At what age does a child become left/right handed??

[Drinkandknowthings]

Just curious. DD is 3 and still swaps between hands when holding a pencil/crayon. She does seem to favour her left though and seems to have a bit more control (lines are a bit straighter). So I’m just wondering.

My daughter around 9 months I noticed when I gave her a spoon or finger food she would always put it in her left hand. We have lots of left handlers in the family so I was almost expecting her to be left handed.

I was 6 or 7 before I standardly used one hand for writing. However I am fairly ambidextrous and will use my nondominate hand for a number of things including writing if it's more convenient.

I eat left handed.

How do you eat left handed ? I'm right handed and dsis is left handed but we have no idea what you mean.

Some people are ambidextrous - my Dad is, and although he writes with his left hand he can do everything else (sawing, drilling, painting etc.) with either hand which is pretty handy. So far DS is the same at 2.8

My dd was in reception year (one of the eldest) and she would write with both hands. The class teacher was concerned so referred her to special needs coordinator, who said it was absolutely fine. Class teacher said she just had to choose a hand for each piece of work and stick with it for that piece.

She’s now right handed and probably was by the end of the reception year.

She broke her left arm at about 2yes old, not sure If that made a difference.

Both my sons are lefties (as am I). To me, it was fairly obvious early on that they were using their left hand more. I never tried to force it, just let them find their preference.

DS1 is very left handed/left footed but DS2 is right footed when playing footy.

When they were little, they were both thumb suckers. DS1 sucked his right thumb, leaving his left hand free for colouring, etc but DS2 sucked his left thumb!

I remember my friend's Mum offering DS1 a biscuit, when he was about 8 mths old & he reached for it with his left hand - she moved away and tried to get him to take it with his right hand, stupid woman.

Although I write left handed, I use my right hand for pouring the kettle, (think that's because the kettle was set right handed when I moved in with (right handed) DH, peeling spuds etc. Yet I use my left for using food tongs or stirring cooking.
I use normal (right handed) scissors but in my left hand!!
No wonder I'm mixed up! 😆

nameymcnamechangeagain

I'm right handed but kick a ball with my left foot and use my left eye for cameras or microscopes.

I can't use a phone on my right ear.

I use both hands to brush my teeth and hair.

We have a fair number of left handers in the family.

DS1 is a lefty and I can't remember when he started to show signs of it! DH (also a lefty) says as soon as he started grabbing stuff, it was obvious. So under a year then, I guess.....

When my youngest started school I had to speak to them as he still used both hands and showed no preference.

Now he’s 5 he writes with his right, but still often swaps to his left for eating, painting etc. He’s also left footed.

My oldest was clearly right handed from when she first started shaking rattles etc. DD2 was always a bit ambidextrous and still mixes it up a bit at 16. She tends to be consistent for a particular task, but does some tasks right handed and some left.

use my left eye for cameras or microscopes.

I can't use a phone on my right ear

I’m the same, right handed but use my left eye for using a camera or looking through anything. DH finds it amusing at how I try and awkwardly hold a camera up. I would make a useless archer or shooter. I also only hold my phone to my left ear.

We are much more right and left than we think we are, it’s not just about handedness.

My DS used both until he was six then decided on his left.

DD1 was clearly left handed from as soon as she reached for things as a very small baby.

DD1 used both until she was nearly 6.
She was diagnosed with dyspraxia and dyslexia at 8. She uses her right hand now, but uses cutlery like a leftie.

DD2 we knew was left handed (like DH) from around 12-18 months.

We knew from very early on. My dd would grab with her left hand for toys etc.

Recent research (via Rutherford and Fry ) suggests it's decided in the womb before birth. Babies express a preference for thumb-sucking which carries into life after birth. Which suggests a genetic element.

www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07wpf5s

Until I had an accident which lost me the use of my left arm, I was pretty ambidextrous - left footed, wrote with my right hand (though aged 6 my mum made me spend a summer writing with my left hand to see if my handwriting would be better), play tennis, hockey etc left handed. MY dh is left handed but is fine with right handed corkscrews, and it was the joke that I was the one that needed them as I could never get it correct otherwise.
DS is like me and not strongly one sided

I think a lot of people think it's either/or in the case of which hand, but I've noticed over the years that it's more a spectrum. IE that there is a range from fully left-handed all the way through to fully right handed, and people can be anywhere in the range.

I'm classed as mixed handed. I can write with both hands (completely different styles) but I find I tend to use one hand for some things, and the other hand for other things, with a tendency towards being right handed. My late mum said she thought I've never settle down on which hand to use for writing.

An ambidextrous person can use both hands equally for everything, and being fully ambidextrous isn't common.

One thing I'm curious about is the number of left handed people in Asia. I've recently been watching a good number of vidoes about the street food over there, and noticed a significant proportion of left handers. It almost seems as if the proportion of left handers is higher.

DS1 switched between the two and didnt settle on RH untill about 4/5. Though even as an adult i think some things he does LH

DS1 was very LH from the start and right footed unless it was a scooter.

Me and dh are left handed but dd started showing a preference for right at about 2.5.

I think I used both hands till about 4/5 when teacher said I had to pick one and stick to it

My daughter used both of her hands till about 2 years old. Till she was 3, 3 & 1/2, she chose her dominant hand.
I heard my mom say that I used to use both my hands when I was young. And looking back i do believe that. Even though I am primarily left handed, i do most tasks with my right too.

Dd was left handed from birth but I was water for it as she has lefties in all directions.

OP, if yours turns out to be left handed (and some children do figure it out later - always off objects centrally) be sure to speak firmly to her swimming teachers. Most will teach leading with the right arm automatically and then wonder why your child is lagging!

My eldest had a very strong left hand preference from a baby. We knew she was going to be left-handed . My 3yo swaps. I thought she was going to be lifted-handed too but I honestly don’t know at the moment. I wonder if there is a bit of a spectrum as lots of posts on here saying some children were clearly one way or another from being tiny and others who seem comfortable ish with both.

My DD was clearly left handed from a baby. Unable to use left hand when she was 2 due to injury, managed perfectly ok with right but as soon as bandage came off went back to left

I'm right handed but left footed and left eyed.

My niece was obviously left handed as a toddler.

I CAN do things left handed and some things I swap eg brushing my teeth.

My dad and one of his brothers are left handed, my mum is right handed so I think I inherited a bit of both.

I taught myself to crochet left handed so that I could teach my cousin. I find it interesting that some people cannot do things with the other hand eg my dad can't use a spoon in his right hand.