+ years in school-based, neuro-rehab, retina, home health, and telehealth practice · AOTA Approved Provider.
Clinical Record
- 01Over 26 years as a licensed OT practicing in schools, retina practice, home health, neuro-rehab, community practice, program development, telehealth, and academia.
- 02300+ workshops on vision & handwriting since 2018
- 03AOTA Approved Provider
- 04MOT & OTA faculty · guest lecturer at multiple colleges
- 05EdD in progress (ABD) · Valdosta State
Vision isn't a subspecialty. It's the foundation of every occupation we ask a child, or an adult, to perform.
Jeff Foster, MS, OTR/L, EdD(ABD)
Founder · Visual Minds Learning
Free · No sign-up
Loses his place. Can't copy from the board. Writes off the line.
Everyday tasks, not a specialty topic. Pick what you're seeing and get what it may mean, two or three supports to try tomorrow, and a clear line for when to refer.
Start here
Find your first step.
New to this
Newly practicing OT
Not sure where visual performance fits in your evaluations?
Start with the foundations courseTeacher or TVI
Classroom & vision staff
You see the struggle in the classroom. Find out whether vision is part of it.
Run the free classroom checklistSchool or district leader
Schools, districts, clinics
Standardize how your team screens, plans, and reports.
See organizational implementationParent or caregiver
Families
Your child passed the eye exam and still struggles.
Go to the family hubYou do not need to learn the whole system to use it. Most people start with one screen and one student.
What it looks like
This starts with a real child, in a real classroom.
The journey
From “something isn’t right” to measurable occupational performance.
A child struggles
Reading, writing, attention, and participation break down — but the eye exam came back fine.
Improved occupational performance
The child participates in the occupations that matter at school and at home.
The moment scoring ends
The assessment doesn’t end with a score. It ends with a plan.
Illustrative view of the clinical decision support generated the moment a VPA™ is scored.
Before
Notes, guesses, and loose handouts
After
One plan you can run on Monday
- Priority
- Visual efficiency – sustained near work
- Goal
- Copies 4 lines from the board with 1 loss of place
- Dose
- 3x weekly · 10 minutes · 9 weeks
- Review
- End of the IEP quarter
The workflow
How the Visual Performance System™ works
See it
What you notice in reading, writing, and attention.
Check it
A short screen tells you whether vision belongs in the conversation.
Do it
You get a plan: goals, activities, dosage, and a review date.
Do you see this?
A child who looks fine on an eye chart but still struggles in the classroom.
Reads accurately but very slowly
Loses place while reading
Avoids writing
Poor spacing on the page
Difficulty copying from the board
Fatigues during near work
Appears inattentive during visually demanding tasks
Passed the eye exam but continues to struggle
If you recognize this student, Visual Performance deserves a closer look.
What if the eye exam doesn't tell the whole story?
Seeing 20/20 is only one part of successful school performance.
Reading. Writing. Attention. Visual-motor performance. Organization. Participation. Learning. Visual Performance plays an important role in all of these.
- 01
Visual Access
Acuity & contrast
- 02
Visual Efficiency
Fixation, pursuits, saccades, convergence
- 03
Visual Processing
Discrimination, memory, spatial, figure-ground
- 04
Visual-Motor Integration
Eye-hand transfer & handwriting readiness
- 05
Functional Integration
Reading & generative writing
The VPA™ traces the same hierarchy every time — from visual access and visual efficiency to visual-cognitive integration, visual-motor expression, and finally occupational performance. One framework. Clear language. Real function.
Who We Serve
Everyone enters the same system through a pathway designed for their role.
Practitioners, schools, healthcare organizations, and families each have a front door — all lead into the Visual Performance System™.
Occupational Therapy Practitioners
Assessment frameworks, intervention planning, and AOTA-approved contact hours.
Explore coursesSchools & Districts
Standardized visual performance assessment, team training, and district-wide implementation.
Implement across your organizationHealthcare Organizations
One clinical framework and platform for clinics, hospitals, and telehealth teams.
See organizational implementationFamilies
Plain-language help, printables, and a clear path for who to call first.
Visit the family hubFree · No login
Not sure if it's a vision thing?
