Yash Gupta: Teenager With A Clear Vision to Help Others See

Yash Gupta has worn glasses for many years.  When they broke one day and he was not able to wear them to school (Northwood High School in Irvine, CA), he had a big problem.  He could not see much of what was going on in his classroom and, at the end of the day, realized he had learned nothing that day!

Yash quickly got his glasses fixed, but his experience changed his life.  He realized that there were probably many kids around the world that did not have proper glasses to help them learn in school.

So, he did some research. He found out that there 13 million children around the world don’t have proper glasses to help them see in class. And he learned that not having glasses can cause a 20% loss in learning!

Instead of just shaking his head at this problem, he decided to do something about it. Yash started a small organization, Sight Learning, to help find glasses for other kids and teens that need them.

He created Sight Learning in 2011 and since then he has impacted thousands of young students around the world! Sight Learning’s mission is “to provide eyeglasses to students who need them but cannot afford them.” They have collected and donated over $1,000,000 worth of eyeglasses.  This has helped over 20,000 young people in 5 countries to see better!

As Dr. Seuss once said, “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”  Yash is a great example of a young person taking action to not only improve his own life, but those of others.

Yash was honored as a CNN Hero.  Check out this inspiring video and then see how you can help below:

Here is an interview with Yash:

Additional Resources:

• Visit Sight Learning to learn more about Yash’s work
• Learn more about people who are impacted by vision problems and blindness
• Watch other great IMK stories about children and adults that exhibit caring
• Read IMK’s list of great quotes for kids about caring

Topics for Discussion:

• What is special about Yash?
• What inspired Yash to take action?
• Do you see a problem around you that impacts a lot of people, but no one is doing anything about it?

Take Action:

• Here is a real easy and important way to help Yash and Sight Learning:  Visit a local eye doctor or eye glass store and ask if you can put a Sight Learning donation box in it to collect old eye glasses.  Then, contact Yash at yashgupta@sightlearning.com to request a box. When it arrives, bring the box to the store.  It’s that simple!  You alone could then be helping hundreds of kids each year!
• Support Yash and Sight Learning by donating used glasses, becoming a volunteer or starting a Sight Learning Club at your school.  Click here to learn more
• Find a problem in your world that needs fixing.  Talk to you friends, parents and teachers about what you could do to solve it.

Teacher Features:

• Here is a link to a Critical Reading Skills worksheet that you can use for elementary school students.
• Here is a link to a Critical Reading Skills worksheet that you can use for middle school students.