Este artigo está licenciado sob forma de uma licença Creative Commons Atribuição 4.0 Internacional, que permite uso irrestrito, distribuição e reprodução em qualquer meio, desde que a publicação original seja corretamente citada. ABSTRACT Aims:To investigate the occurrence of visual disturbances in schoolchildren from a philanthropic institution in the city of Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with students aged six to 12 years, both male and female, who attended a philanthropic institution in 2012. The Ishihara test and the Snellen chart were used for visual screening. Later, those students with abnormal results were referred to a specialist. Results: Ninety-four schoolchildren were included in the study. Eighteen were found by the visual screening to have some impairment: suspected dyschromatopsia in five and poor visual acuity in 13, according to the Snellen chart. Eleven students, three with suspected dyschromatopsia and eight with poor visual acuity, went to see a specialist. After ophthalmologic evaluation, one child with suspected dyschromatopsia was unsure about the positive diagnosis. Among the students with abnormal visual acuity, two presented with visual deficit. Conclusions:The results show that, although a considerable number of students presented with some type of visual problem during the visual screening, impairment was not confirmed by most of the ophthalmologic evaluations. These findings highlight the importance of screening for the detection of visual disorders, provided that it is followed by ophthalmologic assessments for proper diagnosis and guidance.