A 15-question checklist for parents, teachers, and OT practitioners. Answer honestly and get an instant plain-language report. It shows which of the five visual domains have concerning behaviors and what to do next. This is an educational screening tool, not a diagnosis.
Practiced Across
Who's behind this
Jeff Foster, MS, OTR/L, EdD(ABD)
I've been a licensed OT for over 26 years, most of it in school-based practice. I built vision rehab programs inside a retina surgery practice and a home health agency, worked inpatient and outpatient neuro-rehab, and delivered telehealth. I've taught at four colleges and still guest lecture for OT and OTA programs. More than 300 workshops on vision and handwriting. The VPA™ framework and Visual Minds Learning grew out of one simple question: why do some children with "normal" eyesight still struggle to read, write, and participate in school?
Trusted by clinicians
What OTs say about Jeff's work.
“Engaging speaker with top-notch interventions. I would highly recommend Dr. Foster for a continuing education workshop.”
“The clearest thinking on visual performance I've encountered in 15 years of teaching.”
“I walked out of the workshop with tools I used the next morning. That never happens.”
“I have had the privilege of working alongside Jeff Foster in both academic and clinical settings. His learning and training sessions in the areas of vision/visual perception are outstanding. He presents materials clearly, encourages participation, and provides practical examples that make the concepts easy to understand and apply. Sessions are engaging, well-structured and highly informative. Every session reflects not only his extensive knowledge but also the wisdom that comes from years of experience and thoughtful practice. Individuals that attend his sessions gain valuable knowledge, increased confidence, and actionable tools that can be utilized in the clinic or classroom. I would highly recommend his training sessions to anyone seeking a meaningful and enriching learning experience in the areas of vision/vision perception.”
Testimonials reflect the individual experience of each clinician and are not typical or guaranteed. Contributors received no payment or free product in exchange for their comments. Per FTC guidance (16 CFR Part 255), any material connection (e.g., past consulting engagement, workshop participation) is noted on the contributor's byline where applicable.
The System in Action
Four ways to put the Visual Performance System™ to work.
Each pathway is an entry point into the same framework: education, assessment, organizational implementation, and direct support.
Learn the framework
AOTA-approved courses, workshops, and certification that teach the Visual Performance Framework from screening through progress monitoring.
Explore courses
Use the VPA™ assessment engine
Mini VPA™ screening, Full VPA™ assessment, and built-in clinical decision support that turns scores into priorities, goals, and recommendations.
Explore the VPA™
Deploy across your organization
Site licenses, team training, and implementation support for districts, clinics, healthcare systems, telehealth providers, and universities.
For Organizations
Get direct clinical support
Consulting, speaking, and team training for districts, clinics, and universities that want hands-on guidance from the framework's author.
Explore consulting
Assessment Engine
The VPA™ powers the assessment step of the Visual Performance System™.
The Visual Performance Assessment is a five-domain clinical framework that gives OTs a shared language for how vision supports real-world function. Built on 26+ years of school-based practice and clinical experience across retina surgery, neuro-rehabilitation, home health, and telehealth.
Visual Access
Visual Efficiency
Visual Processing
Visual-Motor Integration
Functional Integration
Free Clinical Tool
The 5-Minute Screener every OT should know.
Run it right in the browser. 5 tasks, PASS/FLAG scoring, and clear refer-out triggers. Prefer paper? Grab the PDF companion on the free resources page.
The whole picture
One System. One Workflow. Better Clinical Decisions and Meaningful Outcomes.
Explore the SystemThe Visual Performance System™ brings together everything a practitioner needs to move from "something looks off" to defensible documentation — without switching tools, vocabularies, or frameworks along the way.
Education teaches the framework. Screening and the VPA™ assessment engine quantify what's happening. Clinical decision support turns scores into recommendations, goals, accommodations, and referral flags. The intervention library supplies the treatment. Telehealth keeps it usable in virtual delivery. Progress monitoring closes the loop with reassessment — one integrated workflow.
Clinical Insights
Join Clinical Insights.
One list, one email. Evidence-informed notes on vision, handwriting, and literacy. Plus new resources and VPA™ updates. One or two emails a month, from Jeff.