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Ophthalmologist: history and fun facts

Everything a curious kid might want to know about this job.

Did you know?

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Your eyes can move in lots of directions, and they move together, so both eyes look at the same thing at once.

Through history

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    Long ago

    People long ago used simple magnifying glasses to help them see small things up close. Eye doctors have been finding better ways to help eyes ever since.

Tools of the trade

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Penlight

A small, bright light the doctor shines into your eyes. It helps them look closely at the inside of each eye.

A day in the job

  • MorningThe ophthalmologist greets patients and washes their hands. Then the first family comes in, and the quiet room is ready for reading letters and looking at eyes.

Words to know

Eye chart
A poster with rows of letters that get smaller and smaller. You read them out loud to show how clearly you can see.

Quiz time

  • An ophthalmologist takes care of eyes, and only eyes.

  • An eye doctor can only look at your eyes with a magic wand.